The beginning of the post season in NCAA Gymnastics is being ushered in this weekend with the grand tradition of competing for bragging rights at the Conference Championships.
The Conferences are not based in geography, more based in television rights really, but the conferences are simply groups of schools that compete with each other in the course of a season. Of course, schools may join conferences particularly to increase their pool of competitors.
Here is all you need to know about the conference championships, note – all of the championships will take place Saturday March 19, unless otherwise noted:
SEC Championship- the SEC (Southeastern Conference) is probably one of the most powerful gymnastics conferences in the NCAA. Currently, in the top 10, 5 are SEC teams. Included are Florida, three time NCAA champions and Georgia, ten time NCAA champions, including five straight wins from 2005-2006. The reigning SEC Champions are the Alabama Crimson tide, currently ranked # 4.
The championships are split into an afternoon session and an evening session. Teams typically want to be ranked high enough to compete in the evening session, since scores will typically increase in the evening session. Where the teams are seeded in the competition are based on their regular season rankings. Hosting the SEC championships are # 13, Arkansas
Competing in the afternoon session (2 ET/11 PT): #8 Georgia, # 13 Arkansas, # 20 Missouri, # 22 Kentucky
Competing in the evening session (6 ET/ 3 PT) # 2, Florida, # 3 LSU, #4 Alabama # 6 Auburn.
Florida and LSU are the top ranked teams in the SEC, however, Alabama are the reigning SEC champs, and they were the champions for two years straight in 2014 & 2015, no doubt they will want to hold on to that title for a third consecutive year.
PAC 12 Championships – the Pacific 12 conference are home to two former national champions, Utah and UCLA, currently ranked # 5 and # 8 respectively. Utah are the current reigning champions of this conference, with senior Tori Wilson heroically giving both of her ankles to her team, effectively ending her 2015 season and her career concurrently. As they highest ranked team in the PAC 12 currently (and the most consistent), Utah is no doubt the favorite to take the title, but with UCLA and Cal on their heels, and since Cal is a program that has bravely fought back from the verge of extinction, them taking a PAC12 title would be the perfect headline for these championships. But, then there is also UCLA nipping at Utah’s heels. # 17, Washington is hosting the PAC 12 Championships.
Competing in the afternoon session (4 ET/1 PT) – # 17 Washington, # 19 Stanford, # 21 Arizona, # 51 Arizona State
Competing in the evening session (9 ET/6 PT)- # 5 Utah, # 9 UCLA, # 11 California, # 14 Oregon State
Big 10 Championships – while the Big Ten is not home to any NCAA title-holders, the Big Ten is home to powerful teams. Many have made the Super Six and/ or qualified to the NCAA Championships several times and are looking to make the jump to the title. The current Big 10 Champions, Michigan have won consecutive titles in 2014 and 2015. In 2014, Michigan won despite being relegated to the morning session after a poor showing at the previous qualifying meet. Again, it is Michigan’s title to loose. But they may be facing an uphill battle. They qualified in the # 3 spot to the evening session after Minnesota qualified in first, securing the regular season championship at their Big 5 qualifier. Nebraska is hosting.
Competing in the morning session – (12 ET/9 PT) # 25 Illinois, # 18 Iowa, # 38 Maryland, # 40 Rutgers
Competing in the afternoon session – (5 ET/2 PT) # 7 Michigan, # 17, Minnesota, # 28 Penn State, # 29 Ohio State, # 36 Michigan
Big 12 Championships – the name may be deceiving, there are definitely not 12 gymnastics teams in the Big 12, there are four, # 1 Oklahoma, # 39 Iowa State, # 10 Denver & # 27 West Virginia. They are home to 2014 National Champs, Oklahoma. Oklahoma are the four-time consecutive conference championship holder and eight times overall. Oklahoma’s biggest competition is # 10, Denver, the second ranked team in the conference and have completed their first season as a part of the Big 12 Conference.
Event Competitors (5 ET/ 2 PT) – Oklahoma, Denver, Iowa State, West Virginia, @ Dr. Pepper Arena, Frisco, TX
Mountain Rim Gymnastics Championships – a conference of almost entirely Utah schools (sans the University of Utah) and Boise State. Boise State are the current reigning champions. Previously, their biggest competition was Denver, but alas, Denver joined the Big 12. Boise State is also hosting.
Event Competitors (8 ET/5 PT) – # 15 Boise State, #26 Southern Utah, # 31 BYU, # 34 Utah State
ECAC Gymnastics- This conference features Division I, II & III Teams. This conference also features some Ivy League schools. The afternoon session features D II & III teams including current reigning champions – Bridgeport – who are also the hosts. Current DI Champions William & Mary are hosting DI teams.
Event Competitors D II & III (Time TBA) – # 47, Bridgeport, # 68 Southern Connecticut, & # 64 West Chester
Event Competitors D I (12 ET/9 PT) – # 52 Brown, # 57 Cornell, # 66 Temple, # 62 Yale, # 58 William & Mary
MAC Conference (2 ET/ 11 PT) – AKA the Mid Atlantic Conference – This conference features teams from Michigan, Ohio and Illinois. The current reigning champions are Kent State. However, they face competition from their higher ranked competitors, Eastern Michigan. Ball State is hosting.
Event Competitors: # 30 Kent State, #37 Bowling Green, # 35 Central Michigan, # 24 Eastern Michigan, #41 Western Michigan, # 46 Northern Illinois, # 45 Ball State
Mountain Pacific Sports Federation – MSPF (9 ET/6 PT) – This conference features teams in Northern California, Southern California and up the west coast into the Great White North, Alaska. The current champion is UC Davis, ranked # 42. Sacramento State is hosting.
Event Competitors – # 53 Seattle Pacific, # 59 Alaska Anchorage, # 42-T UC Davis, # 42-T Sacramento State, # 63 Air Force Academy, # 44 San Jose State
EAGL – East Atlantic Gymnastics League (2 ET/11 PT) – This conference features teams on the eastern seaboard from New Hampshire to North Carolina. The current champion is George Washington. They’ve been a team on the rise this year and are likely to do well again. Pittsburgh is hosting.
Event Competitors – # 23 George Washington, # 32 New Hampshire, # 54 North Carolina, # 33 North Carolina State, # 48 Towson, # 49 Pittsburgh
Midwest Independent Conference – MIC- (5 ET/2 PT) This conference is an independent conference in the Midwest. The current champion is Lindenwood, and South Eastern Missouri is hosting.
Event Competitors – # 56 University of Illinois Chicago, # 60 Illinois State, # 70 Centenary College, # 50 Lindenwood, # 61 Texas Women’s University.
NCGA – National Collegiate Gymnastics Association – The Division III National Championships will feature the division III schools. This event is divided up into team championships Friday, March 18 (hosted by Brockport State) and individual championships Saturday.
Team Competitors Friday (4 ET/1 PT), # 73 Cortland State, # 78 Ithaca College, # 82 Rhode Island College, # 75 Springfield College, Ursinus, # 77 University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire, # 80 UW – Stout, # 76 UW –Oshkosh, # 67 UW – Whitewater, # 68 Brockport State
Individual Competitors – TBD – Saturday (3 ET/12 PT)
Article by: Maria Layton
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