Gophers gymnasts in Denver Regional, competing for spot in NCAA meet

The No. 18-ranked Gophers women's gymnastics team will compete at the Denver Regional starting Friday at Magness Arena.

Minnesota will be in session two at 8 p.m. against No. 3 Michigan, No. 13 Denver and either Arizona or North Carolina. The top two teams from that session will advance to the regional final on Sunday along with top two from session one, which has No. 6 LSU, No. 11 Oregon State, No. 19 Georgia and Nebraska.

"Our team is really peaking at the right time," Gophers coach Jenny Hansen said on "Gopher Talk" with Mike Grimm. "We've had a great season so far, and in the last month or so we've just been getting better and better each and every week, which is exactly what you want to do this time of year."

The Gophers have scored over 197 points their past three meets.

The first- and second-place teams, and 20 individuals not on those teams — four all-around competitors and 16 event specialists — from the four regional finals will qualify for the NCAA championships April 13-15 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.

Minnesota has advanced to the national meet the past two years, finishing eighth in 2021 and a program-best sixth last year when Mya Hooten tied for fourth place in floor exercise.

At the Big Ten meet March 18, Hooten, a junior, won event titles on floor and vault with scores of 9.950 and 9.925, respectively. She ranks No. 3 in the nation on floor. Senior Halle Remlinger is No. 18 on floor and Maddie Quarles is tied with Hooten at No. 11 in vault.

Because of injuries Olympic teammates Suni Lee of No. 12 Auburn and Grace McCallum of No. 5 Utah did not compete with their teams Thursday on the first day one of the Los Angeles Regional.

Lee, a St. Paul native who won the all-around title in the 2021 Olympics, missed the Tigers' fourth straight meet with a non-gymnastics related injury.

Without her Auburn finished fourth in its session with a season-low 195.900 and its season came to an end.

Lee finished first on balance beam and second in the all-around in the 2022 NCAA meet. Earlier this season Lee, a sophomore, said she would not return to Auburn next season. Instead, Lee said she would compete in elite gymnastics to prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics.