Leanne Wong and assistant coach Owen Field react to Wong's perfect floor routine to cap Friday night's win over LSU at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. (Photo: Molly Kaiser/UAA Communications)
Fantastic Finish: Wong's 10 to Beat LSU a Big Step for Gators
Saturday, February 24, 2024 | Gymnastics, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The atmosphere inside the O'Dome was about to change drastically, but when Payton Richards dropped to the mat following the first tumbling pass of her floor routine, the silence was deafening.
Richards, the fifth-year graduate student and fan favorite, suffered a lower-body injury that you knew was not good by the reaction of her teammates and coaches. Richards was eventually carried from the competition floor by assistant coach Owen Field.
In a tight battle with No. 2-ranked LSU, the Gators could only try to remain composed and see what Leanne Wong had left in the night's final performance moments later. LSU owned a narrow lead heading into the last rotation, and both teams put up strong scores as the night neared a close, the Tigers on the beam and the Gators on floor.
But with Richards' injury casting a cloud over the Gators, Wong was about to deliver the sunshine.
"At that moment, I knew the team needed my score, so I just had to go out there and do my routine the way I had been practicing it,'' she said.
It's a well-worn cliché, but for Wong on Friday night, practice indeed made perfect. She pulled off a moment that is more associated with other sports than gymnastics. Think buzzer-beater in basketball, walk-off homer in baseball, or last-second field goal in football.
Wong's flawless floor routine earned her a perfect 10 from the judges and sent the O'Dome crowd into a frenzy as the fifth-ranked Gators came from behind to upset the Tigers (198.150-197.950).
Oh, my!
"That was fun,'' Gators head coach Jenny Rowland said. "A really enjoyable night."
Florida head coach Jenny Rowland and her team following Friday night's dramatic finish against LSU. (Photo: Ashley Ray/UAA Communications)
Wong's performance came attached with a piece of history, which seemed fitting afterward when she shared what her Friday was like. She opened the day with an American history test, reviewed three lectures for a health quiz she took, and then completed three biology class assignments.
She closed it by becoming the 15th NCAA gymnast in history — and fourth from UF, joining Bridget Sloan, Alex McMurtry and Trinity Thomas — to accomplish a Gym Slam (a perfect score in each event).
"Not too many people can say that'' Rowland said.
Wong had come close five previous times on the floor but had been left stuck at 9.975. That distinction is now history.
A fourth-year junior from Overland Park, Kan., Wong's signature moment for the Gators is not an out-of-nowhere development. Wong entered the season as a 15-time All-American and spent last summer as a member of the U.S. National Team at the FIG World Championships. She is the two-time reigning Southeastern Conference beam champion and a member of the All-SEC team the past two seasons.
Wong's all-around score (39.875) against LSU matched her career best and is the highest all-around score in the country during the 2024 season.
Wong said she was not thinking of a 10 when she began her floor routine Friday night with the Gators clinging to hopes of an upset.
"There's always pressure because your score counts for the team, so I just felt I had to reflect on practice and go out there and do my routine,'' Wong said. "I had no idea what score I needed."
Freshman teammate Anya Pilgrim, whose 39.650 all-around score is the top in the country for first-year gymnasts this season, was in the same state of mind.
"I just knew that she needed to do her job,'' Pilgrim said. "I just really look up to her. She did so great. I'm so proud she got her first Gym Slam."
Wong did that and more, igniting a celebration that now has fans wondering what this team might be capable of down the stretch. The Gators posted their highest team score of the season and raised their score for the seventh consecutive meet, a rarity and the only team in the country to say that in 2024.
Rowland beamed as Wong and Pilgrim joined her at the post-meet press conference.
"It was a great fight, with heart, with passion,'' she said. "The Gators were outstanding tonight, and that's our goal. A great step in the process."
Florida's victory, coupled with Arkansas beating Kentucky on Friday night, earned the Gators at least a share of the SEC regular-season title for the sixth consecutive season. Rowland had concerns about how the evening would go before the competition started.
She said during warmups, the Gators looked a little tight. They quickly put her at ease with a season-high score on vault, highlighted by a pair of 9.950s by Pilgrim and Wong. LSU seized momentum in the second and third rotations before the Gators closed with a flourish.
Wong's score on the floor was the eighth perfect 10 of her career.
"I feel very accomplished right now,'' Wong giggled, sharing how busy her day was before the meet. "This one was just a lot different, getting the Gym Slam and then just going out there and doing my routine the way I practice. I have a goal to improve every meet, and of course, we wanted this win. We all had to put our best out there. I guess there was a little fire."
In the frantic moments before the judges flashed Wong's score, Rowland was uncertain if they had won. She then had to ask Field if the 10 was enough.
It was.
And a perfect end to a fantastic meet.
"To see Leanne do that, I don't think it was a surprise for the Gators by any means, and at the same time, we all had each other's backs. The first four [on the floor] did a phenomenal job, too,'' Rowland said. "We still have in the tank, and that really excites me as a coach."
