The Alabama gymnastics team held its annual Crimson and White preview meet on Friday. At the meet, the gymnasts were split into Team Crimson and Team White. Team White won 196.125-195.625.
“We came in here tonight, just really wanted to get out there for the first time and really start fine tuning our physical prep, mental prep, team culture prep,” head coach Ashley Johnston said. “It was a great opportunity for our freshmen to compete for the first time in Coleman Coliseum.”
Rotation 1
For the first rotation, Team Crimson was on the vault, and Team White was on the uneven bars. Team Crimson scored 48.9, and Team White scored 49.3.
Senior Lilly Hudson landed the highest score on the vault with a 9.9, taking the vault title. On the uneven bars, sophomore Chloe LaCoursiere and graduate student Cameron Machado each scored a 9.9.
In the 2024 season, the Alabama gymnastics team had a solid lineup at every meet on the uneven bars. Against Missouri, the Crimson Tide had six routines score higher than Missouri’s highest score.
With athletes like LaCoursiere and Machado still able to post high scores on the uneven bars, the Crimson Tide looks to continue doing well on the uneven bars in the 2025 season.
Machado said her 9.9 on the uneven bars bodes well for her season.
“It makes me really excited for the season, because personally that’s my favorite event. It gives me a lot of confidence,” she said.
Rotation 2
Team White ended the second rotation in the lead 98.4-98.1. On the vault, Team White posted a total score of 49.1. On the uneven bars, Team Crimson scored 49.2.
Junior Gabby Gladieux and senior Jordyn Paradise both posted a 9.85 on the vault. On the uneven bars, freshman Ryan Fuller posted a 9.95, taking the uneven bars title.
In the 2024 season on the vault, the Crimson Tide had 22 vault routines with scores of 9.9 or higher. The Crimson Tide ended the 2024 season ranked in the top 10 nationally for the vault rotation with a National Qualifying Score of 49.38.
Rotation 3
At the end of the third rotation, Team White led 146.825-146.55. On the floor, Team White scored 48.425, and on the balance beam, Team Crimson scored 48.45.
On the floor, Gladieux posted the highest score, a 9.875. On the balance beam, graduate student Shania Adams and Fuller tied for the highest score, with 9.85.
The 2024 season ended at the national championship semifinals after there were several mistakes on the balance beam. At the semifinals, the Crimson Tide suffered from four falls on the beam. A fall deducts 0.5 points from the gymnasts routines, according to the Code of Points.
With freshman Paityn Walker being the only fall, hopes are high for the 2025 season on the balance beam.
Rotation 4
The meet ended with Team White winning 196.125-195.625. On the balance beam, Team White posted a score of 49.3. On the floor, Team Crimson posted a score of 49.075.
Hudson, who posted a 9.95, had the highest-scoring floor routine, taking the floor title. The best routine on the balance beam came from junior Rachel Rybicki, who posted a 9.925 and took the event title.
“This is a great stepping stone,” Rybicki said. “What’s going to get us to that final night [of the national championships] is us sticking together as a team. We have the talent, a lot of people have the talent, but we have our sisterhood.”
Last season, against Georgia, the Crimson Tide set a new program-record for the floor rotation, a 49.75. With seniors leaving, the Crimson Tide lost three gymnasts that consistently performed floor routines. However, with mostly consistent scores of 9.7 or higher, on the floor at the preview meet, Alabama should look to continue doing well on the floor.
The gymnasts will be back in action at Coleman Coliseum on Jan. 10, 2025, against the University of North Carolina.
