This weekend marks another step in the road to NCAA Championships, as the top 36 teams in the nation battle it out at Regionals. The six regional sites include Tuscaloosa, Athens, Iowa City, Ann Arbor, Minneapolis, and Salt Lake City. Six teams will compete at each regional, with the top two from each site advancing to NCAA Championships. Check out the list of who is competing at each regional here.

Barring any major mistakes, top teams like Oklahoma, Utah, UCLA, Alabama, LSU and Florida should all clinch one of the top two spots. In many cases, however, there are some very close competitions for the second spot. We have highlighted those close competitions to watch for this weekend below. Who do you think will advance to Semifinals?

Iowa City Regional - Nebraska vs. Arkansas

Oklahoma is the No. 1 seed at the Iowa City Regional and will be expected to capture the top spot and advance to Semifinals. The second spot is going to be a close fight between No. 12 ranked Nebraska and No. 13 ranked Arkansas. Even Iowa, who came in at the No. 4 seed spot, could challenge if they have one of their best meets. They beat Nebraska earlier in the season with a 196.65, the same score they got at the Big Five meet a few weeks ago and higher than what Arkansas scored at SEC Championships.

Nebraska has a bit of an edge based on their most recent performance. They have scored around or above the 197 mark in their last three competitions. Arkansas has proved to be more consistent on all four events, however. They have averaged around 49.00 on all four for the season. Key performers for Nebraska will be their top all-arounders who put up the biggest numbers: senior Hollie Blanske and sophomores Grace Williams and Danielle Breen. Arkansas will be relying on their sole all-arounder, junior Amanda Wellick, who is particularly strong on vault and beam.

Tuscaloosa Regional - California v. Boise State

No. 4 ranked Alabama and the No. 1 seed at the Tuscaloosa Regional is the favorite to come away with the win, but the second spot is up for grabs. The main competition will be between #10 California and #15 Boise State. Cal have had a bit of a roller coaster season, starting off slow and see-sawing between 196-197 and having a few very off meets. Their last meet of the regular season was huge, however, and they put up a 197.500 for their highest score of the season. Boise State have been gradually building their momentum all season and also put up their best score in their last regular season meet - a 197.325. They also scored higher than Cal at conference championships, notching a 197.025.

Cal has the advantage on the power events - vault and floor, where they are ranked #9 and #11, respectively. Sophomore Toni-Ann Williams will likely compete vault, bars and floor and is ranked highest for the team on all three, so she will be relied upon to put up big numbers. Juniors Jessica Howe and Desiree Palomares will also bolster the lineups on the three events they each compete. Boise State has the advantage on uneven bars, where they are ranked #6 nationally and have gone 49+ on this event since their second meet of the season. Their star on bars is tied for #1 nationally - senior Krystine Jacobsen. Boise State is also capable of big numbers on floor, particularly from all-arounder Sandra Collantes and senior Maddie Krentz, who are tied for #12 nationally on the event.

Ann Arbor Regional - Can Stanford Sneak In?

A lot of different scenarios can happen at the Ann Arbor Regional. The closest race will be between #6 ranked Auburn and #7 ranked Michigan, one of which will likely come out in the top spot. The more interesting question is whether #18 Stanford can sneak its way into the second spot. Although the rankings suggest not, the Cardinals have been known to peak around the end of the season. In their last regular season meet, they put up a 197.400 in a stunning upset to beat both Georgia and UCLA. This is a higher score than Auburn has achieved all season.

The star for Stanford will of course be all-around competitor Elizabeth Price, tied for 5th in the all-around rankings with Auburn’s Caitlin Atkinson. Price will be expected to go 9.9+ on every event. To support her scores, Stanford will rely on competitors like Nikki McNair for vault and bars, Ivana Hong for bars and beam, Melissa Chuang for beam and floor, and Haley Spector for floor.

Athens Regional - Georgia vs. Oregon State

Our last close match up will come at the Athens Regional between No. 2 seed Georgia and No. 3 seed Oregon State. LSU will be the favorite to win, although interestingly they did lose to Georgia earlier in the season, so upset isn’t unheard of.

Georgia had a bit of a rough start to the season, but things really started to pick up after their win against LSU in mid-February. The senior class has really been anchoring the team this year. Brandie Jay and Brittany Rogers have been especially strong for the team on vault and bars, and Mary Beth Box has put up big numbers on beam and floor. The biggest area of concern for Georgia is on beam, where they have struggled with falls throughout the season with almost their entire lineup.

Oregon State certainly has the edge on this event. Along with bars, it’s their highest ranking event nationally, and they put up a huge number at Pac-12 Championships (a 49.525) thanks to big numbers from Maddie Gardiner, Risa Perez, Kaytianna McMillan and Silvia Colussi-Pelaez. Oregon State has its own challenges, however, mainly on vault where they aren’t able to put up the same big scores that Georgia can due to a lack of high difficulty and small errors on landings.


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