Completed Event: Gymnastics versus NCAA Championship Final on April 19, 2025 , , 4th of 4 (197.2375)
Final Score
Gymnastics
4th of 4 (197.2375)
vs NCAA Championship Final
Saturday, March 15
Salt Lake City, UT
7:00 PM
University of Utah
198.100
vs
197.425
UCLA
Photo by: Anna Fuder
No. 5 Red Rocks Rock on Senior Night Against No. 4 UCLA
3/15/2025 11:01 PM | Gymnastics
Utah gymnastics impressed a sold-out Huntsman Center Crowd to end the regular season
SALT LAKE CITY — The fifth-ranked Red Rocks rocked the house at the Jon M. Huntsman Center Saturday night as they hosted the No. 4 UCLA Bruins in their regular season finale.
Utah put together four complete rotations to earn a season-high score, and beat their rival on Senior Night, 198.100 - 197.425 in front of 15,558 fans, and a national FOX broadcast.
"Just so proud of this team tonight, we really talked about making this a special night for our seniors, and definitely need to thank our fans for showing up," said head coach Carly Dockendorf. "That was electric tonight, and the energy could be felt throughout the entire evening, all the way to the last routine. And it really does make a difference to have our fans in there, and our athletes felt it. And it heightens the whole experience of being down there and competing."
Took care of business! ??#RedRocks | #DROP pic.twitter.com/hu6Hf3QPiT
— Utah Gymnastics (@UtahGymnastics) March 16, 2025
The Red Rocks impressed from the start in their first rotation, exorcising their demons from a week ago on vault, posting season-high team score of 49.425 which tied with UCLA's score on bars.
Ella Zirbes and senior Grace McCallum started things off with a pair of 9.85s, before Avery Neff earned a new season/career-high of 9.95. Ashley Glynn followed up with a 9.80, while Makenna Smith wowed the Huntsman Center crowd with a 9.925, and freshman Zoe Johnson made her debut on the event with a 9.85.
First 9.9+ of the night and new PR on vault! ??#RedRocks | @AveryNeff2024 pic.twitter.com/Kkdymhf57D
— Utah Gymnastics (@UtahGymnastics) March 16, 2025
Utah continued its upward trajectory on bars earning a 49.525 that gained the lead over the Bruins, 98.950- 98.600.
Smith got off the team off to a fantastic start with a 9.95, and Glynn followed up with a 9.85. Neff continued to impress earning another season/career-high of 9.925. Senior Amelie Morgan added a 9.875, Zirbes a 9.85, and McCallum rounded out the strong bars outing with a 9.925.
OUR BARS STARTER FOR A REASON ??#RedRocks | @maksmith04 pic.twitter.com/IG37kl53R8
— Utah Gymnastics (@UtahGymnastics) March 16, 2025
"Our vaults are getting bigger and bigger, and we're, dialing in on those landings," said Dockendorf. "That's exactly what we need to continue to do. And for Avery to just drop that one and a half for her first time back in the Huntsman doing that, I think that really just did spark the rest of the evening for her and bars, again, just been such a strong event for us all year. Some excellent improvements with our handstands, and some of our finishes."
The Red Rocks kept their foot on the gas, hitting another season-high on beam (49.600), that gave them a 148.550- 147.975 advantage over UCLA heading into the fourth and final rotation.
Morgan started the beam lineup with a 9.875, while Camie Winger tied her season/career-high of 9.95. Smith kept things going with a 9.85, while McCallum brought the house down earning her first 10.0 on beam on during her Senior Night farewell tour. Not to be outdone, Neff continued her roll as well, tying her season/career-high of 9.925, as Ana Padurariu wrapped up beam, making her return to the event with a 9.85.
"Then beam, overall, I just thought our team did a really good job over there," said Dockendorf. "Changed up the lineup a little bit. Saw Anna back in there, and then, for Grace to finally get her 10. You couldn't ask for more on a Senior Night, but she has worked for that, and she deserves that. And just so excited that it happened tonight for her. And then just to come around on floor, for the final rotation, the energy was building. I did have to keep checking in with myself, like, it's not over yet. It's not over yet. Still got one more rotation to go here."
IT'S A TEN ??#RedRocks | @grace_mccallum2 pic.twitter.com/0Qg4Mg3vtZ
— Utah Gymnastics (@UtahGymnastics) March 16, 2025
There was no let up on floor as Utah earned a 49.550 to put the final nail in the coffin for UCLA, and secure the Senior Night win for the Red Rocks.
Glynn got a 9.825 in the lead-off for Utah, Zirbes added a 9.90, and Neff earned a 9.875. Senior Jaylene Gilstrap said "good-bye" to the Huntsman Center faithful with a 9.90, while Smith sent a wave of energy through the building, earning a 9.975, and McCallum beautifully wrapped up the night with a 9.90.
Oh how we'll miss this. ??
— Utah Gymnastics (@UtahGymnastics) March 16, 2025
9?.9?0?0? on floor!#RedRocks | @jaylenegilstrap pic.twitter.com/PGUgi5Ty08
Smith earned the second-highest all-around score of her career to take home the win with a 39.700, and McCallum and Neff tied for second place with a 39.675, which was another career-high mark for Utah's freshman phenom.
"I just thought overall, our team was really focused tonight," said Dockendorf. "They were really determined. We came here, we came in here to win. I mean, that was our goal. We weren't afraid to talk about that this week. We weren't trying to just say, let's go be our best. No, our goal was to come in and win tonight, and I really felt like they kept that focus all night, and we're just determined to make that happen."
UP NEXT
Utah will head to the Maverik Center to face their Big 12 counterparts for the Conference Championship on Saturday, March 22.
UTAH EVENT-BY-EVENT RESULTS
Vault – 49.425
- Ella Zirbes – 9.85
- Grace McCallum – 9.85
- Avery Neff – 9.95
- Ashley Glynn – 9.80
- Makenna Smith – 9.925
- Zoe Johnson – 9.85
Bars – 49.150 (98.450)
- Makenna Smith – 9.95
- Ashley Glynn – 9.85
- Avery Neff– 9.925
- Amelie Morgan – 9.875
- Ella Zirbes – 9.85
- Grace McCallum – 9.925
Beam– 49.600 (148.550)
- Amelie Morgan – 9.875
- Camie Winger – 9.95
- Makenna Smith – 9.85
- Grace McCallum – 10.0
- Avery Neff – 9.925
- Ana Padurariu – 9.85
Floor – 49.550 (198.100)
- Ashley Glynn – 9.825
- Ella Zirbes – 9.90
- Avery Neff – 9.875
- Jaylene Gilstrap – 9.90
- Makenna Smith – 9.975
- Grace McCallum – 9.90
All-Around
Makenna Smith – 39.700 (1st place overall)
Grace McCallum – 39.675 (tied 2nd place overall)
Avery Neff – 39.675 (tied 2rd place overall)
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