ATHENS, Ga. – The No. 9-ranked University of Denver gymnastics team placed second in Friday's NCAA Regional Second Round, advancing the NCAA Regional Final on Saturday.
 
DU's final score of 196.775 was just .025 ahead of host No. 18 Georgia (196.750), which placed third overall. No. 8 Minnesota finished first with a 197.675 to join Denver as the two advancing teams while No. 24 Oregon State placed fourth with a 196.375.
 
COACH'S NOTES
From head coach Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart: "All of the things we've talked about and the character building from this season, they put it into action today. They showed so much character, grit and determination all the way until the end."
 
She added: "I'm proud of the adaptability they showed after Emily Glynn couldn't compete on floor and vault, and they stepped up under pressure."
 
SIGNIFICANT STATS

• Senior Lynnzee Brown (Kansas City, Mo.) capped her 39.725 all-around performance with a personal best-tying 9.975 on vault. Her all-around total ties her own program record for top postseason score, which she set at this year's Big 12 Championship.
• Despite competing five-up, five-count on floor, DU posted a 49.425, which becomes the second-highest postseason score in DU history – and only .025 off the record set at the 2021 Big 12 Championship.
• Senior Mia Sundstrom (Boulder, Colo.) was substituted into the vault lineup to replace Glynn at the last minute, marking her return to the event after an injury kept her out for much of the season.
• Freshman Jessica Hutchinson (Gilbertsville, Pa.) had one of the best meets of her career, tying her career high in the all-around (39.500) and setting a new personal best on beam (9.875).
• For the second meet in a row, DU rebounded from a fourth-place standing after the first rotation.

BARS RECAP
DU opened the meet on bars led by Brown's team-high 9.900, which was the meet's third-highest score on the event. Hutchinson was just off that pace with a 9.875 while fellow freshman Rosie Casali (Weddington, N.C.) added a 9.825. Junior Alexandria Ruiz (Lake Mary, Fla.) and Glynn had the team's final counted scores.

BEAM RECAP
Denver began its comeback with a 49.225 team performance on beam, starting with Brown's 9.900 in the leadoff position that was tied for second-highest score in the meet. Freshman Abbie Thompson (Sanford, Fla.) and Hutchinson each added 9.875s – Hutchinson's becoming a new career high. Junior Alexis Vasquez (Arcadia, Calif.) returned to the lineup, scoring a 9.800, and Ruiz had the team's final counted score with a 9.775.
 
FLOOR RECAP
Momentum continued to build with DU's 49.425 on floor, even with only five student-athletes in the lineup after Glynn's injury on bars. Brown matched the top floor score of the meet with a 9.950 – her seventh-consecutive score of at least that high on the event. Thompson set a new personal best with her 9.900, which Hutchinson would match in the very next routine. Casali's 9.875 tied her career high, and Ruiz led off the rotation with a 9.800.

VAULT RECAP
DU closed out its competition with more lineup changes but capitalized on the moment to secure the team's berth into the next round. Brown stuck her Yurchenko one-and-a-half, matching her career high with a near-perfect 9.975. Hutchinson posted a 9.850, Ruiz a 9.775 and Casali a 9.700. For the second meet in a row, Sundstrom mathematically clinched the critical score for Denver. Her 9.850 was DU's final counted score, coming after she was unexpectedly substituted into the lineup and marking her first vault appearance in more than a month.
 
PODIUM FINISHES
All-Around
Brown: Second Place – 39.725

Vault
Brown: Second Place – 9.975

Floor
Brown: First Place – 9.950

Final individual standings were determined when results were combined from both of Friday's second-round sessions. Session II featured No. 1 Florida, No. 16 Illinois, No. 25 Central Michigan and North Carolina State.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
The University of Denver gymnastics team, presented by Your Front Range Toyota Stores, will compete in the NCAA Regional Final on Saturday, April 3, at 5 p.m. MT. Minnesota will join Denver, as will the top two finishers from Session II on Friday. The top two teams from Saturday's meet will advance to the NCAA National Championships.
 
CORONAVIRUS UPDATES:
For the latest University of Denver updates on the coronavirus, click here.
 
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