ChompTalk.com

Chomping at the bit for Florida Athletics

recent posts

about

Thanks for all the support. I hope you have enjoyed reading this blog as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Anyone with comments/questions/suggestions please email me at: bdfoxjr@chomptalk.com
  • Roundtable: 2023 Gators Football Predictions

    Roundtable: 2023 Gators Football Predictions

    Photo by James Gilbert | Getty Images

    Our panel takes a crack at predicting which Gators will excel on the football field in 2023. Florida enters the season with low expectations as the odds makers set the team’s over/under for wins at just 5.5.

    Do our prognosticators have more faith in Billy Napier’s second team at UF? Find out in the 2023 roundtable predictions.

    First, our staff includes UF Journalism students: Carson Euverard, Alyssa Britton-Harr, Hugh Green, and ChompTalk founder Brian Fox.

    …

    Now, onto the predictions. The four will predict which players will standout on the statsheet before predicting the Gators’ win-loss record for the season.

    Leading Rusher (Yards):

    Carson – Montrell Johnson Jr. will once again lead the Gators rushing attack this year. He is coming off a season where he averaged 5.4 YPC and should get plenty of opportunities in a run-heavy scheme this year.

    Alyssa – Trevor Etienne because he is explosive on the field and if the ball is out into his hands most of the time it’s a guaranteed touchdown. 

    Hugh – Trevor Etienne. He showed incredible explosiveness and agility last season as just a freshman.

    Brian – Trevor Etienne. As a true freshman, Etienne exploded onto the scene. He racked up 719 yards and averaged a (RB) team high 6.1 yards per carry. He and Johnson make a dynamic duo, but I believe Etienne is going to separate himself and force Billy Napier to give him the bulk of the carries. 

    Leading Receiver (Yards):

    Carson – Ricky Pearsall will be relied heavily on in the slot this year for the Gators and should lead the team in receiving. Rob Sale’s scheme and a run-heavy offense should open up defenses and allow Pearsall to get open on play action shots.

    Alyssa – I believe Ricky Pearsall will be the leading receiver for the Gators. He is a standout player and after just one season with Florida he has proven that when he gets the ball he will make it worthwhile. 

    Hugh – Ricky Pearsall. After watching some videos from practices, it looks like he and Mertz have a good connection. 

    Brian – Caleb Douglas. Pearsall is phenomenal, but he will likely be covered by the opposition’s best player each week. That should open things up for a player like Douglas (or one of the talented freshmen). Douglas averaged 17.5 yards per catch and scored two touchdowns in 2022. I think he’s primed for a big season in 2023. 

    Sacks Leader (defense) :

    Carson – With the injury to Justus Boone, Princely Umanmielen will carry a heavy load and lead the team in sacks again. Umanmielen was PFF’s highest returning edge rusher in the SEC for the upcoming season and could jump up draft boards with a productive year.

    Alyssa – I’m going to say Princely Umanmielen, with his stats last season it’s hard to compete. However, I think we could see some potential in the upcoming season from many of the freshmen. 

    Hugh – Princely Umanmielen. He led the team in sacks last season, and we lost some of our other sack leaders from a year ago.

    Brian – Princely Umanmielen. This seems like the obvious answer since he led the team in sacks a year ago. Umanmielen really turned on the boosters in the second half of the season following the dismissal of Brenton Cox. 

    Tackles leader (defense) : 

    Carson – Ohio State grad-transfer Teradja Mitchell is a heavy-hitter up the middle and should get a lot of opportunities to stop the run. Mitchell recorded 45 tackles in 2021 for Ohio State.

    Alyssa – Chris McClellan to some people might seem like a long shot, but I think Napier’s decision to have him play in every game last season is a sign to not overlook McCellan. 

    Hugh – Kamari Wilson. He showed some bright signs last season as a freshman and will most likely get lots of playing time in 2023.

    Brian – Shemar James. The top returning tackler from the 2022 defense is now-sophomore Shemar James. James finished 2022 with 47 total tackles and two sacks. The talented linebacker was injured early in camp but has bounced back and was listed as a starter in the depth chart the team released Monday evening. 

    Interceptions leader (defense) :

    Carson – Miguel Mitchell will look to have a breakout year at safety. Mitchell played baseball in high school and has great ball skills. This, paired with his ability to read the field, should lead to a few INTs.

    Alyssa – Jason Marshall, Jr. because his record last season is unmatched, and he made pivotal interceptions against teams where getting the ball back was crucial. 

    Hugh – Jason Marshall, Jr. He had one interception and a team-leading eight pass breakups last season.

    Brian – Jordan Castell. OK, I did this because I want to see the freshman succeed on this kind of level. Many were surprised when Castell was named the starting safety, but he has impressed in both spring and fall camp. Seeing Napier start a true freshman over an upperclassmen feels like a step in the right direction and promotes accountability in the program. So, why not?

    Florida’s final regular season record; with losses to:

    Carson – 8-4. Losses to Utah, Tennessee, Georgia and LSU. The Utah game will be a tough road-battle for the young guys and Cam Rising’s status is still up in the air for the Utes but their roster will be just enough to hold off the rebuilding Gators. Josh Heupel’s high-octane offense and Joe Milton’s arm will give the Volunteers the edge in a close one. Georgia will be looking to three-peat this year. Billy Napier isn’t on that level, yet. Death Valley is one of the ultimate tests in CFB and Brian Kelly will have his team ready to go for that one.

    Alyssa – 8-4. Lose to Tennessee, LSU, and Georgia. These teams can score a lot of points and have proven they can against Florida and several other teams time after time. The three teams above have recruited some of the best players in the country and have had great seasons to where the Gators, I think need time before they can show out like some of the top teams. Mertz will do good for the Gators, and they will have a successful year, I believe. 

    Hugh – 7-5. Losses to Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia, LSU and Florida State. Joe Milton will have a big game for Tennessee. South Carolina will be a letdown game like Vanderbilt last season. Georgia is too good. LSU is very hard to beat in Death Valley. FSU will be a close game but I think they edge out the Gators in the fourth.

    Brian – 7-5. Losses to Utah, Kentucky, Georgia, LSU, Florida State. To start, I don’t believe in Joe Milton and Tennessee, especially not in the Swamp. Transfer QB Devin Leary and the Wildcats get Florida in what will be a tough atmosphere in Lexington. UGA and LSU are just too good right now. Florida would have to pull off a massive upset to win either game. Right now, the Seminoles are a slightly more talented team and a more veteran team, at that. Florida will be really good in a year, but for now, the Gators are a year away. Let the younger players develop, and this team can be something special in the future. That could start with a surprise win in one of those five games I listed. 

    …

    What do you think, Gator Nation? What will Florida’s final record look like and who will lead the team in the statistics listed?

  • Part Two: A sneek peak into the 2023 Gators defense

    Part Two: A sneek peak into the 2023 Gators defense

    Photo by James Gilbert | Getty Images

    Florida head coach Billy Napier named Austin Armstrong the Gators’ new defensive coordinator in February 2023. Before Florida, Armstrong spent his last two seasons as the defensive coordinator and linebacker coach at Southern Miss. 

    The Gators’ defense last season was one of their greatest flaws as they gave up an average of 28.5 points per game due to their struggle. This season, the goal is to add more depth to the defense, and through the coaching of Armstrong, if Mertz and the offensive side get the ball to where it needs to be, focusing on the run first operation. If the offense can have a longer time of possession, the defense will have more time on the sidelines to rest. 

    However, Florida’s defense this season will have to fill the missing hole of Gervon Dexter, Sr. Dexter, who was undoubtedly the Gators’ best defensive tackle last season, finished his final season at UF and recorded 55 tackles, two sacks, four quarterback pressures and one interception. As an interior defensive player for Florida last year, he was selected in the second round of the NFL Draft with the No. 53 pick overall by the Chicago Bears. 

    With that being said, talk of this year’s defense: Cam Jackson, a transfer from Memphis, is the nose for the Gators, and we expect him to play a pivotal role in Florida’s defense. It is hard to replace prominent players from past seasons, but Jackson has shown similar depth to Dexter in comparison to both of their previous seasons. 

    Jackson at Memphis recorded 41 tackles (2.5 for loss), four quarterback pressures and a one-pass breakup. Similar to the loss of Dexter, Florida was also tasked with replacing Ventrell Miller and Amari Burney, an unbreakable linebacker duo for the Gators. 

    Napier and the Gators have a prominent defense, with most of the starters being juniors and seniors who have already played under Napier for one year and behind Anthony Richardson, in which they were able to learn how to play against highly skilled players. Alongside many veteran players starting, such as Princely Umanmielen and Jason Marshall Jr. Napier recruited many high-rated prospect recruits, and a majority of them, as freshmen, came in as early entries to start working for Florida early in the spring. 

    Florida has put in the work over the summer and in fall camp, and this Thursday, their game against the Utah Utes will be a tough test of how their chemistry is playing together as a team.

  • SOC: Gators Rout Stetson, 8-0

    SOC: Gators Rout Stetson, 8-0

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    GAINESVILLE, Fla. – With a dominant 8-0 win over the Stetson Hatters, the Florida Gators women’s soccer team extended their shutout streak to four games to open the season, a new program record. This was Florida’s first 8 goal match since 1999.

    Megan Hinnenkamp got the Gators going with her first collegiate goal in the 17th minute on a through ball from Tori Grambo. Just two minutes later Hinnenkamp secured her brace with an unassisted goal to the far-post.

    Two minutes after Hinnenkamp’s second, Molly Grant scored her first goal for the Gators after a corner kick bounced around and found her in front of the net.

    Grant got her brace in the 28th minute on an assist by Charlotte McClure to give the Gators a 4-0 lead at the half.

    Lena Bailey, Julianne Leskauskas, Liwa Nilsson and Maddy Rhodes all scored one goal a piece in the second-half to take care of the Hatters.

    The Florida defense stepped up once again tonight, allowing only one Stetson shot.

    Alexa Goldberg played the first-half in the goal, and Jayden Emmanuel commanded the second-half to combine for the clean sheet.

    Head coach Samantha Bohon was able to rotate many players tonight to get valuable minutes for the second-team. Twenty-seven Gators saw game-action Sunday.

    The Gators will head to Atlanta to take on the Kennesaw State University Owls on Sunday, September 3. The game is set to kick-off at 3 p.m. on ESPN+.

  • WGYM Liveblog: Xfinity National Championships Night 2, ft. Gator Gymnasts

    WGYM Liveblog: Xfinity National Championships Night 2, ft. Gator Gymnasts

    Tonight, the U.S. national champion, national team, and invitees to Worlds Trials will be decided, with four current or future Gators hoping to be among those lucky few.

    Night 1 yielded great results for three of those four – Shilese Jones, Skye Blakely, and Leanne Wong were 2-3-4 behind the great Simone Biles after four routines. Tonight, they’ll try to replicate that success, and if they’re successful, they should all make national team and be invited to trial for World Championships.

    Kayla DiCello stands much further down in the standings at No. 19, but she did post the fourth-highest floor score despite her troubles on bars and beam. She’ll want to hit at least bars at her full potential tonight, if not also beam, if she wants to be in contention for World Championships. As far as national team, it feels unlikely she’ll get an automatic berth, but there are often spots available on an individual basis, awarded by the High Performance Staff.

    They’ll be fighting back a deep, talented field of Biles and a slew of current and future NCAA athletes. UCLA’s Jordan Chiles, Oregon State’s Jade Carey, and Auburn’s Sunisa Lee should all be names our regular readers recognize, and some future household gymnastics names will also be present. Joscelyn Roberson and Kaliya Lincoln are both in contention for World Championships and are future Arkansas and LSU athletes, respectively.

    There are also a few younger, still uncommitted athletes with the potential to make at least the national team, including Tiana Sumanasekera and Amelia Disidore, the latter of whom has an older sister joining the Gators this year. Though coaches Jenny Rowland and Owen Field are on the floor to coach Wong and certainly focused on her, it’s hard to imagine the success of these uncommitted athletes has gone unnoticed by their keen recruiting eyes.

    For Night 2, DiCello and Blakely will start on floor, competing back to back, and Wong and Jones will start on beam. It all starts in just a few short minutes on Peacock at 6:30pm ET, and the NBC broadcast will start on a delay at 7pm ET. I’ll be blogging from the Peacock broadcast, for clarification, just in case the NBC one is different!

    6:34pm: We’re starting with Rotation 1!

    Biles, VT: Looks like she may forgo the Yurchenko double pike tonight – her ankles are heavily taped. Just the Cheng tonight, has to pike down a little to land it, just a little slide on the landing. Still, a 14.85 is an enormous score!

    Chiles, VT: Yurchenko double full, twisting is pretty clean, legs come apart a little toward the end but just a little bounce back on the landing.

    Jong, BB: She was No. 9 coming into tonight. Standing full, lands a little low but very securely. Side aerial, stumbled and fell, oof. Gets back up for a standing layout stepout-layout stepout – much better. Wolf turn is steady. Switch leap to pike jump, strong positions in the air. Double pike dismount, single step back on the landing. Not what she needed.

    Lincoln, FX: This will be a showstopper routine, y’all. I can’t wait to see her with NCAA choreography, even if it is at LSU. Double double to open, goes OOB. Full-twisting double layout, good body position, landing well controlled. Triple wolf turn, well controlled. Front full through to double back, stuck! Good for her! That’ll raise her stock in the Worlds picture.

    Jones, BB: Mount is cleaner tonight. Standing arabian is excellent! Back handspring-back handspring-2 foot layout, very steady. Side aerial, solid. Her extension is really lovely through her choreography. Switch leap to sissone, good positions in the air. Double pike dismount, lands nearly upright, just a little step back. 14.3! That’s a Worlds final kind of score.

    First commercial break as we let the second half of the rotation take a touch warmup. DiCello and Blakely will be back-to-back on floor to start off, and Wong will close out beam.

    6:49pm:

    DiCello, FX: Double double to open, very nice! That’s a new skill she’s added back. Finesses her wolf turn, should still count fine? Split full, that’s clean. 1.5 to front full, that’s from her collegiate routine. Leaps in her dance passage are gorgeous, great extension. Double pike is stuck! That’s the way to start tonight!

    Roberson, VT: Cheng – that’s a Yurchenko half-on, layout 1.5 off – cleaner leg form than Night 1! And just a small step on the landing.

    Blakely, FX: Double double, puts her hands down – that’s a full point off, ouch. OOB on her double layout – this is not the start she needed. Wolf turn is fine. Dance passage clean. Not performing the choreography as well as Night 1, her head’s not in the game right now after those errors. Front tuck through to double tuck, and OOB again – ouch. That may allow Wong to overtake her.

    Carey, UB: Tkachev to start is fine. Maloney to Bhardwaj, nice! Good save on her transition back to high bar, fingertip catch, wow. Sticks her dismount! A better start for her than Night 1 as well.

    Wong, BB: Side aerial to switch leap, doesn’t connect but does do the wolf jump full. Back handspring to layout stepout, very steady – I hope that’s the end of her issues with that series. L turn to full turn, good connection there. Switch ring, lovely position in the air. Side somi, nice and solid. Front aerial to split jump to straddle jump, those connections should be good. 2.5 twist dismount is good!

    AFTER ONE:
    1. Biles: 74.15
    2. Jones (UF): 71.05
    3. Wong (UF): 69.05
    4. Chiles: 68.85
    5. Lincoln: 68.05
    6. Blakely (UF): 67.9
    7. Roberson: 67.5
    8. Sumanasekera: 66.85
    9. Zhou: 65.9
    10. Disidore: 65.8

    We have merged with the NBC broadcast now so they are repeating some routines – or Biles’s vault, at least – but I will not be repeating info here because this is a bit silly. Just show the whole meet and start on time, gymnastics can draw the viewers!

    In rotation 2, DiCello and Blakely will go to vault, and Jones and Wong will go to floor.

    7:08pm: Rotation 2!

    Lincoln, VT: Yurchenko double full, pretty big slide back, a little wild.

    Matthews, FX: Full in to open, just steps out of bounds, ouch. Front full through to 2.5 twist, very clean in her twisting form. Dance passage is lovely. Really selling the choreography, I love it. Wolf turn is fine. Double back to finish, has to pull it around just a little but lands fine. What a creative routine!

    Miller, UB: Inbar full to Komova, very difficult skills and she hits them well tonight. Jaeger is clean. Piked Tkachev to pak salto, lovely. Great final handstand on the high bar! Double layout dismount, just a little hop forward – muuuuuch better than Night 1! Definitely raises her as a question in the Worlds picture.

    Wong, FX: Double double is stuck to open! Very nice! And she sticks her double layout – she is on fire tonight! Double L turn combination is solid. Whip half to front full is well controlled, and she sticks her double pike. Okay, Adrian is going to be thrilled about that. She really is doing the best gymnastics of her life right now – 14.0!!!

    Blakely, VT: Yurchenko double full, very clean in the air, bounce back. Hopefully that gives her some mojo back after the floor disaster.

    Chiles, UB: Toe full, solid pirouette. Piked Tkachev and she overcooks it – misses the bar! Goes to rechalk and remount. Completes the skill this time, to a pak salto. van Leeuwen to Gienger is good. Blind change to piked Jaeger, clean. Sticks her double layout! Not what she wanted but definitely recovered well.

    Aaaand we’re showing the Shilese Jones fluff piece again – I’m gonna cry! Love that she’s doing this for her dad. Florida can wait as long as it needs to for her to go for that dream for her dad.

    7:29pm:

    Jones, FX: Starts with a wolf turn, pretty steady. Double double, a little short but covers well. Triple L turn, goooorgeous. That’s quite difficult. Front full through to double back, almost looked like she winced with her right ankle? That’s not a good sign. Full in, that looked much more secure. Another excellent routine for her – if this is her at 75-80%, I can’t wait to see what 100% looks like!

    Biles, UB: Weiler half to Maloney, pirouette on the high bar is good. Piked Tkachev to pak, quick connection there. Van Leeuwen is clean. A little short of vertical on her last pirouette, but sticks her dismount! Well done.

    Lee, BB: Triple wolf turn to start, pretty even keeled. Front aerial to split jump to back handspring, made a small adjustment at the end there and hardly bobbled – lesser athletes would’ve fallen. Switch leap to switch half to ring jump, great 180 splits. Handspring-layout stepout-layout stepout – stays on tonight! Small bobble but much better than a fall. Split jump to split leap, gorgeous. Gainer tuck full dismount off the end, just a small adjustment. That’s the kind of routine you take her to Worlds for, especially if she can pair it with a world-class bars routine that she’s training.

    AFTER TWO:
    1. Biles: 88.2
    2. Jones (UF): 85.2
    3. Wong (UF): 83.05
    4. Blakely (UF): 82.15
    5. Lincoln: 81.95
    6. Chiles: 81.8
    7. Sumanasekera: 79.65
    8. Fatta: 79.55
    9. DiCello (UF): 79.35
    10. Roberson: 79.3

    DiCello quietly making her way back up the standings! She and Blakely will be on bars, while Wong and Jones go to vault.

    John Roethlisberger saying he heard 18 will be invited to Worlds Selection camp! That feels like a lot for a 29-member field.

    7:44pm: Rotation 3!

    Wong, VT: Yurchenko double full, just a little movement on the landing – college stick territory.

    Blakely, UB: Really nailing these handstands. Piked Tkachev to pak salto is excellent. Stayed patient with the toe full on the low bar, made sure to go over the right way, transition back to high was clean. Double front dismount is clean! 14.4!

    Jones, VT: Yurchenko double full, just a small hop back. Lots of good distance, nice stretched body position. 14.4 as well for her.

    Carey, FX: Full-twisting double layout, little bounce on the landing but didn’t look out of bounds. Double double, fought to stay in but had to keep her chest a little low. Dance series looked clean, good positions in the air. Front layout through to double back, sticks that cold! Double tuck to finish, bouncy again and does go OOB this time. Still, should be a strong score.

    Roberson, BB: Standing full, very confident. Switch leap to switch half to back tuck, definitely short of 180 on the half there. Side aerial-layout stepout-layout stepout, hesitates to put her foot down but doesn’t bobble. Onodi, doesn’t connect, split to sissone. Straddle jump from side stand, does not hit 180 there either. Double pike, lands a little crunched over, single step on the landing.

    Just finished a commercial break – we’re back now!

    7:57pm:

    Sumanasekera, BB: Candle mount, much like DiCello. Handspring-handspring-2 foot layout, very secure. Mixed series is strong, connections are quick into the korbut (handspring swingdown). Switch leap to split half, doesn’t connect into the ring jump. Side aerial to wolf jump, another bobble and missed connection into another jump. Double pike dismount is stuck! Her difficulty score will not be nearly as high as night 1 with all those broken connections.

    Biles, BB: Switch leap mount to switch half to back tuck, strong. Wolf turn is much better than her first night. A little short of 180 on one of those connects jumps. Handspring-layout stepout-layout stepout, super secure. Side aerial is clean. Full in dismount, stutter step backward. Just incredible – she’s so casual about it but that’s a difficult routine. Going to get her ankle taped now before floor, that ankle is definitely bugging her.

    Chiles, BB: Beyonce playing in the arena, that’s her jam. Handspring-layout stepout-layout stepout, oh no! She turns around and bobbles trying to save it but can’t, has to hop off. Gets back on. Front aerial to split jump, clean. Side somi, another big bobble. Switch leap to sissone, those are nice. Side aerial, steady. Switch side, gets good amplitude on that. Double pike, hop forward. Yeah, she’s frustrated. Lots of fight in that routine but that’ll cost her.

    8:12pm: Just a couple miscellaneous routines from earlier in the third rotation:

    Lincoln, UB: Not her best event, falls on her first release skill. Still, if she makes Worlds, it won’t be for this. Tkachev to pak salto, was really far from the bar but made it happen somehow! Van Leeuwen is okay. Taking lots of swings here to wind up for just a double back dismount – that’s a bummer.

    Zeiss, VT: Yurchenko 1.5, stuck cold! That’s huge – LSU will take that.

    8:19pm: Rotation four, here we go!

    Roberson, FX: Double twisting double layout – that’s a Moors, the hardest tumbling pass being competed this weekend. Full twisting double layout for the second pass, a little short there but stays in bounds. Front through to double tuck, again a little short but covers better this time. Double pike to close, more secure this time. That’ll be a strong score for her!

    We’re getting far more commercial breaks tonight than Night 1… I am not a fan.

    Lee, VT: Just a Yurchenko full, the least difficult vault being competed here – but they’re playing it safe for the kidney right now. Very clean, straight down the middle, nice stretched body position.

    Jones, UB: Great opening handstand. Stalder full is strong. Chow to Tkachev is great. Piked Tkachev to pak salto, great amplitude and well controlled. Transition back to high bar is good. Double front, goes for the stick but can’t quite hold it, takes a step forward. Still, a huge 15.0 for her will absolutely make her a favorite for Worlds.

    Biles, FX: Opens with a full-twisting double layout, just a little bounce in place. Front full through to double double, stuck. No big deal. Wolf turn is clean enough. Dance passage is lovely, great extension through her leaps. Biles I – a double layout half out – is great, she stays in bounds tonight! Double layout to finish… you know, in college, that an opening pass for only the strong floor workers? Just incredible. An absolute legend.

    Chiles, FX: 1.5 through to full in to open, that’s fun! Double layout is stuck! Taking energy from Biles for sure. Dance passage is clean, maybe fudges the rotation on the last element? Front through to double back, saves herself from going OOB by the tiniest little shift of her ankles. Double pike to close it out – that’s a much better way to end her night!

    We’re at the halfway point of this last rotation – Wong, Blakely, and DiCello all yet to come.

    8:40pm:

    Wong, UB: Jaeger is great, good amplitude. Bhardwaj transition, that’s great. Maloney to pak salto, doesn’t connect, van Leeuwen is fine though. Double layout, just a little shift backward. What an incredible meet for her. 14.0, she’ll finish third!

    Carey, VT: Starts with a Cheng, really well done – cleaned up her leg form from Night 1 too. They didn’t show her second vault, but I’m hearing from Twitter it was also great.

    DiCello, BB: Candle mount, solid. Triple wolf turn, quite steady. Switch leap full? That’s new. Handspring-layout stepout-layout stepout, bobbles but stays on. Switch leap to switch half, positions are fine. Front aerial, breaks connection to the subsequent jumps. Side aerial, another big bobble but stays on. Double pike, step forward. Looks like she’s favoring an ankle as she comes off? Hopefully just a sting. That’ll be much better than Night 1, but not quite the lights-out she might have wanted.

    Blakely, BB: Triple wolf turn to open, a little scary but doesn’t have a major break. Standing full, quite confident. Front handspring to front tuck – no one else is doing it like her! Switch leap to switch half, maybe a little shy of 180? Front aerial to split jump to back handspring, very quick connections. Side aerial is clean. Double pike dismount, big lunge back but saves herself from stumbling. That’ll be a good score – should keep her in top contention despite her issues on floor. 13.7 – she’ll finish in fourth!

    FINAL:
    1. Biles
    2. Jones (UF)
    3. Wong (UF)
    4. Blakely (UF)
    5. Chiles
    6. Jong
    7. Roberson
    8T. Sumanasekera and DiCello (UF)
    10. Disidore

    Jones becomes national champion on bars and takes bronze on floor, and Blakely takes silver on bars and beam.

    Jones, Wong, and Blakely should automatically get berths on the national team, and I think DiCello will too? I think it’s top 8 who get named immediately.

    As far as Worlds Trials are concerned, these top 10 should all get invited, as well as Carey, Lee, and Lincoln for sure. Roethlisberger had said he heard 18 earlier in the meet, and if we add Matthews and Miller, that’s everyone who scored a 14+ on at least one event on one day. That’s a little more conservative at 15 total, but personally I think that covers all the bases – although I’m not on the High Performance Committee!

    That’s all from San Jose (and my couch) this weekend. We’ll have updates to come once the Worlds team is named, and if any Gators are on the team (seems likely), I’ll have some kind of coveragefor y’all, whether it’s live or recaps.

    Thanks for joining us! Be sure to follow @chomptalk on all your socials, and catch me at @mycluttereddesk on Twitter and @gymcaroline on Instagram for all the gymnastics content.

  • VB: Gators Victorious in Close Battle With USF

    VB: Gators Victorious in Close Battle With USF

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    The Florida Gators volleyball team was back in action Saturday night at The Road 2 Tampa Bay Invitational. The matchup included the No. 11 ranked Gators and the Bulls of South Florida. It was a highly competitive match from start to finish, with UF edging out USF in the fifth and final set.

    Match Breakdown

    USF was the host team for the invitational and gave the Gators everything they could handle. However, Florida’s talent was too much to deal with in the end. Moving to 2-0 on the season, this marks the fifth year in a row that Coach Wise’ team has gotten through this first weekend of the regular season undefeated.

    South Florida claimed the victory in the first set 25-22. UF kept their composure and bounced back in the second set to win 25-18. Moving to a pivotal third set, the Bulls edged out the Gators 25-22. Then, after Florida forced a do or die fifth set, their athleticism and skills were what guided them to a 15-8 fifth set victory to clinch the match.

    Top Performers

    Kennedy Martin is quickly making herself a household name in Gainesville. The Freshman had two breakout performances in both matches this weekend at the Road 2 Tampa Bay Invitational. Leading UF in kills for the second straight match, Martin put up a career high 27. Her performances were good enough to earn All-Tournament Team honors. With an impressive .449 hitting percentage on Saturday, Kennedy Martin was the offensive catalyst for Florida once again.

    The next leader in kills was Sofia Victoria with 9. The Senior Outside Hitter will look to be a key contributor all season long. Anna Dixon also contributed as she posted 8 kills on the night at a .429 percentage.

    Alexis Stucky had another elite performance posting 46 assists on the night.

    Anna Dixon was the leader defensively for the Gators. Dixon posted an impressive 14 blocks at the net which was good for a career high.

    Elli McKissock, Trinity Adams, Emily Canaan also contributed on defense coming up with a total of 23 digs combined.

    Florida ended up finishing the Invitational with a 2-0 record. They defeated both opponents on the weekend and will look carry their momentum into next week’s matches. The Gators will continue their road trip as they travel to Stanford, California to take on the No. 3 ranked Cardinal on Tuesday, August 29. First serve is scheduled for 9 p.m. EST.

  • VB: Gators Knock Off No. 8 Penn State in Season Opener

    VB: Gators Knock Off No. 8 Penn State in Season Opener

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    The Florida Gators and Penn State Nittany Lions squared off in a battle between two ranked teams. Florida would come out victorious winning the match in four sets. After losing the first set, the Gators kept their composure. Leading to their seventh straight season opening win.

    Road 2 Tampa Bay Invitational

    Penn State looked sharp early, winning the first set 25-18. However, the Gators would bounce back to win a competitive second set 25-23. After the match was now even, Florida had the momentum. They capitalized on their momentum and won the third set, 25-17. Heading into the fourth and final set, Florida put away the Nittany Lions while ending the match in four sets.

    With the victory, the Gators showed that they are more than capable of competing with the elite teams in the country. Opening the season in the win column is something this team has gotten used to, but there is still a long road ahead to achieve the goals this team is capable of.

    Key Contributors

    Freshman, Kennedy Martin, led the Gators with 18 kills. In her first collegiate match, Martin put her talents on the play as she was the leader on the offensive front. She wasn’t shy to flash her skills on the defensive side of the ball either, tallying 5 blocks on the night. Fellow freshman, Kira Hutson, collected 14 kills during her first action in college volleyball. The two freshman combined to make school history. Martin and Hutson became the first freshman duo in UF history to record a combined 30 kills in their first ever career matches.

    There was elite talent on the court for the Gators other than these impressive freshman. Sofia Victory put her footprint on the match by adding 11 kills. While graduate transfer, Anna Dixon, notched 10 kills and two blocks in her first match in the Orange and Blue.

    The facilitator of the offense was sophomore setter, Alexis Stucky. The 2022 SEC Freshman of the Year looked sharp as she totaled 55 assists on the night. Coming up only one assist shy of her career high.

    Elli McKissock had 13 digs leading the Gators. The senior libero will be a season long starter who will bring veteran leadership to the team on and off the court. Another strong presence on Florida’s defense was Gabrielle Essix as she put up a team-high 7 blocks.

    Gators Back in Action

    Florida will have a quick turnaround as they prepare for USF on Saturday night. The Road 2 Tampa Bay Invitational will continue to air on ESPN+. First serve for the match against USF is scheduled for Saturday, August 26th at 8 p.m. from the Yuengling Center.

  • SOC: Gators Battle Weather, Hurricanes to Scoreless Draw

    SOC: Gators Battle Weather, Hurricanes to Scoreless Draw

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    CORAL GABLES, Fla. – For the first time in program history, the Gators’ women soccer team opened their season with three straight shutouts, following a 0-0 draw against the Miami Hurricanes Thursday.

    In the 48th minute, the game was delayed an hour and a half due to lightning, and the Gators pushed hard to score the game winner after the delay.

    Florida dominated on offense but just couldn’t find the net, out-shooting the Hurricanes 14-1. In the 67th minute, a header from Madison Young went in the net, but the officials determined the ball deflected off a Gator before going in and waved off the goal for offsides.

    The Gators’ defense turned in a dominant performance once again, allowing only one shot in the game. Goalkeeper Alexa Goldberg recorded her third clean-sheet in a row.

    The Gators are back at home this Sunday, August 27, against the Stetson University Hatters. Kick-off is slated for 6 p.m.

  • WGYM Liveblog: Xfinity Championships Night 1 ft. Gator Gymnasts

    WGYM Liveblog: Xfinity Championships Night 1 ft. Gator Gymnasts

    With World Championships on their minds as the first step toward Paris, the Olympic quest in their hearts, senior elite gymnasts will compete tonight for the U.S. national title, places on the national team, and a chance to trial for Worlds.

    Zoom in the Gators: Leanne Wong, Kayla DiCello, Skye Blakely, and Shilese Jones. These four women will be among the field of nearly 30 athletes vying for 12-15 spots at World Trials, only five of whom will ultimately make the team. You can read our preview to learn more about their chances, but they’re heavy favorites to at least make it to the selection event.

    Competing alongside them will be several NCAA compatriots, including Jordan Chiles of UCLA, Sunisa Lee of Auburn, Jade Carey of Oregon State, and many other upcoming commits, as well as the GOAT herself, Simone Biles.

    8:05pm: Carey, FX: Moors to open! That’s a double-twisting double layout, one of the most difficult skills we’ll see tonight, quite good body position through most of it. Tucked double double for her second pass, landing is decent. Front layout through to double pike, solid. She’s really put some emphasis on her dance skills over the past several months, she’s giving the drama here. Double back to close, comes in a little short – the stamina isn’t quiiite there yet. Did save herself from going OOB though.

    Wong, VT: Yurchenko double full, pretty clean in the air, some crossed ankles, hop back on the landing but quite straight down the runway. 14.25! She leads the standings currently.

    Roberson, BB: She’s an Arkansas commit! Standing tuck full to open, HUGE! Switch to switch half to back tuck, definitely short of 180 on those split positions. Side aerial-layout stepout-layout stepout, super solid. Full turn is clean. Onodi is crooked, breaks her connection to her dance element after, but connects the second. Double pike dismount, just a step to the side and her chest was a bit low.

    Matthews, VT: Just a Yurchenko full, your typical NCAA vault. Very clean in the air, slide back. Doesn’t have the power for a double though, best she stick to cleaning this as best she can. She’s still uncommitted for NCAA, I believe!

    DiCello, UB: Starts on low bar and can’t get her first pirouette finished, has to hop off, that’s rough. Goes again, toe full to Maloney is clean. Piked Tkachev, and the piked Jaeger is lovely, so is the pak salto. Just little bends in her arms here and there, she’s tired. Sticks her full out dismount, but that’s not how she wanted to start. Just a 12.3, oof.

    Blakely, UB: Stalder half to piked Jaeger, excellent. Piked Tkachev to pak salto, good amplitude on that. Toe full to van Leeuwen, fingertip catch. Double front half out dismount, little stutter step. She’s got great swing, that looked really solid. 14.4 will give her the lead over future teammate Wong!

    Miller, BB: She’s an LSU commit! Gets the full turn out of the way early, clean. Triple acro series, a little stutter on her back foot but doesn’t move a muscle. Mixed series is clean. Switch leap to switch half, another very short of 180. Side aerial is great. Sissone to wolf jump, solid positions and very steady on the landings. Split jump full from side stand! That’s still worth extra difficulty, if I remember correctly. Double pike dismount, little step forward from the underrotation.

    First commercial break as the second half of the rotation gets a thirty-second touch warmup. Wong and Blakely looking STRONG out of the gate, and not even on their best events! DiCello needed to show more consistency this time out, so the fall off the bat is not doing her any favors. She’ll want to go 7/8 from here on out.

    8:24pm:

    Chiles, BB: If you haven’t heard, Chiles will defer a year to try for Paris before returning to finish her career at UCLA. Triple acro series to start, very steady. Front aerial to straddle jump to bhs, solid mixed series. Side somi, very confident on the landing. Switch leaps, breaks the connection to her remaining dance elements there, that’ll drop her difficulty score. Side aerial, another bobble. Switch side is clean. Double pike dismount, lots more power than her club teammates before her, looked like a stick from here!

    Jones, VT: Yurchenko double full, gorgeous stretched position in the air, just a slide back. 14.35! That puts her in second behind Blakely, making the Gators 1-2-3 right now!! Stop the count!

    Biles, BB: Little bobble on her switch leap mount. Dance sequence down the length of the beam is much more confident. Triple wolf turn, comes up a little out of it but saves it. Front aerial to straddle to sissone, nice and quick. Handspring-layout stepout-layout stepout, it’s like she’s on the floor. Side aerial is clean. Full in dismount, finishes her twist so high above the ground, just a little bounce in place on the landing.

    Sumanasekera, BB: How do you follow Biles, man? She’s one of the youngest here, still uncommitted in NCAA. Back handspring-back handspring-2 foot layout, well done. Front aerial split jump to korbut, very smooth connection. Switch to switch half, much closer to 180 than anyone else but still not perfect? Side aerial to wolf jump to sissone, quick connections there, very confident. Double pike dismount, very clean pike position, single step on the dismount. Well, I guess that’s how you follow Biles! Well done!

    Johnson, UB: Solid pirouettes on low bar. Maloney to pak, some leg separation there. van Leeuwen is clean. A little short on that handstand, Jaeger is nice though. Just a double tuck dismount, landed a little staggered, almost like she was dizzy? Hope it was just a one-off. She’s also uncommitted – this is her first senior season!

    AFTER ONE:
    1. Biles (pro): 14.45
    2. Blakely (UF): 14.4
    3. Jones (UF): 14.35
    4. Wong (UF): 14.2
    5T: Jong (Aub) and Sumanasekera (unc.): 13.85
    7. Pineda (unc.): 13.55
    8. Zeiss (LSU): 13.45
    9T: Fatta (OU), Carey (OSU), Disidore (unc.): 13.35

    8:43pm: Rotation 2!

    Blakely, BB: Double wolf turn, ooh, has to come up early, but doesn’t fall somehow. Standing full is dead on though! Good recovery. Front handspring to front tuck, gorgeous. Switch to switch half to back tuck, excellent connections, a little shy of 180 on the half. Front aerial to split to back handspring, very quick on those connections too. Side aerial, has to take a step back but masks it well. Double pike dismount, step to the side. Not perfect, but showed her resilience.

    Matthews, UB: Jaeger, great amplitude. Ricna, doesn’t connect to the pak salto, that’ll lower her planned difficulty. Tries to transition back to the high bar and can’t get there, slips off and falls. Repeats the van Leeuwen successfully as she remounts, good for her. Double layout dismount, sticks it. This is her best event, so that’s got to be a bummer for her.

    Lee, VT: Commentators are touting that tonight is the first time we’ve had two different Olympic gold medalists competing against each other at nationals, so that’s pretty cool! Just a Yurchenko full, keeping it simple and lowkey for now to protect her body as she trains back from her kidney condition, big bounce back but her body position is perfection.

    Chiles, FX: This will be a treat, y’all. 1.5 through to full in to open, well controlled landing. Bringing her signature showmanship in this choreography, love to see it. Double layout, suuuper straight body position. Dance passage is clean, double wolf turn is a little wild but better than the beam turns have been. Double tuck, goes OOB. Double pike, a little short but covers well. Needs a little more stamina but she threw DOWN on the choreography.

    Biles, FX: These back-to-back superstars! We are so blessed to live in the era of Simone Biles. Aaaand they’re having trouble with her music. Ok, here we go! Absolutely STICKS her Chusovitina, the full-twisting double layout. 1.5 through to double double, absolutely incredible. Wolf turn much better on the floor here, takes it nice and slow. Switch leap to tour jete full, nice and clean positions in the air. Biles I – that’s a double layout half out – she goes OOB with one foot, but it’s so minimal at this point, who cares? Double layout as her last pass – who does that??? She’s an absolute MONSTER of a tumbler, and she makes it look effortless. Sam Peszek commentating says she has a 6.8 difficulty score. SIX POINT EIGHT. No one else in the world is doing that right now.

    Another commercial break… we did not see DiCello or Jones that rotation for whatever reason, but hopefully they’ll show a tape delay of Jones’s routine since she’s literally tied with Biles right now for first!! An 11.7 for DiCello on beam, though, does not bode well for her. She’s going to need a very convincing night 2 to be in the mix for this team.

    9:03pm:

    Wong, UB: Opening release is great! Bhardwaj is clean, that’s again one of the hardest release skills you’ll see tonight. Maloney to pak, doesn’t connect the van Leeuwen but keeps the swing flowing. Double layout dismount is stuck! Big celebration from Owen Field and hugs from Jenny Rowland as she steps off the podium. A huge 14! Puts her in fourth at the moment.

    https://twitter.com/kathyjohnsongym/status/1695240892624290261?s=20
    From the commentating queen herself!

    Roberson, FX: Another Moors – double twisting double layout – not as clean as Carey but still strong. Does tuck her knees some but not enough to lose the skill value. Full twisting double layout for her second pass, cleaner there. Front full through to double tuck, stumbles back as she lands but stays in bounds. Front layout stepout through to double pike, basically stuck! Good for her!

    Carey, VT: She’s back up to the Cheng, which is a Yurchenko half-on 1.5 off in a layout position for those not yet familiar – ooh, lands kinda crunched and off to one side.

    Jones, UB: Excellent pirouette work to start. First release is great, big amplitude. Just absolutely flying – Downie to pak salto, so clean. Doesn’t connect to the van Leeuwen, but still swinging so naturally. Double front dismount, STUCK!

    https://twitter.com/mycluttereddesk/status/1695242362048368729?s=20

    AFTER TWO:
    1T. Biles (pro) and Jones (UF) 29.25
    3. Blakely (UF): 28.45
    4. Wong (UF): 28.25
    5. Jong (Aub): 27.9
    6. Carey (OSU): 27.3
    7. Disidore (unc.): 27.2
    8. Zeiss (LSU) 27.15
    9. Sumanasekera (unc.): 27.0
    10T. Neal (Aub) and Roberson (Ark): 26.5

    9:20pm: Rotation 3!

    Chiles, VT: Yurchenko double full, that looked pretty close to a stick to me! Some crossed ankles, but good amplitude.

    Biles, VT: Yurchenko double pike, the hardest vault any woman in the world is competing right now, will be named for her if she competes it internationally. HUGE air as usual – did she stick that???? Coach Laurent Landi was in the way of the camera angle, but hooooly cow, just incredible. One step if any. In slow mo, it almost looked like she crunched her ankles a little bit.

    She will go for a second vault here, first time since Tokyo doing two in competition. Cheng, the same that Carey did earlier, and she takes a HUGE bounce back – it’s too easy for her! She has too much power.

    Carey, UB: Solid opening handstand. Ricna is good. Ezhova is clean, doesn’t connect it to anything. Maloney to Bhardwaj, excellent. Goes for a handstand on the low bar and starts to go over the wrong way – fights it – oooooh and has to come off. Bummer. Dismount is good but it’s too little too late – she’ll want that to go much better on night two.

    Roberson, VT: Cheng as well – much cleaner in the landing than Biles, but nowhere near as much power and messier in the leg form, some bent knees.

    Yurchenko double full for her second vault – still some bent knees, but just a little bounce on the landing, well done. That would punch her ticket over Carey for me, despite the experience difference.

    Wong, BB: Side aerial to switch leap to wolf jump full! She did it! Gorgeous. Back handspring-layout stepout series, no bobble today, thank you. Full turn is fine, switch ring looked lovely. Side somi, solid there. Front aerial-split jump-straddle jump, nice and quick. 2.5 twist dismount, much better than Classic – just a little hop forward. She is KILLING it tonight.

    Lincoln, FX: Another LSU commit, floor is her strong suit. Double double with HUGE height, well controlled on the landing too. Full-twisting double layout, excellent. Triple wolf turn, very steady, nice and balanced. Front full through to double tuck – she’s so clean. Peszek is right, hers is a name you won’t want to forget!

    Jones, BB: Switch leap mount to immediate switch half, a little bobble but positions in the air are nice. Standing arabian, doesn’t connect there. Bhs bhs 2foot layout, leg up bobble and break at the hips – maybe touched the beam? That’s a .5 deduction if so. Side aerial is nice and steady, she’s recovering. Full turn, lil bobble. Split jump to sissone, gorgeous toe point and extension on those. Double pike dismount, little adjustment of one foot. For only being 75-80% in her own words, only one major error in three of four routines is pretty darn good though.

    At the halfway point of the third rotation, Jones and Wong are both in very strong positions, No. 2 and 3 currently behind Biles, which some might consider to be No. 1 and 2, since Biles competes practically in a league of her own.

    We’re getting a fluff piece on Jones now! Her dad bought her a whiteboard at 11 years old, and she wrote on it then that she wanted to go to the Olympics, so they up and moved the family across the country to a more developed elite program. He’s the one who believed in her to try for a second Olympic cycle after her devastating car accident set her back in 2021.

    Her shift back to Seattle was motivated by him – he said that she was more comfortable there at home, and that that’s where she was meant to be. When he passed, she and her family decided to move back, and she’s dedicating everything to him this Olympic cycle.

    Okay, more gymnastics now!

    9:42pm:

    Miller, VT: Yurchenko 1.5, undercooks it and stumbles back. Not her best, but not a make or break event for her.

    Booth, UB: Another youngling here, also uncommitted but from Florida, so keep an eye out. Tkachev 1/2 to ezhova, YES love that. Her swing is effortless through these transitions. Full-twisting double layout dismount! That’s the hardest dismount we’ve seen tonight.

    Blakely, FX: Her first time on floor in a hot minute! Double double to open, steps out of bounds but keeps the landing issues small. Double layout, really strong there. Double wolf turn, fine. Switch ring to tour jete half, solid split positions. Continues that theme through the rest of her dance elements here. Front tuck through to double tuck – a little underrotated. Still needs the stamina but definitely has promise!

    Matthews, BB: Lovely cartwheel mount. Bhs loso, big lean but stays on. 2.5 wolf turn, lots of bobbles but makes it work somehow. Switch leap to split half, short of 180. Side aerial, okay. Front aerial, another small check. Double tuck, lunge back.

    AFTER THREE
    1. Biles (pro): 44.95
    2. Jones (UF): 42.7
    3. Wong (UF): 42.0
    4. Blakely (UF): 41.35
    5. Sumanasekera (unc.): 41.2
    6. Roberson (Ark): 41.15
    7. Chiles (UCLA): 40.4
    8. Lincoln (LSU): 39.9
    9T. Jong (Aub) and Disidore (unc.): 39.75

    https://twitter.com/arabianpike/status/1695251089283494308?s=20

    9:59pm: Rotation 4!

    Sumanasekera, UB: Falls right off the bat just like at Classic! Oh no! That is not a great look for her. Maloney to pak salto, doesn’t connect, van Leeuwen. Jaeger, some flexed feet but fine. Full out dismount, very high above the bar, little step on the landing. Bummer.

    Carey, BB: Front aerial, little hesitation as she lands, no connection. Back handspring-layout stepout-layout stepout, solid series. Goes for a jump from side stand and falls – oof. Not her day is right, commentators. Side aerial, another bobble. All in her head now. Double tuck dismount, step forward. She’ll want to have a short memory when she hits the floor for day two.

    Wong, FX: Double wolf turn to open, finesses it a little bit. Double double to open, just barely keeps it in bounds. Double layout, stumbles backward and out of bounds, ouch. Hop L turn to switch half, lovely form throughout. Double L to single turn, good connection. Whip half to front full, very comfortable there. Double pike is stuck cold to close it out! What a night she has had – she really is doing the best gymnastics of her life!

    Roberson, UB: Not her event, but let’s see what she can do. Ezhova to start with, pretty clean. Maloney, big leg separation to pak salto, more leg sep there. Toe shoot, short on that handstand. Double layout dismount – big Aly Raisman vibes, just get through it and get out without anything bad happening.

    Neal, BB: An Auburn commit! Handspring layout stepout, solid. Switch leap to split jump half, lovely positions there. Front aerial is clean. Side aerial, takes a step back but keeps it under control. L turn, loses it a little at the end but doesn’t break at the hips. Side somi is fine. Double pike dismount, small adjustment. Good for her!

    Jokes aside, I think it’d be very hard to leave Jones or Wong at home after a night like tonight. Blakely too, to be honest, even if floor is not quite there.

    10:15pm:

    Miller, UB: Breaks on her opening pirouette, tries to reset, can’t make it happen and has to hop off. Wow, bummer for her on her best event. Remounts, doesn’t try the pirouette, just goes for the Komova which is good. Jaeger is great. Downie to pak, some leg separation. van Leeuwen is clean. Double layout dismount is stuck – oh, poor thing, she looks like she’s going to cry. WCC head coach Laurent Landi trying to bring her emotions down and treat things normally, giving some gentle corrections on the side as she comes off.

    Blakely, VT: Yurchenko double full – some crossed feet but she STICKS IT COLD oh my god!! That’s how to put an exclamation point on her night!

    Chiles, UB: Great opening handstand work. A little close on her piked Tkachev but makes it work. Pak is clean. van Leeuwen is good, to Gienger, legs aren’t too wild. Sticks that dismount! She’s thrilled.

    Biles, UB: Closing us out tonight on bars. Weiler half to Maloney, solid. Toe full to piked Tkachev to pak, very quick on these connections. Such an efficient routine – and sticks her dismount!

    Lee, BB: Finishing the night on beam! She’s got to make this count. Triple wolf turn, quite steady, well done. Front aerial to split jump to back handspring, very quick connections. Switch leap to switch half to ring jump, lovely positions throughout. Triple series and she’s off! Didn’t leave herself enough room it looked like. Gainer tuck full off the end is stuck. She’ll need to hit that full routine on Sunday, but I expect she’ll petition to Worlds Selection Camp regardless.

    Jones, FX: She gets to take center stage on floor as we end the night. Double double to open, excellent landing. Double L turn to double turn, gorgeous. Front full through to double tuck, lands practically upright but does go OOB. Really going classically artistic on this routine and I’m so here for it, very balletic choreography. Full in gets SO much height and the landing is again well controlled. A Hop L turn as she heads into her final choreography. A great routine for her.

    AFTER DAY ONE:
    1. Biles (pro): 59.3
    2. Jones (UF): 56.75
    3. Blakely (UF): 55.7
    4. Wong (UF): 55.35
    5. Chiles (UCLA): 54.6
    6. Lincoln (LSU) 54.0
    7. Disidore (unc.): 53.05
    8. Roberson (Ark): 52.95
    9. Jong (Aub): 52.9
    10. Johnson (unc.): 52.85
    …
    19T. DiCello (UF): 51.5

    At this point, I think it’s unlikely DiCello makes Worlds, but we’ll have to see what Day 2 brings. The other three Gators feel like heavy favorites after tonight’s performances, but no one is ever a lock in a field like this unless you’re a healthy Simone Biles.

    We’ll see you back here for Day 2 on Sunday at 7pm ET/4pm PT!

  • WGYM: Wong, DiCello, Future Gators Head to Nationals

    WGYM: Wong, DiCello, Future Gators Head to Nationals

    Photo via Getty Images

    After showing progress and some upgrades at the Core Hydration Classic a few weeks ago, it’s time for Gators Leanne Wong, Kayla DiCello, and Skye Blakely to take the next step toward World Championships by competing at Xfinity National Championships.

    They will be joined by Shilese Jones, who sat out at Classic to continue recovering from several injuries, including a torn labrum and a foot injury she sustained about a year ago. She shared in the mixed zone yesterday after podium training that she is trying to heal without surgery, but it is unknown how long ago her labrum tear occurred and what other options she has explored for treatment. There are gymnasts who have successfully competed with labrum injuries, including the high-profile Olivia Dunne, but their longevity and consistency can be significantly impacted. This would obviously not be ideal for Jones, who hopes to make Paris before coming to Gainesville for her collegiate career.

    As far as we know, Jones still plans to be a Gator in the future, but her entry year remains a mystery, as does the number of years of eligibility she will maintain, considering how many times she’s deferred.

    Despite announcing her comeback to elite recently, Trinity Thomas will not be vying for a berth on the World Championships team this year, and therefore will not be competing at this meet. She has been spotted training with Wong in recent videos, so at best guess, her first meet back in the elite world will be Winter Cup come 2024.

    Now that we’ve talked about all the Gators to keep an eye out for, let’s talk about their chances. If you go back to our Classics liveblog, you’ll see that Wong and Blakely both performed quite strongly, but DiCello still has quite a ways to go before she’s back to the 2021 form that earned her an Olympic alternate slot.

    Wong had added several difficult skills back into her repertoire at Classic. She switched back to a Yurchenko double full to be more competitive with her elite peers after competing the Podkopayeva in college and increased her bars difficulty with a Bhardwaj, one of the most difficult releases in the code. She had also configured a new floor routine to be both difficult and consistent, competing a double double, double layout (a new pass for her!), whip half to front full, and double pike. This was a team effort between choreographer Armine Barutyan, Wong’s former club coach, and her Florida coaches.

    However, for Nationals, Wong is training several connection series to continue to elevate her difficulty score. On bars, she is connecting her Maloney, pak salto, and van Leeuwen all one after the other, as well as attempting a difficult side aerial to switch leap to wolf jump full combination on beam. One calculation put her at a potential 6.2 D-score, which would put her among the top beam workers in the world at the moment.

    Jones shared with press yesterday that she only feels like she’s at 75-80% of her capacity, but really, the only place that seems to show in her podium training is in her landings. She appears to have most of her difficulty back from last year, competing a Yurchenko double full on vault and a stalder full-Chow-immediate Tkachev, a toe full-Church-pak salto combination, and a double front dismount on bars.

    That alone would make a solid case for her at Worlds with a mild but consistent beam and floor set, but she didn’t stop there. She’s planning a standing Arabian to split jump and a handspring-handspring-two foot layout series on beam, as well as a 1.5 through to double back, double double, and full in on floor. She is well prepared to make her case for another World Championships berth, provided she stays healthy.

    Blakely showed three strong events at Classic, but she passed on competing floor, pacing herself to return to all-around competition here at Nationals. She competed two vaults for the first time at Classic – a Yurchenko double full, like her future teammates, and a Yurchenko half-on, layout half off. She may have an intent to upgrade that in the future, but I haven’t seen a clip from podium training to see its current state this week. On bars, her routine features a stalder half to piked Jaeger, a Downie to pak salto, and a double front half out dismount.

    But beam is Blakely’s specialty – she has a difficult and quick set that includes a standing full, a front handspring-punch front-split jump mixed series, and a front aerial-straddle jump-bhs. She also trained a double double on floor, which would be a new addition for her if she puts it in.

    DiCello is a bit of a mystery – no one has posted clips of her from podium training yesterday, but some eagle-eyed Twitter users have spotted a few upgrades. She has her Yurchenko double back, upgrade from the full at Classic, and is reliably connecting her pak salto to van Leeuwen in her bars set, as she has been capable of but rarely done in college. It seems likely she will also upgrade her beam and floor, if she wants to make a play for worlds, since at Classic she was significantly behind the field difficulty-wise.

    Overall, Jones, Blakely, and Wong all feel likely to be in the mix if all goes to plan, and DiCello could make some moves this weekend if she’s added more than expected and cleaned up what she had. Much will depend on the health of Jones and Sunisa Lee, as well as the consistency and cleanliness of folks like Jordan Chiles and Joscelyn Roberson. Of course, Simone Biles is a lock now that she’s back, so the team will fill in around her.

    But as head coach Jenny Rowland often says, these Gators know that all they can do is control their controllables and do the best job they’re capable of – they can’t affect how others compete, so they’ll stay in their bubbles and focus on their own gymnastics.

    Join us for a liveblog Friday night at 8pm ET as we watch along on Peacock – see you then!

  • 2023 Gators Volleyball Season Preview

    2023 Gators Volleyball Season Preview

    Photo by Brian Fox | ChompTalk

    Expectations will be high once again for the Florida volleyball program. Head Coach, Mary Wise, has created a winning culture within the program. Entering her 33rd season at the helm, Wise will look to build on last year’s success by carrying it over to this season’s squad.

    The Gators will open the season as the 11th ranked team in the nation. They will square off against tough competition as soon as the season begins. The team will travel to the Road 2 Tampa to play No. 8 ranked Penn State. The contest is scheduled for August 25th, at 8:00 p.m. from Amelie Arena in Tampa Bay, Florida.

    The matchup will be an early test for the Gators, and the fanbase should have a good feel for how Coach Wise’s team will look against other elite competition. Although Florida had an impressive campaign in 2022, there will be new players in different roles this season. With a solid blend of veteran leadership and raw freshman talent, it will create a balanced look for this season’s roster.

    The Gators schedule will be amongst one of the most difficult in all of college volleyball in 2023. Preseason nationally ranked opponents they will play besides Penn State include, No. 3 Stanford, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 2 Wisconsin, No. 25 Arkansas and No. 10 Kentucky.

    Media availability was open for the team on Wednesday of this week before the team’s practice. Sophomore setter, Alexis Stucky, is the leading returner in assists for the Gators. She was selected as a the SEC Freshman of the Year in 2022.

    I asked Stucky what it will take for the team to take the next step in the NCAA tournament this season in order to bring a national championship to Gainesville.

    “Our coaches do an awesome job with the scout, so if we follow our game plan and win the serve and pass I think we have a chance to take it all home. We definitely have the talent.”

    The next player available to the media was senior libero, Elli McKissock. McKissock is a returning starter who totaled 423 digs as a Junior. After starting all 31 matches for Florida in last year’s campaign, she will be looking to enter into a new leadership role for the Gators.

    McKissock commented on the veteran presence that she will bring not only on the court, but off it as well.

    “I’m excited to lead this team alongside Stucky and other players, other seniors. That’s a role that you get to have when you’re an upperclassmen, so being able to do that and lead them is going to be exciting.”

    Although these two names will be very familiar amongst Gator fans, there are some new faces in the program that will need to step up. AC Fitzpatrick is a senior outside hitter who didn’t see much playing time in 2022’s campaign. However, in the team’s exhibition math Vs. Stetson, Fitzpatrick looked as though she could be the best player on the roster heading into 2023.

    I asked Head Coach, Mary Wise, how big of a role Fitzpatrick will play this upcoming season.

    “She’s in the best shape of her life, her strength, how much higher she’s jumping, so many good things. But long before we even play our first match, AC has had a direct impact on our program because of her leadership.”

    All of the players mentioned above will be the main force behind the Gators winning culture in 2023. Other significant returning contributors on the roster include outside hitter, Victoria Sophia. Sophia is the leading returner in kills for Florida. A number of transfers to the program will see playing time early. Anna Dixon is a graduate transfer from Missouri who will most likely start at opposite side hitter. A freshman to keep an eye on is Kennedy Martin. Martin has impressive size at 6’6, which will allow her to tally blocks and kills all season long.

    Expectations will always be high when you put on the Florida uniform. But it will be the performance on the court that will determine the Gators success in 2023. As Coach Wise and her team get ready for the long road ahead, their goals and aspirations have never been higher.