Ute Gymnasts Picked No. 5 in Preseason Poll
12/10/2018 11:00 AM | Gymnastics
Utes return five All-Americans, add two J.O. champions
SALT LAKE CITY—The Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) released its preseason top-25 today and the order of the top five is identical to last April's NCAA Championship finish. UCLA was picked to defend its NCAA title followed by Oklahoma, Florida, LSU and Utah.
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The Utes have finished fifth at nationals for the last two seasons as Super Six finalists. The NCAA Championship moves to a four-team format this season. Utah's last top-four finish was in 2015 when the Utes finished second to Florida by five hundredths of a point.
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Junior two-time NCAA champion MyKayla Skinner headlines a team that returns 20-of-24 routines from its 2018 NCAA lineup. She is one of five returning All-Americans along with seniors Kari Lee and MaKenna Merrell-Giles, junior Missy Reinstadtler and sophomore Sydney Soloski. The freshman class showcases a pair of Junior Olympic champions and J.O. National Team members in Cristal Isa and Adrienne Randall.
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The Utes will face 10 preseason top-25 teams in the upcoming season, including home meets against No. 1 UCLA (Feb. 23), No. 8 California (Feb. 9) and No. 9 Michigan (Mar. 2). The Utes will meet two more top 10 opponents outside the Huntsman Center: No. 4 LSU at the Gymquarters Invitational in St. Charles, Mo., on Feb. 15 and No. 7 Georgia in Athens on Mar. 16. Other ranked teams on Utah's 2019 schedule are No. 17 Oregon State, No. 19 Missouri, No. 20 Arizona State, No. 21 Stanford and No. 24 BYU. In addition, the Utes will see No. 15 Washington at the Pac-12 Championship in West Valley City, Utah, on Mar. 23.
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The Utes can claim one No. 1 preseason ranking thanks to more than 9,300 season tickets sold to date. Utah led all women's sports in attendance for the eighth time last season, averaging 15,139 fans a meet. Season tickets are available at UtahTickets.com.
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The Utes have finished fifth at nationals for the last two seasons as Super Six finalists. The NCAA Championship moves to a four-team format this season. Utah's last top-four finish was in 2015 when the Utes finished second to Florida by five hundredths of a point.
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Junior two-time NCAA champion MyKayla Skinner headlines a team that returns 20-of-24 routines from its 2018 NCAA lineup. She is one of five returning All-Americans along with seniors Kari Lee and MaKenna Merrell-Giles, junior Missy Reinstadtler and sophomore Sydney Soloski. The freshman class showcases a pair of Junior Olympic champions and J.O. National Team members in Cristal Isa and Adrienne Randall.
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The Utes will face 10 preseason top-25 teams in the upcoming season, including home meets against No. 1 UCLA (Feb. 23), No. 8 California (Feb. 9) and No. 9 Michigan (Mar. 2). The Utes will meet two more top 10 opponents outside the Huntsman Center: No. 4 LSU at the Gymquarters Invitational in St. Charles, Mo., on Feb. 15 and No. 7 Georgia in Athens on Mar. 16. Other ranked teams on Utah's 2019 schedule are No. 17 Oregon State, No. 19 Missouri, No. 20 Arizona State, No. 21 Stanford and No. 24 BYU. In addition, the Utes will see No. 15 Washington at the Pac-12 Championship in West Valley City, Utah, on Mar. 23.
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The Utes can claim one No. 1 preseason ranking thanks to more than 9,300 season tickets sold to date. Utah led all women's sports in attendance for the eighth time last season, averaging 15,139 fans a meet. Season tickets are available at UtahTickets.com.
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| Rank | Team (1st place votes) | Points |
| 1 | UCLA (20) | 1,961 |
| 2 | Oklahoma (25) | 1,959 |
| 3 | Florida (9) | 1,946 |
| 4 | LSU (2) | 1,891 |
| 5 | Utah | 1,783 |
| 6 | Alabama | 1,672 |
| 7 | Georgia (1) | 1,585 |
| 8 | California | 1,526 |
| 9 | Michigan | 1,517 |
| 10 | Kentucky | 1,481 |
| 11 | Nebraska | 1,361 |
| 12 | Arkansas | 1,341 |
| 13 | Denver | 1,286 |
| 14 | Auburn | 1,281 |
| 15 | Washington | 1,253 |
| 16 | Boise State | 1,183 |
| 17 | Oregon State | 1,005 |
| 18 | Ohio State | 989 |
| 19 | Missouri | 912 |
| 20 | Arizona State | 862 |
| 21 | Stanford | 831 |
| 22 | Illinois | 809 |
| 23 | Minnesota | 798 |
| 24 | BYU | 749 |
| 25 | North Carolina State | 704 |
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