Top Five NCAA Floor Performers To Watch in 2017
Top Five NCAA Floor Performers To Watch in 2017
Oklahoma freshman Maggie Nichols will be a must-watch athlete on floor during the 2017 season.
In college gymnastics, floor exercise takes on a life of its own. Each member of a team knows the choreography to her teammates' routines and you can often see the entire team lined up on the side of the floor dancing and cheering. College gymnastics is judged on the 10.0 scale, which allows athletes to focus more on the performance than just packing in as much difficulty as possible. The choreography and music selection is unique and creative while the tumbling is a balance of risk and reward with difficult skills. Don't miss these five floor routines for the 2017 season.
Gnat finished out the 2016 season ranked No. 1 on floor exercise and notched four perfect 10s as a junior, including the SEC Championships. She was the 2016 SEC Floor Champion and earned SEC Specialist of the Year honors. Gnat soars on her tumbling, especially her double layout, and has a knack for finding perfect landings. She brings great energy to her routines as well as difficult tumbling. The Tigers were the top-ranked team on floor exercise last year and will look to Gnat to lead the lineup this season.
Baker competed on floor in 12 of 14 meets as a sophomore and finished the year ranked sixth in the country. She posted at least a 9.9 in 10 of those meets, including a perfect 10 on Jan. 29 against Alabama. She has proved to be a solid contributor on floor across two seasons as a Gator. She combines sky-high tumbling with impeccable form and great energy throughout her routine. The highlight of her routine will be the piked arabian that she has performed as her opening pass the past two seasons.
Williams was a standout at Cal last season and finished the year tied for seventh on floor. She helped the Bears advance to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 1992, but missed nationals while competing at the Olympic test event representing Jamaica. She competed on floor exercise in 12 meets and hit the 9.9 mark nine times. She sometimes struggled to contain her power, but performed a gorgeous double layout as her opening pass. She upgraded her final pass midway through the season from a double pike to a full-in while continuing to train elite. It will be interesting to see if she sticks with the easier double pike or sticks with the full-in on her final pass.
(Video Courtesy of NCAA Gymnastics)
Nichols will be one of the most intriguing freshman to watch this season, particularly on floor. She earned a bronze medal on floor at the 2015 World Championships and looked like a shoo-in for a spot on the Rio Olympic team before a knee injury hurt her chances. Nichols looked solid during the Sooners intra-squad competition before the holidays with a routine that combined good difficulty with creative choreography.
Like Nichols, Skinner will be another intriguing freshman to watch this season. She brought great difficulty to her floor routines as an elite gymnast, but really struggled to keep her elements clean. With college gymnasts rewarding clean, consistent gymnastics more, it will be very interesting to see where Skinner falls on floor. Her performance at the Red Rocks intra-squad was dynamic and powerful and included a double-double and a full-in.
Honorable mention: Amelia Hundley (Florida), McKenna Kelley (LSU), Alex McMurtry (Florida), Nicole Artz (Michigan), Olivia Karas (Michigan)
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Ashleigh Gnat (Senior) -- LSU
Gnat finished out the 2016 season ranked No. 1 on floor exercise and notched four perfect 10s as a junior, including the SEC Championships. She was the 2016 SEC Floor Champion and earned SEC Specialist of the Year honors. Gnat soars on her tumbling, especially her double layout, and has a knack for finding perfect landings. She brings great energy to her routines as well as difficult tumbling. The Tigers were the top-ranked team on floor exercise last year and will look to Gnat to lead the lineup this season.
Kennedy Baker (Junior) -- Florida
Baker competed on floor in 12 of 14 meets as a sophomore and finished the year ranked sixth in the country. She posted at least a 9.9 in 10 of those meets, including a perfect 10 on Jan. 29 against Alabama. She has proved to be a solid contributor on floor across two seasons as a Gator. She combines sky-high tumbling with impeccable form and great energy throughout her routine. The highlight of her routine will be the piked arabian that she has performed as her opening pass the past two seasons.
Toni-Ann Williams (Junior) -- California
Williams was a standout at Cal last season and finished the year tied for seventh on floor. She helped the Bears advance to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 1992, but missed nationals while competing at the Olympic test event representing Jamaica. She competed on floor exercise in 12 meets and hit the 9.9 mark nine times. She sometimes struggled to contain her power, but performed a gorgeous double layout as her opening pass. She upgraded her final pass midway through the season from a double pike to a full-in while continuing to train elite. It will be interesting to see if she sticks with the easier double pike or sticks with the full-in on her final pass.
(Video Courtesy of NCAA Gymnastics)
Maggie Nichols (Freshman) -- Oklahoma
Nichols will be one of the most intriguing freshman to watch this season, particularly on floor. She earned a bronze medal on floor at the 2015 World Championships and looked like a shoo-in for a spot on the Rio Olympic team before a knee injury hurt her chances. Nichols looked solid during the Sooners intra-squad competition before the holidays with a routine that combined good difficulty with creative choreography.
MyKayla Skinner (Freshman) -- Utah
Like Nichols, Skinner will be another intriguing freshman to watch this season. She brought great difficulty to her floor routines as an elite gymnast, but really struggled to keep her elements clean. With college gymnasts rewarding clean, consistent gymnastics more, it will be very interesting to see where Skinner falls on floor. Her performance at the Red Rocks intra-squad was dynamic and powerful and included a double-double and a full-in.
Honorable mention: Amelia Hundley (Florida), McKenna Kelley (LSU), Alex McMurtry (Florida), Nicole Artz (Michigan), Olivia Karas (Michigan)
Related:
Top Five Must-See Vaults for 2017 NCAA Season
Top Five NCAA Bar Swingers to Watch in 2017
Top Five NCAA Beam Workers to Watch in 2017