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No. 1 (11-0-1, 6-0-0 SEC) OU women’s gymnastics defeated No. 2 LSU (6-2-1, 3-2 SEC) 198.125-197.925 at the Lloyd Noble Center on Friday.

OU women's gymnastics head coach K.J. Kindler on the performance during win over LSU

The matchup marked a battle of titans in women’s gymnastics. OU and LSU have combined to win the last four national championships. When these two teams faced each other to begin the season, it ended in a tie. Entering the meet, OU ranked top nationally on vault and beam, while LSU ranked highest on floor. OU senior Faith Torrez entered as the top-ranked individual gymnast on beam, with sophomore Addison Fatta leading the nation on vault. LSU sophomore Kailin Chio ranked second in both categories.

Chio entered the meet ranked third nationally all-around and led the charge for LSU throughout Friday’s meet. She dueled with Fatta, who entered the meet ranked second all-around. Despite OU winning the meet, Chio won the all-around title, with two perfect scores helping her reach 39.850. OU freshman Mackenzie Estep and sophomore Lily Pederson also competed all-around, filling in on events for junior Keira Wells, who missed the meet with the flu. Fatta and Pederson tied for second, scoring 39.650.

In front of a program record crowd of 10,234, OU got out to an early lead with a strong performance on vault. Sophomore Elizabeth Blessey led off the meet and posted OU’s highest individual score of the night with a career-high 9.975. 

“It was amazing, and sticking it felt so good because I had been wanting it for so long,” Blessey said, “I’ve been there, been close, and to get it tonight was just really special.”

The Sooners maintained their advantage with a good team score on bars, typically OU’s weakest event. LSU stayed close throughout the first half of the meet, driven by Chio’s first perfect 10 of the night, which came on vault.

“She’s a 10 waiting to happen” OU women’s gymnastics head coach K.J. Kindler said. “That should be her middle name. She’s an amazing athlete.”

OU held a 0.275 lead at the halfway point and maintained that lead through the second half of the meet. 

The third rotation saw OU on beam and LSU on floor, both events where they rank first in the country. OU scored a 49.500, with solid scores across the board. Fatta started the rotation off with a score of 9.9, while Sophomore Elle Mueller scored a 9.95, OU’s highest on the event. Chio scored a 9.925 on the floor, which tied for the highest floor score of the meet.

Chio scored a 10 on the beam in LSU’s final rotation, her fourth perfect 10 of the season, but the Tigers were unable to close the gap. A consistent closing rotation on floor where no scoring gymnast went below a 9.875 kept OU close to the Tigers and sealed the victory for the Sooners.

With the win, OU has now clinched a share of the Southeastern Conference regular season championship.

But Kindler wants more.

“It’s pretty exciting to say that we clinched it, but we would love to earn that championship flying solo,” Kindler said.

Next, the Sooners will face Auburn at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 27 at the Lloyd Noble Center on SEC Network.

This story was edited by Joshua McDaniel.

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