If there’s one word to describe the 2024 NCAA gymnastics regional championships that took place earlier this month, it’s “upset.” If there’s one to describe Thursday’s semifinal round at the NCAA championships, it’s “chaos.”
The first session mostly followed the script—with LSU and California moving on to the final with a bevy of accolades in tow—save for an unexpectedly compelling performance from an upstart Cardinal team. Stanford entered the postseason an unseeded No. 19 in the national rankings, an impressive feat in and of itself considering it fell as low as No. 52 during the regular season and didn’t crack the top 36 until week six. The Cardinal leave Fort Worth ranked fifth while sophomore Anna Roberts set a career-high 39.6375 to finish fourth in the all around and claim first on vault, the program’s first national title since fan-favorite Elizabeth “Ebee” Price took top honors on floor in 2018.
“We feel like the story of the season for us has been one of resilience and just keeping our heads down, staying true to the vision, and continuing to do the work, even though we encountered some challenges and some obstacles at the beginning,” said seventh-year head coach Tabitha Yim, a Stanford gymnastics alumna and 14-time…
