The Gators were not finishing second again this year.
After falling 0.075 points short of winning the 2012 national title, Florida clinched its first NCAA championship on Saturday in Los Angeles. UF joins Georgia, Alabama, Utah and UCLA as the five schools to win a national title in gymnastics.
“It has been years in the making, and everyone trusted what we were doing at Florida and they believed in us,” coach Rhonda Faehn said. “This was the next goal, to break into that final four schools that have won.”
With a score of 197.575, Florida edged Oklahoma by a margin of 0.2. Alabama placed third with 197.35 points.
The Gators kicked off the evening with its thinnest rotation — balance beam. Florida recorded a 48.875 — the team’s lowest score since posting a 48.525 in a 196.975-196.075 win against Kentucky on Feb. 22.
Missteps from Ashanee Dickerson and Kytra Hunter resulted in the Gators falling behind early during their first rotation. But Bridget Sloan and Marissa King helped Florida rebound to finish its first routine despite a relatively low score.
The Gators produced better results during the floor event. Only Jamie Shisler scored lower than a 9.9, and UF bounced back from its poor performance on beam.
Sloan, King and Bridgette Caquatto pinned scores of 9.95, and Hunter capped the rotation with a 9.975. Hunter’s score gave Florida the highest mark on the floor in NCAA history.
In Florida’s next event, Johnson, King and Hunter tallied three scores of 9.9 on the vault. Sloan, the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year then added a score of 9.95, giving Florida a 148.1 after three events.
After losing their lead to the Crimson Tide on the final rotation at the 2012 NCAA Championships, the Gators needed a strong finish this season. Uneven bars was a welcome sight for UF.
As the nation’s top-ranked team on uneven bars prior to the NCAA Championships, Florida made its final push in its best event.
After Bianca Dancose-Giambattisto and King led off the rotation with scores of 9.85 and 9.875, respectively, the rest of the rotation picked up the slack. Sloan, Johnson and Mackenzie Caquatto posted scores of 9.9 or higher to secure the Gators’ first title.
“My voice is basically gone. That’s what we wanted to do — leave here with no voice,” Sloan said. “We left everything out on the floor. This event does not compare to worlds or the Olympics, but it feels pretty dang good.”
After winning the top prize on Saturday, Florida swept the individual event finals.
Alaina Johnson won the uneven bars title, and Sloan claimed the beam and vault championships.
Despite missing time due to a stress fracture this season, Johnson scored a 9.95 on uneven bars. Sloan and Mackenzie Caquatto came in a tie for third with a score of 9.9.
Sloan scored the only 9.95 on balance beam to take the outright victory.
Florida celebrates its victory at the NCAA Championships on April 20 in Los Angeles. The Gators became the fifth gymnastics program to win a national title.
