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OU Gymnastics: Oklahoma's Bid for Three Straight NCAA Titles Falls Flat

The Sooners have had a dominant season, but in the NCAA semifinals started slow, endured numerous falls and couldn't catch up.

John E. Hoover

Oklahoma gymnasts after Thursday's loss
Oklahoma gymnasts after Thursday's loss / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
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There will be no three-peat.

After one of the most dominating regular season runs in the history of college gymnastics, Oklahoma’s magical season came to a sudden halt on Thursday.

The No. 1-ranked Sooners struggled early, couldn’t catch up and finished behind No. 4 Florida and No. 5 Utah at the NCAA Championship semifinals in Fort Worth. The Utes outpaced the Gators 197.9375-197.8750 as both teams advance to Saturday's finals.

It was the first time since 2012 that K.J. Kindler’s squad didn’t quality for the championship final round, and it ended the team’s hopes of winning a third straight NCAA crown.

Oklahoma did crown three individual national champions as Audrey Davis shared the title in both bars and beam and Faith Torrez shared the beam title.

“We’ll live to flip another day, I’m sure of it,” Kindler said. “I hope that they walk out proud with their chins up, loving every moment of their experience here.”

That may not be possible, given the expectations this team created in posting a 36-2 meet record this season. 

OU had scored 198 or better in 25 consecutive matches, and 28 times in all. But Thursday they scored a season-low — by far — 196.6625.

OU struggled from the beginning, with two falls and one low score after another trickling in on vault behind freshman Kiera Wells’ 9.90.

The Sooners rallied immediately on bars as Danielle Sievers scored a 9.90, Kat LeVasseur hit a 9.95, Ragan Smith a 9.90, Audrey Davis a  9.9625 and Jordan Bowers a 9.950. The team’s 49.6625 was a school record at an NCAA semifinal meet. 

But the rally fizzled on beam after Davis’ 9.9625 as two more gymnasts fell. 

On floor, the Sooners were too far back to make a run despite strong scores from LeVasseur (9.90), Torrez (9.950) and Bowers (9.950). 

“The Sooners are human,” Kindler said. “We have lived in the luxury of success for over a decade. We have certainly worked for it, but on any given day, anything can happen. This is a testament to that.

“I give them all the credit for gutting it out through the whole end of it. It was tough. We talked about finishing on our own terms on floor, and I think they did that. These kinds of things can only build you up.”

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John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.