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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — No. 13 University of Missouri gymnastics ended its 2024 season with a third-place finish at the NCAA Gainesville Regional Final Sunday evening inside Exactech Arena at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. The Tigers scored 197.325 to beat out No. 12 Michigan State’s 196.650, but MU could not knock off No. 4 Florida, who won the region with a 198.325, or No. 5 Utah’s 197.575.
Mizzou earned a share of two event titles in the regional final. Freshman Kennedy Griffin posted a 9.950 to earn the floor crown in a five-way tie, while graduate student Sienna Schreiber closed out her collegiate career with a 9.950 on beam to share the event title with Florida’s Ellie Lazzari and Utah’s Maile O’Keefe.
The Tigers opened with a strong floor rotation, as The Fab Floor lineup delivered a signature performance with a 49.525 team score. Griffin led the way with a 9.950, while Schreiber, freshman Hannah Horton and junior Amari Celestine pitched in a trio of 9.900s. Every Tiger scored at least a 9.850 as MU finished the opening rotation in second place.
On vault, Missouri continued its strong start by posting a 49.275 to maintain its second-place position. All six Tigers scored above a 9.8, as Celestine led the way with a 9.925. Junior Jocelyn Moore supplemented with a 9.875 in the fifth spot, while Schreiber added a 9.850.
Missouri notched another 49.275 rotation on bars with six more scores of at least 9.8. MU’s event leaders were seniors Amaya Marshall and Mara Titarsolej, who recorded a pair of 9.875s in the third and sixth spots. Schreiber and Moore each notched 9.850s in the fourth and fifth positions, respectively. Utah and Missouri closed out the rotation tied at 148.075.
On beam, Mizzou scored a 49.250, but it was not enough to prevent Utah from advancing to the national semifinal. The Tigers closed out the rotation strongly, bolstered by Schreiber’s 9.950 in the anchor position. Celestine and senior Sydney Schaffer added a 9.875 and 9.850 to close out Missouri’s season.
The Tigers will send individual competitors to the NCAA National Semifinal round on Thursday, April 18. Those competitors will be officially announced by the NCAA on Monday, April 8.
MEET NOTES
- With its 197.325, the Tigers have hit 197+ in eight consecutive meets, tying the longest streak in program history.
- Missouri ends its season with 12 meets scoring 197+, the team’s most in one season.
- The Tigers’ 49.525 floor score marks the eighth time this season MU has gone 49.5+ on the apparatus in 2024.
- The floor title win for Kennedy Griffin is the fourth of her freshman campaign.
- Sienna Schreiber‘s beam title victory marks her seventh of the season.
- Jocelyn Moore‘s impressive 9.9+ streak on floor ended after 16 meets, a run which began at the 2023 SEC Championship.
UP NEXT
The Tigers will learn their fate for individual qualifiers to the NCAA Championship Semifinal on Monday, April 8.
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