Trinity Thomas won the all-around title in Florida's victory over Auburn on Friday night at the O'Dome. (Photo: Dakota Williams/UAA Communications)
Gators' Thomas Proving She is Not Your Typical Freshman
Friday, February 8, 2019 | Gymnastics
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – There's supposed to be an adjustment period or learning curve for freshmen college athletes.
Most of the time, freshmen are competing in front of larger crowds than they saw in high school, learning to live on their own away from home, becoming comfortable with a new set of teammates and coaches and facing tougher competition than they ever have before. For gymnasts, there's the added pressure of competing for a team and its fans instead of just themselves.
"Handling school, it's not easy," Gators head coach Jenny Rowland said. "I tell everybody coming in, 'College is not easy. Being a student-athlete is even harder.' "
If there's a freshman wall, Trinity Thomas has not hit it yet. She's probably even tumbled over it.
In the No. 2 Gators gymnastic team's defeat of No. 12 Auburn on Friday night at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center, Thomas won the all-around, uneven bars and floor exercise. She was tied for second on vault and tied for fourth on the balance beam.
Despite only being 17 years old and enrolling at UF a year early, Thomas has been Florida's top performer all season. She leads the team with two all-around victories and seven event titles. She was UF's top finisher in the all-around in two other meets.
A three-time member of the U.S. Senior National Team, Thomas has accounted for the Gators' top three all-around scores. She's also posted the team's highest bars score and has tied for the top floor exercise score.
"We have been working on every detail," Thomas said after her first all-around win against Kentucky two weeks ago. "I think that we're climbing up. We're doing great, and I've been having pretty consistent times in the gym, so I'm glad that I could come out here and show exactly what I've been working in the gym."
Against the Tigers (5-1, 4-1), her near-flawless floor routine brought the ninth-largest crowd in UF history (9,055) to its feet in a roar, with many of the fans urging the judges to award her what would've been her first career 10. One of the judges granted their wishes and gave her a 10, but the other judge gave her a 9.95. So, she had to settle for a 9.975, the highest possible score other than a 10.
(Editor's Note: Watch recap video below for more on Thomas).
That would not normally be much of an issue, except this is the third week in a row she has come up just short of perfection. She received a pair of 9.975s on bars against Kentucky and Oklahoma. She's only the second freshman in program history to notch three 9.975s in a season, with the other being Bridget Sloan in 2013.
"I want [a 10] bad, really bad," she said. "I'm working hard on it, and I can see in the gym that it's getting more and more consistent-looking, just like competition. So, one day …"
As she did after the Kentucky meet, Rowland said, "It's coming. There's no reason to believe it won't happen soon."
Thomas is only the fifth freshman in program history to record a 9.975 on bars. She has yet to post a bars score below 9.925 in her young career. If there was one chink in Thomas' armor, it appeared to be vault. In her first college routine against Missouri on Jan. 11, she took a big hop forward on her landing and received only a 9.775. She received the same score a week ago at Oklahoma.
However, she stuck her Yurchenko layout with 1 ½ twists against Auburn and received a 9.9. Entering the meet, UF had recorded just one score of 9.9 or better on vault all season. The Gators posted three such scores on Friday en route to a season-high 49.350.
The Gators lost four seniors from the 2018 squad and signed six freshmen, so it was a given that the freshmen's performances would play a large factor in how successful this season becomes.
Still, you never know how potential on paper is going to translate to the mat. In a lot of cases, coaches just hope their freshmen can hold their own and not hurt the team. Thomas has done more than carry her share of the load.
"I'd have to say that she really has come in to this program and really identified herself as a very strong individual and amazing team member, which is very hard to do as a freshman – to own your identity and know who you are and really take ownership, leadership," Rowland said. "She's handled herself with a lot of dignity and grace."
Thomas is not merely good for a freshman; she's already one of the best gymnasts in the country. Her all-around scores of 39.7 against Auburn and Kentucky are tied for third-best in the nation in 2019 as of Friday night. Of the seven gymnasts with 2019 all-arounds of 39.70 or better, only Thomas has multiple appearances on the list.
Florida's had a string of superstar all-arounders in recent years, from Sloan to Kytra Hunter to Alex McMurtry to senior Alicia Boren. Thomas is well on her way to keeping the tradition intact.
Most of the time, freshmen are competing in front of larger crowds than they saw in high school, learning to live on their own away from home, becoming comfortable with a new set of teammates and coaches and facing tougher competition than they ever have before. For gymnasts, there's the added pressure of competing for a team and its fans instead of just themselves.
"Handling school, it's not easy," Gators head coach Jenny Rowland said. "I tell everybody coming in, 'College is not easy. Being a student-athlete is even harder.' "
If there's a freshman wall, Trinity Thomas has not hit it yet. She's probably even tumbled over it.
In the No. 2 Gators gymnastic team's defeat of No. 12 Auburn on Friday night at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center, Thomas won the all-around, uneven bars and floor exercise. She was tied for second on vault and tied for fourth on the balance beam.
Despite only being 17 years old and enrolling at UF a year early, Thomas has been Florida's top performer all season. She leads the team with two all-around victories and seven event titles. She was UF's top finisher in the all-around in two other meets.
Watch @Gym_Trin's winning floor routine that earned her a 10 from one judge!#GoGators pic.twitter.com/cmDcrG6ah8
— Gators Gymnastics (@GatorsGym) February 9, 2019
A three-time member of the U.S. Senior National Team, Thomas has accounted for the Gators' top three all-around scores. She's also posted the team's highest bars score and has tied for the top floor exercise score.
"We have been working on every detail," Thomas said after her first all-around win against Kentucky two weeks ago. "I think that we're climbing up. We're doing great, and I've been having pretty consistent times in the gym, so I'm glad that I could come out here and show exactly what I've been working in the gym."
Against the Tigers (5-1, 4-1), her near-flawless floor routine brought the ninth-largest crowd in UF history (9,055) to its feet in a roar, with many of the fans urging the judges to award her what would've been her first career 10. One of the judges granted their wishes and gave her a 10, but the other judge gave her a 9.95. So, she had to settle for a 9.975, the highest possible score other than a 10.
(Editor's Note: Watch recap video below for more on Thomas).
That would not normally be much of an issue, except this is the third week in a row she has come up just short of perfection. She received a pair of 9.975s on bars against Kentucky and Oklahoma. She's only the second freshman in program history to notch three 9.975s in a season, with the other being Bridget Sloan in 2013.
"I want [a 10] bad, really bad," she said. "I'm working hard on it, and I can see in the gym that it's getting more and more consistent-looking, just like competition. So, one day …"
As she did after the Kentucky meet, Rowland said, "It's coming. There's no reason to believe it won't happen soon."
Watch @Gym_Trin's winning bar routine which earned her a 9.95!
— Gators Gymnastics (@GatorsGym) February 9, 2019
The freshman has scored a 9.925 or better on every one of her bar routines this season 🔥🔥🔥
Watch the meet now on SEC Network or on WatchESPN: https://t.co/B9KoP1sP9P#GoGators pic.twitter.com/48ysSpY8iS
Thomas is only the fifth freshman in program history to record a 9.975 on bars. She has yet to post a bars score below 9.925 in her young career. If there was one chink in Thomas' armor, it appeared to be vault. In her first college routine against Missouri on Jan. 11, she took a big hop forward on her landing and received only a 9.775. She received the same score a week ago at Oklahoma.
However, she stuck her Yurchenko layout with 1 ½ twists against Auburn and received a 9.9. Entering the meet, UF had recorded just one score of 9.9 or better on vault all season. The Gators posted three such scores on Friday en route to a season-high 49.350.
The Gators lost four seniors from the 2018 squad and signed six freshmen, so it was a given that the freshmen's performances would play a large factor in how successful this season becomes.
Still, you never know how potential on paper is going to translate to the mat. In a lot of cases, coaches just hope their freshmen can hold their own and not hurt the team. Thomas has done more than carry her share of the load.
"I'd have to say that she really has come in to this program and really identified herself as a very strong individual and amazing team member, which is very hard to do as a freshman – to own your identity and know who you are and really take ownership, leadership," Rowland said. "She's handled herself with a lot of dignity and grace."
Thomas is not merely good for a freshman; she's already one of the best gymnasts in the country. Her all-around scores of 39.7 against Auburn and Kentucky are tied for third-best in the nation in 2019 as of Friday night. Of the seven gymnasts with 2019 all-arounds of 39.70 or better, only Thomas has multiple appearances on the list.
Florida's had a string of superstar all-arounders in recent years, from Sloan to Kytra Hunter to Alex McMurtry to senior Alicia Boren. Thomas is well on her way to keeping the tradition intact.
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