Skip to main content

2024 Pac-12 Gymnastics Championships

March 23 // Pac-12 Network
Maverik Center // West Valley City, UT

Pac-12 Women’s Gymnastics Weekly Rundown - March 7, 2024

Mar 7, 2024

SCHEDULE | STANDINGS | RECORD BOOK 

In a top-five matchup between California and Utah last weekend in Berkeley, it was the Bears who announced themselves as legitimate national title contenders with their 198.100 - 197.700 takedown of three-time defending Pac-12 Champion Utah. The dual-meet win allowed Cal to clinch at least a share of the Pac-12 Regular Season title for the third straight year with a chance to capture it outright for the first time in program history. 

That opportunity will come Sunday against Bay Area rival Stanford at 2 p.m. PT live on Pac-12 Network where just a win over the Cardinal will have the Bears finish out the conference slate alone on top. 

While two weekends remain in the regular season, this upcoming weekend represents the last Pac-12 duals of the year with all eight teams entering their final conference competitions ranked in the latest Road to Nationals Top 25 rankings - No. 2 California, No. 5 Utah, No. 10 UCLA, No. 16 Oregon State, No. 18 Arizona State, No. 19 Arizona, No. 22 Stanford & No. 25 Washington - making for a full schedule of ranked showdowns.

LAST WEEK

  • California used its second straight 198-plus score to beat Utah (197.700) for the second time in the last three seasons behind a score of 198.100 that ranks third all-time in program history. Sophomore eMjae Frazier turned in another stellar performance, winning the all-around with a 39.750 along with titles in bars, beam and floor to earn her second straight Pac-12 Gymnast of the Week honor. Cal freshman Kyen Mayhew became the first Bear freshman this season to earn the Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Week honor after winning the vault with a 9.900 and 9.925 on the floor to help secure the Cal win.
  • Arizona took down Washington (196.675 - 196.550) for the second straight season behind a record-setting performance on beam with a program-best 49.625 on the event. Senior Elena Deets contributed a career-high 9.975 to win the beam to become the first Wildcat to earn Pac-12 Specialist of the Week honors since 2015, while fellow Wildcat Emma Strom picked up the Coaches' Choice award for her 9.925 on beam in just the second time competing in the event this season.
  • Oregon State used its third straight score of 197-plus to down Arizona State behind a strong performance on floor that saw all five Beavers score a 9.85 while junior Olympian Jade Carey picked up the all-around title and three more event titles to bring her total to 108, just eight shy of the program record.
  • UCLA and Stanford met in Palo Alto and the Bruins took a lead in the first rotation and never relinquished to win 197.175 - 196.725. Sophomore Selena Harris was another all-around title with a 39.325 and tied for first on the bars.

THIS WEEK

  • No. 5 Utah will be at No. 19 Arizona to kick off the weekend action at 6 p.m. PT on Pac-12 Insider. The Wildcats have only beat the Utes one time in the series history, but that victory came two years ago in the McKale Center. The Red Rocks still have a chance to clinch a share of the regular season title but will need a win and a California loss to do so.
  • No. 16 Oregon State will host No. 25 Washington in its final home contest of the season at Gill Coliseum at 7 p.m. PT. The Beavers have won five straight head-to-head duals against the Huskies, while UW's last win on the road in the series came in 2018. 
  • No. 10 UCLA and No. 18 Arizona State will meet in Tempe on Saturday at 12 p.m. PT on Pac-12 Network, Pac-12 Arizona and Pac-12 Los Angeles. UCLA got the win in LA last year but the last time these two teams faced off in Tempe the Sun Devils snapped a 21-meet UCLA winning streak in the series that dated back to 2001.
  • The No. 2 California and No. 22 Stanford showdown on Sunday will air live on Pac-12 Network and Pac-12 Bay Area starting at 2 p.m. PT. The Bears have dominated the series as of late, winning every conference dual meet since 2014. 

UPCOMING SCHEDULE (Full Schedule)

Friday, March 8 TV/Stream Time
No. 5 Utah at No. 19 Arizona Pac-12 Insider  6:00 p.m. PT 
No. 25 Washington at No. 16 Oregon State OSU Live Stream 7:00 p.m. PT 
Saturday, March 9    
No. 10 UCLA at No. 18 Arizona State Pac-12 Network/Arizona/Los Angeles 12:00 p.m. PT 
Sunday, March 10    
No. 2 California at No. 22 Stanford Pac-12 Network/Bay Area 2:00 p.m. PT 

ROAD TO NATIONALS RANKINGS - MARCH 4

  • The Road to Nationals National Qualifying Scores (NQS) rankings, which track official NQS scores throughout the season, released its eighth rankings on Monday, February 26. The National Qualifying Scores or NQS are composed of the six best regular-season meet scores of which three must be away. To obtain the NQS, the high score is eliminated and the remaining five scores are averaged. For the first time this season, all eight Pac-12 programs sit in the top 25, including three in the top-10 and two in the top-5.  
  • Team Overall
    • Thanks to back-to-back weeks of 198-plus scores the Bears moved back into the No. 2 spot in the rankings, where they had a six-week run earlier in the season - their highest rankings in program history. With a NQS of 197.950, they only trail two-time defending champion Oklahoma (198.420). 
    • Despite improving its NQS (197.725) with its result at California last weekend, Utah dropped to No. 5 with Florida jumping up to No. 4 with a 197.765.
    • The Bruins, who climbed seven spots over a three-week span earlier this season, stayed at No. 10 with a 197.460 average, just ahead of No. 11 Denver at 197.435.
    • Behind two-straight 197-plus team scores, Oregon State rose one spot No. 16 with a 196.975 NQS followed by No. 18 Arizona State (196.795) and No. 19 Arizona (196.770). After making an eight-spot jump the previous week, Stanford climbed three more spots to No. 22 (196.585), while Washington entered the top-25 for the first time this season at No. 25 (196.485).
  • Top-10 Event Rankings - Team
    • Vault: 6. California (49.375); 7. UCLA (49.355); 9. Utah (49.325).
    • Bars: 2. California (49.550); 6. Oregon State (49.430); 7. Utah (49.415); T10. UCLA (49.370).
    • Beam: 2. California (49.500); 4. Utah (49.480); T6. UCLA (49.370).
    • Floor: 4. California (49.585); 6. Utah (49.565); 6. Utah (49.560); 7. UCLA (49.555).
  • Top-10 Event Rankings - Individual
    • All-Around: 4. eMjae Frazier, CAL (39.690); 6. Mya Lauzon, CAL (39.675); T10. Selena Harris, UCLA (39.650).
    • Vault: 4. Mya Lauzon, CAL (9.930); T6. Selena Harris (9.920). 
    • Bars: T4. Jade Carey, OSU (9.950); T4. Maddie Williams, CAL (9.935); T6. Selena Harris, UCLA (9.945); T8. eMjae Frazier, CAL (9.940); Grace McCallum, UTAH (9.935).
    • Beam: 2. Maile O'Keefe, UTAH (9.975); T4. Mya Lauzon, CAL (9.950); T6. Abby Paulson, UTAH (9.945); T6. eMjae Frazier, CAL (9.945).
    • Floor: 9. Mya Lauzon, CAL (9.945).

PERFECT 10s

  • The Pac-12 has seen nine Perfect 10s during the 2024 season so far.
    • Utah's Grace McCallum was the fourth Pac-12 gymnast to earn a 10.0 in 2024 as the junior Olympian earned a Perfect 10 on the floor in Utah's win over Stanford on Feb. 23.
    • California junior Mya Lauzon recorded a 10.0 on beam in the Bears' win at UCLA on Feb. 25. With teammate eMjae Frazier earning a 10.0 on floor at the same meet, it marked the first time in program history two Bears had perfect scores at the same meet.
    • UCLA's Selena Harris became the third Pac-12 gymnast and first Bruin this season to score a Perfect 10, which came on the vault on Friday, Feb. 9 at Oregon State as part of her all-around win at the dual meet. She posted her second 10.0 on vault this season in the dual meet against Utah on Monday, Feb. 19. She now has three career Perfect scores on vault after her first came at the LA Regional last spring. 
    • Utah's fifth-year senior and reigning NCAA Beam Champion Maile O'Keefe earned her 11th career 10.0 on beam against the Broncos on Friday, Jan. 5. She added her 12th career 10.0 on beam in the Rio Tinto Best of Utah meet on Jan. 15 and added a 13th career 10.0 on beam in a dual meet win over Oregon State on Feb. 2. O'Keefe, who also has a Perfect 10 on bars during her career, now has 14 perfect scores, joining legendary Red Rock gymnast Theresa Kulikowski for most in a career.
    • Cal sophomore eMjae Frazier now has two Perfect 10s this season after posting her second career 10.0 on floor in the win at UCLA on Sunday, Jan. 25. The first this year came when she scored a 10.0 on beam on Saturday, Jan. 13 at ESPN's Collegiate Quad meet in Salt Lake City, which was just the second 10.0 on beam in Cal history. She is the only Bear in Cal history to earn a Perfect 10 in two different events during a career. 

198 CLUB

  • UCLA became the first Pac-12 team to break the 198 mark this year after posting a 198.075 in a dual meet win over then-No. 18 Arizona on Feb. 4. 
  • Utah and California both joined the 198 club on the same weekend. The Utes took down Stanford at home on Friday, Feb. 23 after posting a 198.075 to the Cardinal's 196.625. The Bears' feat came in historic fashion as their 198.400 at UCLA on Feb. 25 set a new record for highest team score all-time. 
  • California followed their program-record mark at UCLA with a 198.100 in a win against California the following week on March 3.
  • UCLA, Utah and California are three of just 11 teams to break the 198 mark during the 2024 season.

BY THE NUMBERS

  • Olympic Gold Medalist and Oregon State junior Jade Carey now has 108 event titles and sits within 8 of the program's all-time record. 
  • California not only turned in its best performance of the season but one of its best in history with its 198.400 take down of then-No. 9 UCLA (197.775) on Feb. 25. Sophomore standout eMjae Frazier set a program record of her own, winning the all-around with the program's all-time high score of 39.825, which included her second career Perfect 10 on floor. The program-record team score was thanks to the Bears tying the program's second-best ever score on bars (49.650), posting their second-best score ever on floor (49.675) and the second-best ever score on beam (49.725). Junior Mya Lauzon scored her own Perfect 10 on the beam, marking the first time in program history the Bears have had two gymnasts record a 10 during the same meet.
  • No. 4 Utah's 197.775 in its win at Washington on Feb. 10 marked its the best regular-season road score since 2022.
  • No. 20 Arizona State posted a 196.875 to win its dual win at Stanford on Feb. 9 which was a season-high road score for ASU and 10th-highest road score in program history.
  • Not only did did UCLA break the 198 mark with a 198.075 against Arizona on Feb. 4, the Bruins set season-bests on the bars (19.425), beam (49.525) and floor (49.750). Sophomore Selena Harris also won the all-around with a career-high of 39.775, which is the third-best mark in the country this year,
  • At the Feb. 2 Tri-meet at Arizona State, the Bears matched their season-high score of 197.950, which is the sixth-highest ranked score in program history, and came a week after they posted the score in a win at Oregon State on Jan. 27.
  • Then-No. 18 Arizona opened up its Pac-12 slate with the Wildcats' first win over Stanford since 2020 (197.000 - 196.000). The GymCats reached the 197 mark for the first time this year with the 197.000 flat marking the seventh-highest score in program history.
  • On Saturday, Jan. 13, No. 2 California finished first in the third session of ESPN's Collegiate Quad with a team score of 197.875, besting No. 14 Michigan State, No. 18 BYU and North Carolina State with the seventh-highest team score in program history. The Bears also set a program record on the vault with a 49.525 at the event while freshman eMjae Frazier set a program record for the all-around with a 39.775, breaking the old mark she set as a freshman a year ago. A week later in its conference opener at Washington, Cal matched its season-high team score of 197.875, which ranks fourth-highest in the country this season, while junior Mya Lauzon tied Frazier's mark in her all-around win.
  • Utah's 197.725 team score in winning the Rio Tinto Best of Utah meet on Monday 1/15 is tied for fifth-highest score in the nation this season.
  • Arizona began its 2024 winning the first session of ESPN's Collegiate Quad over No. 16 Nebraska, Boise State and North Carolina on Feb. 12 with a score of 196.475, the Wildcats' highest season-opening score in program history. 

AAI AWARD NOMINEES

  • The AAI Award, known as the Heisman Trophy for Women’s gymnastics, is a coach’s award in which AAI facilitates. Every year the head coaches are asked to submit a nomination for the candidate or candidates of their choice. AAI has been presenting the AAI Award to the most outstanding senior female gymnast in the country for over the last 30+ years.
    • The 2024 Pac-12 Nominees included in the Top 50 list released on Feb. 20 include: Chae Campbell, UCLA; Margzetta Frazier, UCLA; Malia Hargrove, ARIZ; Skylar Killough-Wilhelm, WASH; Andi Li, CAL; Maile O'Keefe, UTAH; Nya Reed, UCLA; Hannah Scharf, ASU; Chloe Widner, STAN.

PRESEASON RANKINGS

  • For a second consecutive year, all 8 Pac-12 women's gymnastics teams are ranked in the top 25 of the 2024 Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) Preseason Poll, voted on annually by Division I women's gymnastics coaches. The eight teams in the top 25 are tied for the most with the SEC.
  • Utah, which won its third consecutive Pac-12 title in 2023 and finished third at the National Championships for a third straight year, is the Conference's top-ranked team coming in at No. 4 with a pair of first-place votes. 
  • Joining Utah in the top 10 is UCLA at No. 5 and California at No. 7. Oregon State checks in at No. 13, followed by Arizona State at No. 19, Stanford at No. 20, Washington at No. 21 and Arizona at No. 22. 

KEY RETURNERS & NEWCOMERS 

  • Utah senior Maile O’Keefe is back for a fifth year looking to defend her NCAA titles in the All-Around and Beam from last spring, while Olympic Gold Medalist and two-time Pac-12 Gymnast of the Year Jade Carey returns for Oregon State. Carey will be simultaneously competing for the Beavers and preparing for next summer’s Paris Olympics.
  • UCLA’s Selena Harris, the 2023 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, returns for the Bruins.
  • In all, 13 of 17 NCAA All-Americans from last season are back in 2024:
    • California: eMjae Frazier, Maya Lauzon, Andi Li, Maddie Williams; Oregon State: Jade Carey; Stanford: Chloe Widner; UCLA: Chae Campbell, Margzetta Frazier, Selena Harris, Emma Malabuyo; Utah: Maile O’Keefe, Grace McCallum, Makenna Smith.
  • Four Pac-12 programs - Utah (No. 6) Oregon State (No. 8), Arizona (No. 9) and Washington (No. 10) - are ranked in the top 10 of College Gym News’ Freshman Class of 2024 Rankings. Classes are highlighted by Utah’s trio of five stars Ella Zirbes, Elizabeth Gantner and Camie Winger; Oregon State’s Sophia Esposito, Arizona’s Abigayle Martin and Washington’s five-star Kristin Lin.

PAC-12 PRESEASON POLL & WATCH LISTS

  • In a polling of the league’s eight women’s gymnastics head coaches, defending Pac-12 champion Utah was selected as the preseason favorite to claim a fourth straight conference title in 2024.
  • Utah, who became the first team to win three straight Pac-12 titles since the league expanded in 2011 and won its sixth Pac-12 crown overall last spring, received 46 points, including five first-place votes, to edge out runner-up UCLA, who collected 43 total points and the other three first-place votes. The two programs have taken turns capturing conference titles since 2014, with Utah winning in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2021, 2022 and 2023 and UCLA winning in 2016, 2018 and 2019.
  • California finished third in the poll with 40 points, while Oregon State checked in at fourth with 30 points. Arizona State (22 points) came in fifth followed by Stanford (19 points) in sixth, Washington (14 points) in seventh and Arizona (10 points) in eighth to round it out.
  • The Pac-12 released its Preseason Watch List and Newcomer Watch List ahead of the 2024 campaign, which features 16 total student-athletes across the eight programs as nominated by the league's coaches. 
    • The 2024 Preseason Watch List includes 11 returning student-athletes: Jade Carey, Oregon State; Chae Campbell, UCLA; Alysen Fears, Arizona; eMjae Frazier, California; Skylar Killough-Wilhelm, Washington; Mya Lauzon, California; Jada Mangahas, Arizona State; Amelia Morgan, Utah; Lana Navarro, Washington; Hannah Scharf, Arizona State; Chloe Widner, Stanford.
    • The 2024 Newcomer Watch List features five freshmen: Sophia Esposito, Oregon State; Abigayle Martin, Arizona; Sienna Robinson, Stanford; Katelyn Rosen, UCLA; Ella Zirbes, Utah.

OLYMPIC STRENGTH

  • Pac-12 lineups this upcoming season will feature three Olympic medalists from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, all whom are training for a chance to again represent their countries at the upcoming Paris Olympics. In Tokyo, reigning two-time Pac-12 Gymnast of the Year, Oregon State's Jade Carey (USA) won an individual gold medal in the floor exercise, Utah's Grace McCallum was a silver medalist in the team competition with the United States and Utah's Amelie Morgan helped Great Britain to team bronze, which was its first gymnastics medal since 1928.
  • Rounding out the Pac-12 with Olympic ties are UCLA's Brooklyn Moors, who competed for Canada in Tokyo, and Emma Malabuyo, who was an alternate for the United States.
  • Of note: Former UCLA gymnast and Olympian Jordan Chiles, who won the 2023 NCAA titles in the uneven bars and floor exercise, has paused her collegiate career to exclusively train for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

BEST IN THE WEST

  • For the second consecutive year and second time in Pac-12 history, all eight Pac-12 Women’s Gymnastics programs were selected to compete at the NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Regionals last season.
  • Six of eight Pac-12 teams advanced to Regional Finals, which was the most of any conference in the nation. Utah and UCLA finished first and second at the LA Regional to advance to the NCAA Championships and California won the Pittsburgh Regional, its first regional title in program history, to advance to Nationals as well.
  • After winning its third consecutive Pac-12 Championship in 2023, Utah went on to its 47th-consecutive national championship meet after winning the LA Regional, and is the only program in the nation to qualify for every national championship, including all 41 NCAA Championships. The Utes advanced to the NCAA Finals and finished third overall for the third consecutive year in 2023.
  • All eight teams finished in the Top 21 in the final 2023 Road to Nationals rankings - No. 3 Utah, No. 5 UCLA, No. 7 California, No. 12 Oregon State, No. 15 Arizona State, No. 16 Washington, No. 19 Stanford and No. 21 Arizona.

THE RISE OF COLLEGIATE GYMNASTICS 

  • More eyes are on the sport than ever before:
    • Last year’s National Championship broke the 1 million viewer mark for the first time and viewership is only expected to rise, especially in the lead up to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
    • ESPN launched its own invitational meet that will feature 12 total teams, with the main session including four of the sport’s top teams and airing on ABC in its prime time slot. Called the “Collegiate Quad", the meet will take place at the Maverik Center - site of the last two Pac-12 Women’s Gym Championships - on January 12-13, 2024 and include four Pac-12 programs - Utah and UCLA, California and Arizona - among 12 total teams competing over the two days, including defending national champion Oklahoma.

ON TV 

  • A total of 20 women’s gymnastics competitions are scheduled to air on Pac-12 Networks, including Oregon State at Utah on Friday, Feb. 2 at 5 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. MT. Two-time defending Pac-12 Gymnast of the Year Jade Carey and the Beavers look to knock off the three-time defending Pac-12 Champion Utes in Salt Lake City. 
  • Utah and UCLA will compete in EPSN's Collegiate Quad on Saturday, January 13th on ABC at 1 p.m. PT. The Utes and Bruins will also meet in their head-to-head Pac-12 competition on Monday, February 19 at 2:30 p.m. PT on ESPNU. 

2024 PAC-12 WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

  • Tickets for the 2024 Pac-12 Women’s Gymnastics Championships, presented by Sprouts, are on sale now at Pac-12.com/tickets. The one-day, two-session event returns to the Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah on Saturday, March 18.

2024 Pac-12 Women's Gymnastics Weekly Awards

  Gymnast Specialist Freshman/Newcomer Coaches' Choice
Jan. 9 Maile O'Keefe, UTAH Jade Carey, OSU Taylor DeVries, OSU Natalie Briones, OSU
Jan. 16 eMjae Frazier, CAL Jade Carey, OSU Camie Winger, UTAH Sage Thompson, OSU
Jan. 23 Mya Lauzon, CAL Amelie Morgan, UTAH Sophia Esposito, OSU Alysen Fears, ARIZ
Jan. 30 Mya Lauzon, CAL Chae Campbell, UCLA Katelyn Rosen, UCLA Porsche Trinidad, STAN
Feb. 6 Selena Harris, UCLA Nya Reed, UCLA Katelyn Rosen, UCLA Emily White, ASU
Feb. 13 Selena Harris, UCLA Sarah Clark, ASU Sophia Esposito, OSU Skylar Killough-Wilhelm, WASH
Feb. 20 Jade Carey, OSU Anapaula Gutierrez, STAN Sophia Esposito, OSU Taralyn Nguyen, STAN
Feb. 27 eMjae Frazier, CAL Abby Paulson, UTAH Ella Zirbes, UTAH Chloe Widner, STAN
March 5 eMjae Frazier, CAL Elena Deets, ARIZ Kyen Mayhew, CAL Emma Strom, ARIZ