TUCSON, Ariz. — The No. 20 GymCats are ready to host No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 13 Stanford, and No. 22 Utah State this Saturday in McKale Center. The meet is scheduled to begin at 4:00 p.m. MST and will be live streamed
here.
Saturday's meet is Arizona's home opener. The GymCats opened the 2022 season last weekend at Southern Utah. Arizona posted a 195.500, one of the GymCats' best season-opening scores in recent history. Arizona was led by junior
Malia Hargrove who earned a 39.200 to win the all-around. Newcomers
Alysen Fears,
Emily Mueller, and
Lara Burhans made their collegiate debuts against Southern Utah.
This will be the first time Arizona has competed against Oklahoma since 2014, when assistant coach
Taylor Spears was named the NCAA Beam Champion and helped the Sooners win the National Championship.
A complete preview of Saturday's meet can be found below.
HOME OPENER: The GymCats
will host No. 4 Oklahoma, No. 13 Stanford, and No. 22 Utah State and for their 2022 home opener. The last time Arizona competed agianst
Oklahoma was in Norman, Okla. in 2016. All-time, the GymCats
are 18-13 against Oklahoma, 24-47 against Stanford, and 20-6-1 against Utah State.
LAST WEEK: Arizona kicked of the 2022 at Southern Utah. The GymCats earned a 195.500 against the Flippin' Birds, but weren't able to come out victorious. Freshmen
Alysen Fears and
Emily Mueller made their collegiate debuts, along with transfer
Lara Burhans.
Malia Hargrove competed in the all-around and won with a 39.200.
IN THE RANKINGS: Overall, Arizona is ranked No. 20 after the second week of competition.
- Vault: No. 22
- Uneven Bars: No. 16
- Balance Beam: No. 29
- Floor Exercise: No. 27
FRESH FACES: The GymCats welcomed four newcomers to the team this season.
Alysen Fears,
Elizabeth LaRusso, and
Emily Mueller are all freshmen.
Lara Burhans transferred to the program from Utah State.
FAMILIAR FACES: Arizona returns 13 gymnasts from last season.
MacKinzie Kane enters her senior year and helped the GymCats finish the 2021 season ranked No. 35 on the uneven bars. Six juniors and seven sophomores will return for the Cats.
Malia Hargrove enters her junior season following her individual appearance on floor at the NCAA Championships.
G-PAC: Malia Hargrove and
Sirena Linton will represent Arizona in the student-athlete driven organzation "Gymnasts for Peace, Action, and Change." G-PAC's mission is to foster diversity and inclusion. Linton was a member of G-PAC during the 2021 season.
COACHING STAFF: The GymCats have a very accomplished coaching staff.
John Court enters his fourth year as head coach and 24th year on staff in Tucson.
Taylor Spears, the 2014 NCAA individual beam champion, is in her fourth season as assistant coach and has helped the beam team improve every year.
Peter Jansson enters his second season as an assistant with the GymCats, bringing his nearly 30 years of coaching experience.
PRESEASON POLLS: Arizona was picked to finish sixth in the preseason Pac-12 coaches poll. In the WGCA preseason poll, the GymCats were picked to finish 27th.
