#4 Red Rocks Fall Against #3 California

Saturday, March 2

Berkeley, CA

3:00 PM

University of Utah

197.700

198.100

California

3/2/2024 6:48 PM | Gymnastics

Final Results - Cal

Utah collects fifth-highest team score of the season

Berkeley, Calif. – It was a battle between two of the best in the Pac-12 and the nation, as the fourth-ranked Utah Gymnastics team traveled to the third-ranked California Golden Bears for a battle of the unbeaten in conference action. In the back-and-forth contest, California would come out on top, 198.100-197.700.

Grace McCallum posted the high score on bars for the Red Rocks, scoring a 9.950 in her first event of the afternoon, eclipsing the 9.90 mark for the fifth time in the event this season. Ella Zirbes secured the first 9.90 of the day for the Red Rocks, in the third spot of the lineup and passing the 9.9+ mark for the second meet in a row. Makenna Smith got the meet started on bars for the Red Rocks, posting an opening score of 9.825. Alani Sabado and Maile O'Keefe rounded out the back half of the Utah lineup, as Sabado scored a 9.875 and O'Keefe secured a 9.850 for the Red Rocks. Abby Paulson competed on the apparatus for just the second meet this season, adding a 9.750.

After the first rotation, the team scores were deadlocked at 49.400-49-400.

Utah saw two 9.90 scores on vault, the first coming from Ashley Glynn. Jaedyn Rucker would come up clutch in the fifth spot of the rotation adding the second 9.90 score to the Red Rocks tally. It was just the second time the two gymnasts had hit the 9.9+ mark on vault this season. The last time Glynn passed 9.90 was against Arizona State when she set her career-high with a 9.925. Rucker last hit the 9.9+ mark with a 9.975 against Oregon State. Camie Winger would leadoff the Utah vault rotation, capturing a score of 9.850. Zirbes followed in the second spot of the vault order, scoring the second 9.850 of the rotation for the Red Rocks. Jaylene Gilstrap anchored the rotation, posting the final 9.80 score of the event for Utah.

Utah would find themselves trailing by .425 after two rotations, 49.725-49.300. The Red Rocks are no strangers to comeback situations after staging a miraculous comeback on the road during their last trip to California when taking on UCLA.

O'Keefe captured a 9.950 on floor, setting the high score for Utah in the rotation. The Red Rocks would come away with four scores of 9.9+ during their time on floor. Zirbes and Gilstrap each added routines earning scores of 9.925. For Zirbes, it was her third time in four competitions that she scored 9.9+ since making her way into the floor lineup. Gilstrap kept her 9.9+ streak alive, scoring above the mark for the fifth meet in a row. Abby Paulson was back in the leadoff spot on floor, posting a 9.875 with the first routine for the Red Rocks.

It would be a fight to the finish for the Red Rocks, as Utah trailed 148.525-148.275 heading into the final event.

Paulson and O'Keefe would set the high mark on beam for Utah, scoring 9.925 each for the Red Rock lineup. McCallum added the third score of 9.9+ with a 9.90 in the middle of the rotation for the Utes. Utah would send Winger up to leadoff the beam rotation, as she would set a new career-high with a 9.850. Elizabeth Gantner earned a 9.825 in her lone event of the day.

Utah will make one final road trip of the regular season, traveling to the University of Arizona on Friday, Mar. 8. The Utes and Wildcats will compete at 7 p.m. MT from the McKale Center and will be streamed on the Pac-12 Insider.