The Gators were given a total of 11 days to revel in their SEC Championship title before competition called again.
No. 3 Florida headed to Arizona to compete in the NCAA Division I Gymnastics Tournaments’ Tempe Regional on April 2 and 4, looking to advance to the finals. It’ll be the team’s fifth national championship appearance in six years.
And after two rounds of competition, the Gators are advancing to the semifinal round of the NCAA Tournament. Now, Florida will gear up for what Fort Worth, Texas, has in store.
Here’s an event-by-event deep dive into how the Gators performed in Tempe, Arizona.
Vault
In both dual meets in Tempe, the Gators kicked off the proceedings on the vault. Coming into the NCAA Tournament, the vault was Florida’s lowest-ranked event of the season, as the Gators ranked No. 9 nationally in vault National Qualifying Score. NQS is how individual gymnasts and teams are seeded and ranked in both specific events and overall play.
But Florida broke through the vault performance ceiling, especially on April 2, when the Gators posted their season-best 49.600 on the event. The mark also tied the fifth-best vault score nationally this season.
At the forefront of the vault success was UF’s anchor, senior Selena Harris-Miranda, who stuck her routine for a 9.975 score, her highest score on the event this season.
However, Harris-Miranda wasn’t the only standout at the event in the second round. Junior Kayla DiCello matched her collegiate best with a 9.950, while juniors Skylar Draser and Anya Pilgrim notched 9.900 scores.
While not matching their score April 4, the Gators still posted a solid 49.375, led by Harris-Miranda and DiCello’s 9.900 marks.
If the Gators continue their strong starts on the vault, it will continue to help push Florida toward its fifth national title.
Uneven bars
One of two events in which Florida ranks No. 1 nationally, as well as an event where UF boasts four of the top 10 bar performers nationally, the Gators continued their overall excellence on the uneven bars in Tempe.
No one shined brighter than sophomore Skye Blakely, who scored the team’s lone 10.000 of the Tempe Regional with a picture-perfect bar routine April 2.
Blakely’s flawless score was nearly matched by Harris-Miranda, who scored a 9.975 on the event. Uneven bars specialist senior Riley McCusker was also her dominant self, earning a 9.925 score on her event. Overall, the Gators racked up a 49.625 on the event April 2.
While UF fell just short of that total at the quarterfinals with a 49.575, it was Blakely who again led the charge with a 9.950 tally.
Behind her, McCusker and Pilgrim both scored 9.925, while the ever-dependable Harris-Miranda earned a 9.900 mark.
If Florida is destined to win another national title, the squad’s success on the uneven bars would be a major factor in that accomplishment.
Balance beam
Beam has been by far Florida’s most consistent event all season. The Gators are the No. 1 beam team in the country with a 49.536 NQS.
They also hold the highest beam score of the season in the country with a 49.800. And while they didn’t quite meet that mark in Tempe, they still shined on their stronghold event.
On its first day of competition, Florida posted a 49.450 on beam. Despite not being its strongest performance of the season, many Gators still raised the bar.
UF’s ace Harris-Miranda logged an impressive meet-high 9.950. Behind her, DiCello and junior Alyssa Arana put up 9.900s, while the rest of the lineup dropped into the 9.800 range.
However, on April 4, the Gators elevated even further, scoring a 49.550 on the event. The successful night on beam was headlined by Harris-Miranda and DiCello with 9.925s. Meanwhile, Draser, Blakely and eMjae Frazier all posted 9.900s, giving UF the highest score on beam of any team by 0.300.
For Florida to continue its success, it will need to uphold the standard of excellence on one of its premier events.
Floor Exercise
In terms of steady improvement season-wide, the floor exercise has been the exemplifier. And in Tempe, the Florida squad showed out, earning shares of the team crown on both nights.
The Gators posted a 49.450 in the second round, with Harris-Miranda once again leading the way with a 9.925 total. Meanwhile, Blakely and freshman Amelia Disidore posted 9.900 totals.
But Florida turned it up another notch for the quarterfinals with Harris-Miranda at the helm of the success.
In the anchor position, Harris-Miranda, who is still one 10.000 on the floor away from the heralded gym slam, came up just short of the feat with a 9.975 total.
Blakely also improved on her second round total with a 9.950 score in the quarterfinal, while Frazier tallied a 9.925.
Florida, the No. 6 floor team nationally, will look to continue its upward trajectory at the event in Fort Worth.
The Gators face No. 2 Louisiana State, No. 6 Georgia and No. 7 Stanford in the national semifinal on April 16. The top two qualifiers from that meet will advance to the national championship, where the top four teams will face off for the ultimate crown.
Contact Ava DiCecca at adicecca@alligator.org. Follow her on X @avadicecca24.
Contact Max Bernstein at mbernstein@alligator.org. Follow him on X @maxbernstein23.
Ava is a sophomore sports journalism student and the Spring 2026 sports editor. Previously for The Alligator, she covered volleyball and did sports enterprise. Ava enjoys watching and playing sports in her free time and has been a Boston sports fan all her life. (Brad Marchand is still everything.)
Max is a junior sports journalism student in his seventh semester at The Alligator. He serves as The Alligator's assistant sports editor and football beat coordinator. He previously served as The Alligator's sports editor and as a reporter for football, women's tennis, volleyball, lacrosse and sports enterprise. He also has made multiple appearances on the Paul Finebaum Show. Max wants to shoutout his cats, Scooter and Zoe, and niche former Florida Panthers players (shoutout Maxim Mamin).
