NCAA women’s gymnastics: Week 6 Power Rankings & meets to watch

Each week, Gymnastics Now’s NCAA women’s gymnastics writers – Patricia Duffy and Hannah Johnson – will share their “Power Rankings“ for the top 10 women’s teams, providing insight into why certain teams are trending up and others trending down.

These rankings are purely subjective. A (+) or (-) next to each team will signify how far the team rose or fell compared to the previous week.

Hannah Johnson

Intern, NCAA Women

1. Oklahoma (+1)

The Sooners are the strongest team in the country. They have the opportunity to play with lineups and still score a 198. They can stick more vaults and increase their team score even more.

2. Florida (+1)

The Gators’ 198.35 was not quite legit. However, this is still a team with the potential to go 198 each week, and the Missouri meet should give them the momentum to continue to do so in the second half of the regular season.

3. Alabama (+2)

The Crimson Tide have found their stride in the Ashley Priess-Johnston era. The team has had two-consecutive great performances, and Week 6 was their first 198 of the season. They look locked in and are clicking as a team. They should not be left out of the Four on the Floor conversation.

4. Michigan (-3)

The Wolverines nearly eclipsed the 198 mark despite a season low on vault. It is important to consider that their beam scoring at home has been a bit loose – something to pay attention to moving forward.

5. Auburn (+1)

The Tigers were able to come back with five hits following a fall in the leadoff spot on beam. This really shows the strength and concentration of this team.  

6. UCLA (+1)

UCLA scored a very respectable 197.8 in Week 6. Now it’s time for their vault rotation to find a new gear because it is scoring so much lower than the other three events.

7. LSU (+3)

LSU continues to go into every SEC meet and fight to the finish. Week after week, they are putting up great scores in the absence of their leader Kiya Johnson. Aleah Finnegan and Haleigh Bryant are having breakout years.

8. California (+1)

It’s one event every week (other than bars) that holds California back from higher 197s. This week it was vault. It still remains to be seen how big of a team score they can achieve if they can hit all four events to their full potential in the same meet.

9. Utah (-5)

Utah responded very well to the loss of Olympic silver medalist Grace McCallum at the Metroplex Challenge. However, with so many unknowns and people needed to fill in, it is reasonable to expect a bit of an adjustment period in the next couple weeks.

10. Oregon State (unranked)

The Beavers hit a season-high 197.375 in Week 6. If they can hone in on their landings on vault, they can score even higher. Bars is really coming into form and continues to impress after a slow start.

Patricia Duffy

Founder, Gymnastics Now

1. Oklahoma (+1)

Oklahoma moves back into my top spot this week after an impressive overall win at the Metroplex Challenge, holding off a hot Alabama team and Utah.

2. Michigan (-1)

49+ across the board but a season low on vault was balanced out by season highs on beam and floor. As Hannah mentioned, the Wolverines’ home beam scores seem to be a bit inflated, in particular. National Qualifying Score (NQS) should tell a better story there going forward.

3. Florida (+1)

Florida finally eclipsed the 198 mark against Missouri, but it wasn’t without controversy. Namely, a clearly undeserved 10 from Trinity Thomas (she said so herself, people), and some overall questionable scoring that made me retract any previous statements about their home scoring being reasonable among the top teams in the country. Still, it’s a milestone that should be recognized.

4. Alabama (+2)

Last week, I questioned whether Alabama’s win over Auburn and season-high performance was a one-off or a sign of building momentum. I think Metroplex was another feather in the Tide’s cap, hitting that 198 mark on the road and putting up one of the best vault rotations of the year with their season-high 49.525.

5. Utah (-2)

Utah went sub-198 at Metroplex, finishing third behind Oklahoma and Alabama after Grace McCallum went down on vault with what has been confirmed as a hyper-extended right knee. No timetable on her return, if she even returns this season. That’s a huge blow to the Utes’ momentum and scoring potential.

6. Auburn (-1)

The Tigers earned a season-high 197.750 against LSU. Auburn actually does have reasonable home scoring, and it showed in their win against the Bayou Bengals. I firmly believe a 198 is within reach, but resting athletes will likely be the priority these next few weeks ahead of the postseason.

7. UCLA (-)

Besides their one sub-197 performance against Washington in late January, the Bruins have been relatively consistent as a whole, but vault has been questionable as of late. Now that they seem to have found somewhat of a rhythm on beam, they need to focus on tightening up their vault landings and putting together a complete performance if they want to go 198+ and really contend in the postseason.

8. California (-)

I think this UCLA-Cal matchup this weekend is going to be a great teller of what’s to come for both of these teams, especially the Golden Bears, who are certainly in contention for the NCAA semifinals.

9. LSU (+1)

LSU put up a valiant fight against Auburn on the road to go 197.5 – the Tigers’ fifth-straight 197+. New athletes are being rotated into lineups, developing some depth, and I’ve heard whisperings that some injured team members, including Olivia Dunne, may make their return to lineups soon. That bodes well for LSU as we enter the latter half of the season.

10. Denver (unranked)

If for no other reason, I put Denver back in my top 10 this week thanks to the return of Lynnzee Brown to the all-around. There’s plenty of room for improvement there, but it’s a promising developments for the Pioneers as they look to surpass that 197.500 mark in the coming weeks.

Meets to Watch

Here are some of the exciting matchups we’ll be watching this weekend. All times are ET.

Friday, February 17

7 p.m. – #9 Alabama @ #19 Georgia – Live Stats | Video (SECN)

8 p.m. – #2 Florida @ #8 LSU – Live Stats | Video (ESPN+)

8:30 p.m. – #14 Arkansas @ #11 Kentucky – Live Stats | Video (SECN)

Saturday, February 18

3:30 p.m. – Arizona @ #12 Oregon State – Live Stats | Video (P12)

5 p.m. – #6 UCLA @ #7 California – Live Stats | Video (P12)

Sunday, February 19

1 p.m. – #17 Minnesota @ #24 Maryland – Live Stats | Video (BTN+)

6 p.m. – #5 Auburn @ #16 Missouri – Video (SECN)