A strong season for the Gym Devils came to an end Sunday night after placing fourth in their session at the NCAA Regional Finals.
Sunday's competition followed a Gym Devil victory on Friday in which the team placed second in the second round of regionals. The team finished with an overall score of 197.525, falling short of the first-place title to No. 2 Florida. This was the second-highest postseason score in program history.
"We will enjoy the night, then get into meet prep and do it all over again. Prove it all over again," head coach Jay Santos said in a press conference after the meet. "They know how to prepare. At this point, they have the preparation and know what to do."
ASU, ranked No. 15 nationally, saw Florida again on Sunday. They also competed against No. 7 Cal and No. 10 Michigan State. The team finished the meet with an overall score of 197.475, which is the third-best postseason score in program history.
Despite the last-place finish, the team had strong stats throughout the whole meet. No one scored below 9.800 in any event. They also scored an overall 49.450 on vault, which is their best vault score since 2006.
Senior Hannah Scharf had the highest all-around score of gymnasts whose team did not advance, giving her the opportunity to qualify in the all-around. On Sunday, she had an all-around score of 39.450. This was Scharf's senior year, but she will be coming back for a fifth year with the team.
"I feel very honored to have the opportunity to represent Arizona State again at nationals," Scharf said. "I wish my team was there standing by my side as it would've made it that much more sweet."
Scharf will be competing in the semifinal on April 13 in Fort Worth, Texas. She will be rotating with the UCLA team.
ASU went 7-6 this season and 4-3 in the Pac-12 conference. The Gym Devils pulled major wins over No. 4 Utah and No. 11 Oregon State before their strong postseason presence. Against Oregon State, they won with a score of 197.725, the ninth-highest score in program history.
Seniors Juliette Boyer, Jordyn Jaslow, Izzy Redmond and Gracie Reeves will be departing the team. Jaslow was a strong competitor for the team and hit a new career high of 9.900 on the floor this year.
"This team is capable of so much, and we work super hard, so to just see everything come together at once and to do it as one team was huge and a memory I won't forget past when I leave here," Jaslow said before the regionals competition.
This season also brought new competitors into the spotlight. Freshman Kayla Lee was a frequent competitor on the floor and beam, with a career-high of 9.875 in both events. She also competed in her first Pac-12 Championships this year.
The Pac-12 also honored some members of the Gym Devils this season. Santos was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year, his second time earning the award. Scharf earned All-Pac-12 First Team honors in the all-around and on floor. This is her third consecutive season earning Pac-12 honors.
Santos is proud of the team and its accomplishments.
"We've had a really strong year. Some highly-ranked opponents, we've been competitive in a lot of meets. Some really great things that have happened," Santos said. "I think you can go back the last three, four seasons, and there's lots of big moments for these athletes, and they continue to do a little bit more each year."
Edited by Kathryn Field, Reagan Priest and Caera Learmonth.
Reach the reporter at katrinamic03@gmail.com and follow @kat_m67 on Twitter.
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