Oklahoma women’s gymnastics curated history for 12 years.
But as three OU gymnasts fell at the NCAA Championship semifinals, so did its active record-breaking streak.
"This team is one of the most consistent I have ever coached," OU head coach K.J. Kindler said. "We haven't counted a fall the entire year. We counted three today.
"That was the wall falling down."
The No. 1 team in the nation was handed their first loss of the season on Thursday night during the first round of the competition. The last time the Sooners didn’t make the finals was over a decade ago, in 2012.
“We’ll live to flip another day,” Kindler said after the meet.
However, the Sooners will have to wait until next season to do so.
Oklahoma watched as the dynasty it had built over the course of a season seemingly crumbled in the hands of a team that had broken records the entire year.
To open up the meet, Oklahoma posted a 48.325 on vault — its lowest score on the event since 2008. OU's poor showing was highlighted by uncharacteristic individual performances.
Sophomore Faith Torrez had her first fall of her collegiate career on vault, and junior Jordan Bowers, who took multiple deep steps backward and scored a 9.450, had thrown 42 consecutive vaults without a fall prior to Thursday's competition and only had two scores below 9.800 during that streak. Senior Katherine LeVasseur also struggled on the same vault skill as Bowers, scoring a season-low 9.375.
“Mistakes happen,” former OU gymnast Maggie Nichols told the OU Daily. “That will motivate them, and it will help them grow and learn. It will allow them to become better next year.”
Oklahoma was able to quickly respond on bars with a 49.6625 — the highest semifinal score in school history — but both LeVasseur, who had not fallen on an event since March 11, 2022, and sophomore Ava Siegfeldt would fall on beam, increasing No. 4 Florida’s and No. 5 Utah’s lead.
OU's final score of 196.6625 is its worst overall team score since Jan. 14, 2022, when the Sooners posted a 196.650 at Utah. It also marks Oklahoma's worst semifinal score and third lowest semifinal score all time since it posted a 196.550 in 2010 — although that mark qualified OU for its first NCAA finals appearance.
“It wasn’t as we scripted it, but you know, we’ve taken great pride in winning and we’re goning to take great pride in losing,” Kindler said on Thursday. “This was character-building for this team. They fought back hard and it was emotional. And I give them all the credit for gutting it out.
“It was tough.”
Despite having to stomach a loss that will linger, the Sooners were able to capitalize on certain opportunities this season.
Fifth-year Ragan Smith scored 11 perfect 10s on beam and broke the school record. The team also established a new NCAA scoring record with a 198.950, and won their 15th and final Big 12 title this year, before transitioning to the SEC next season.
Both Torrez and senior Audrey Davis were named co-national champions on beam, marking the first time since 2014 that OU had a top finisher in the event. Davis was also named one of the co-national champions on uneven bars.
“They should be extremely proud and celebrate those titles,” Nichols said after the loss. ‘That is an extremely important moment in their lives and an extremely exciting time. Every athlete tonight who placed on any event should soak it in and enjoy the moment.”
Amid the unexpected defeat, Kindler has not lost sight of her team’s purpose, and the identity she has given the program over the last 12 years.
“The Sooners are human,” Kindler said. “We have lived in the luxury of success for over a decade, and we have certainly worked for it. But, on any given day, anything can happen, and this is just a testament to that."
This story was edited by Gracie Rawlings.
