NORMAN, Okla. – Utah State's 25th-ranked gymnastics team, fresh off capturing its first-ever Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference championship, is set to open competition at the NCAA Norman Regional on Thursday, March 31.
 
The Aggies (14-9) are competing in Session 1 of the second round and will take on No. 8 Minnesota (13-9), No. 9 California (14-4) and No. 24 Boise State (9-7), at noon (MT), at the Lloyd Noble Center.
 
Session 1 of the Norman Regional will be streamed online via ESPN+. Additionally, live scoring will be available online at statbroadcast.com, and Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State gymnastics social media outlets for meet updates.
 
The NCAA Regional meet began on Wednesday afternoon with a first-round play-in dual meet between Arizona and West Virginia. The Wildcats advanced to Session 2 of the second round with their 196.525-195.925 victory over the Mountaineers (13-6).
 
Joining the Wildcats (4-16) in Session 2, which begins at 6 p.m. on Thursday, is No. 1 Oklahoma (19-2), No. 16 Arizona State (9-8) and No. 18 Arkansas (8-14). The top two teams from each semifinal will advance to the regional final on Saturday, April 3, at 4 p.m. The top two teams in the final will advance to the NCAA Championships, along with the top individual all-around and event finishers not on a qualifying team.
 
Utah State will begin the meet on beam, then rotate to floor, vault and bars. The Aggies rank 14th nationally on beam (49.335 NQS) and 21st on floor (49.325). Utah State also opened on beam at the MRGC Championships, recording a 49.375, which ranks sixth all-time in school history.
 
Just last week, freshman Brie Clark (9.940) was named a Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) Regular Season Second Team All-American on floor. Student-athletes with the top-eight National Qualifying Scores (NQS) for the regular season (with ties), for each event plus the all-around earned All-America honors. Second Team All-America honors are earned by student-athletes ranked Nos. 9-16 (with ties) in the NQS.
 
Clark was one of just four freshmen to earn All-America honors on floor, joining Oregon State's Jade Carey, who won an Olympic gold medal on floor at the 2020 Tokyo Games, Auburn's Sunisa Lee, a three-time Olympic medalist at the Tokyo Games, and Utah's Grace McCallum, a member of the silver-medal winning 2020 U.S. Olympic Team.
 
The native of Daphne, Alabama, is just the second gymnast in Utah State history to ever garner All-America honors during the regular season, including the second under fifth-year head coach Amy Smith. Madison Ward-Sessions was also named a WCGA Regular Season Second-Team All-American on floor in 2019.
 
The Aggies lead the all-time series with Boise State 57-53-1, but the Broncos own a 17-11 mark at neutral sites. The two teams last met at the MRGC Championships on March 19, at ExtraMile Arena in Boise, Idaho. The Aggies placed first with a 197.025, while the Broncos finished second with a 196.550.
 
Cal leads the all-time series with Utah State 8-5, including a 3-2 ledger at neutral sites. Thursday will mark the first meeting between the two teams since Feb. 25, 2017, when they met at a quad meet hosted by Nebraska. The Golden bears edged the Aggies 196.400-196.200.
 
Minnesota leads the all-time series with Utah State 11-10, including a 6-5 mark at neutral sites. Thursday will be the second matchup between the Aggies and Golden Gophers this season, as USU finished second (195.200) at a quad meet hosted by Minnesota (197.580).
 
For more information on the Utah State gymnastics program, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUGymnastics, on Facebook at UtahStateGymnastics and on Instagram at USUGymnastics.
 
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