LSU Gymnastics secured a score of 197.825 defeating Clemson and Michigan at the NCAA 2026 Baton Rouge Regional Championship.
Saturday night’s win marked the 16th regional title for the Tigers and allowed them to secure a spot at the NCAA Championship in Fort Worth, Texas.
LSU had a strong start at the NCAA Regional Finals, in vault, five gymnasts scored in the high nine range and Kailin Chio securing another Perfect 10. Even though Chio was not satisfied with her vault warmups, she still went out and executed a great vault.
“Your warm ups, they matter, but in the moment, like just go through vault. Everybody knows how to do gymnastics, so just go and do gymnastics and be free and I just kind of tell myself to just be patient and not rush it,” explained Kailin Chio.
Another 10 was achieved by Kaliya Lincoln due to her impressive floor routine. This would be Lincoln’s first Perfect 10 in her collegiate career since her time at LSU.
Tiger fans were happy to see Lincoln score a Perfect 10 in her routine as she described that moment to, “feel like a time like no other.” Despite suffering with injuries over the past couple of years, she continued to persevere as all of her hard work and consistency was shown Saturday night.
Freshman Haley Mustari, stepped up to the plate after scoring a 9.875 on bars. Teammate Kailin Chio emphasized how proud she was after seeing how consistent and persevering she has been through the year.
As the Tigers advanced, Kylie Coen is excited to see how much farther this team can keep going, understanding what is vital to keep executing on important moments in the postseason.
“We just go and do our normal gymnastics, and our normal is enough every single day.”
Amongst the success, Konnor McClain injured her arm early on in the meet during her bar routine. McClain was devastated; however, she still kept high spirits. Her teammates ensured that they were supportive and would finish the meet for her.
The Tigers will head to Fort Worth, Texas on Thursday, April 16 alongside Stanford to compete in the NCAA 2026 Gymnastics Championships.
