Florida’s gymnasts stand among the best in the nation, pulling together a team that triumphs. But the Gators, like any other team, are imperfect. Highs and lows do not define them, but they can definitely facilitate improvement.
Florida currently sits number four nationally behind Alabama, LSU, and Oklahoma, while ranking first on bars and second on beam.
Vault
Vault remains Florida’s most inconsistent event.
Four-time All-American junior Anya Pilgrim holds the team’s highest average at 9.875. As a freshman, Pilgrim hit the ground running, earning NCAA first-team All-America honors for vault (9.9125). While the title was for her freshman year, it reflects her prevailing vault proficiency. She has been a staple of the event since.
Senior Selena Harris-Miranda follows closely behind with a 9.871 average, and she has scored a perfect 10 on the event an impressive six times. This season, she logged her highest score of 9.9500 against both Auburn and Missouri.
However, a matchup against Auburn on Jan. 23 exposed cracks in the lineup. Florida received its lowest scores of the season for vault (48.6000).
While the team came out on top, it was only by three-tenths of a point, a margin that could have been made greater with better vault performances.
The transition from sophomore Ly Bui being the lowest scoring on vault against Alabama (9.7000) compared to the meet against Auburn (9.2250) was a noticeable drop.
Moreover, other Gators were underperforming on the same event. Freshman Amelia Disidore had a score of 9.300 and junior Kayla DiCello came up with a 9.6750. All three athletes’ scores fell below the lowest vault score for the previous matchup.
Florida ranks 11th in the NCAA for vault – its lowest ranking, showcasing an event with plenty of room for improvement.
Bars
Where UF dominates is on the bars. The team ranks No. 1 nationally in the category and continuously impresses with its performances.
Sophomore Skye Blakely anchors the bars for Florida. Her 9.900 point advantage is just 0.004 above DiCello.
Florida saw its best day on bars Jan. 23 against Auburn. Altogether, the Gators earned 49.6250 points in the category, and Florida athletes locked down the event’s top five.
The Gators struggled the most against Missouri on Feb. 6 with 48.4750 bar points in total. A matchup that resulted in a preventable Florida loss – and their first loss of the season – by only 0.70 points.
Harris-Miranda fell on a release, resulting in a major deduction and the lowest team members’ score on bars with 9.1000. But, she was not the only rocky performer. Senior Riley McCusker also fell on her dismount and Pilgrim scored a subpar 9.4500.
Beam
Turning to beam, Florida ranks second in the NCAA, and Harris-Miranda sits first for the team’s averages with 9.937.
The Gators’ worst performances this season came from the meets against Auburn and Missouri (49.4500). Meanwhile, their best scores from the matches against Arkansas and Oklahoma (49.5000). With only a 0.500 between the highest and lowest performances, consistency has been prevalent for Florida’s beam.
Against Arkansas, Florida athletes conquered the top three, including DiCello, Blakely, and Harris-Miranda.
Floor
On floor, Harris-Miranda may just be Florida gymnastics’ saving grace.
Following 2024 Olympic alternate Leanne Wong’s graduation, Harris-Miranda has confidently stepped up to the plate for the team.
After transferring from UCLA, she has entered her second year with UF as a driving force behind the Gators’ success. The 18-time All-American gymnast leads the team in average points for floor with 9.933.
In the last Gators matchup against Oklahoma, she took the lead on floor (9.9750).
Additionally, she holds three of four highs for UF: vault, beam and floor. This jack-of-all-trades testament echoes that she is essential in every element of the rotation.
Florida’s best floor execution was against Arkansas (49.5750), and its worst was against Alabama (49.2250).
The Gators will face off against No. 6 Georgia at Stegeman Coliseum on Friday.
Contact Nicole Scura at nscura@alligator.org. Follow her on X @NicoleScuraa.
Nicole is a sophomore journalism student in her first semester with the Alligator and she is the beat reporter for the University of Florida Ice Hockey Club. In her free time, Nicole enjoys figure skating, watching football (Go Bucs!), traveling and linedancing.
