The semifinals of the 2026 NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championships in Fort Worth, Texas were a complete nail-biter.
With spots in the Four on the Floor up for grabs on Thursday, the Elite Eight delivered two high-intensity sessions packed with momentum swings, clutch routines, and postseason pressure you could feel, whether you were at Dickies Arena or sitting on your couch at home.
Semifinal 1: Florida, LSU survive tight battle
Session one was a cat-and-mouse game for No. 2 LSU, No. 3 Florida, No. 6 Georgia, and No. 7 Stanford.
The Georgia GymDogs put up a huge fight throughout the competition, fighting LSU for the No. 2 spot down the stretch. Their floor scores proved crucial, as they have all season, with four 9.9+ scores in a row, but they came up short of advancing by a mere 0.175 to the Tigers, who dominated on floor to secure a spot in the finals with a 197.4375.
Florida advanced in the No. 1 spot with a 197.7875. Selena Harris-Miranda clinched the win with a 9.925 on bars, and Riley McCusker anchored the top-tier bar rotation with a title-winning 9.9875.
Stanford finished fourth with a 196.9375. A 48.875 on vault in the second rotation derailed the Cardinal’s hopes of advancing.
Semifinal 2: Minnesota stuns, Oklahoma dominates
Session two was full of shocking upsets that broke our brackets and locked in the final four teams in a wild ending to the semis.
No. 13 Minnesota knocked off No. 4 UCLA in the final rotation. The Gophers secured the upset with a 49.3875 on bars. While Lacie Saltzmann put up a 9.9625 mid-rotation to bolster the team’s chances, Emma Slevin and Jordyn Lyden put up back-to-back 9.85s to lock it up.
This is the Gophers first time competing in the national final in program history.
They join the defending champion Oklahoma Sooners, who soared to the top of the leaderboard with a staggering 198.300.
UCLA and No. 9 Arkansas fought hard and walked away with several individual placements. The Bruins finished in third after a fall from Jordan Chiles on bars in rotation one and mistakes on vault in rotation four, finishing their season with a 197.275.
Arkansas was fourth with a 196.9625.
Individuals crowned on the national stage
Alongside the team competition, individual titles were awarded on Thursday.
The 2026 NCAA individual champions are:
- Faith Torrez (Oklahoma) – All-Around (her first appearance in the all-around since 2025)
- Keira Wells (Oklahoma) – Vault
- Riley McCusker (Florida) – Bars
- Brooklyn Rowray (Minnesota) – Beam
- Jordan Chiles (UCLA) – Floor (her second national floor title)
Chiles also won the 2026 AAI Award.
With Florida, LSU, Oklahoma, and Minnesota advancing, the stage is officially set for Saturday’s Four on the Floor.
If the semifinals proved anything, it’s that no lead is safe, and anyone is capable of taking home the title. Expect another high-stakes, high-scoring battle as these teams chase the NCAA title in Fort Worth on Saturday April 18 at 4 p.m. ET/3 p.m. CT.
For more details on how to watch and follow scores, click here. Gymnastics Now will have live, on-site coverage from Saturday’s meet at Dickies Arena.
“Inside the NCAA gymnastics postseason with Naimah” is a recurring feature by former Fisk gymnast Naimah Muhammad – the first HBCU gymnast in NCAA history.
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