Gators head coach Jenny Rowland speaks to her team during the season-opening quad meet last week at Exactech Arena/O'Connell Center. (Photo: Morgan Hurd/UAA Communications)
Carter's Corner: Rowland, Versatile Gators Eye Improvement at LSU
Friday, January 17, 2025 | Gymnastics, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Gators gymnastics coach Jenny Rowland can probably relate to Imelda Marcos on occasion. If Marcos never existed in your memory or has long departed, she was the former First Lady of the Philippines, whose lavish wardrobe reportedly included more than 3,000 pairs of shoes.
Can you imagine a trip to that closet to find the perfect pumps for an afternoon stroll?
Rowland's dilemma is not as cluttered as the shoe lady's, but it can be difficult to sort the pieces when you have a roster of 19 that features some of the top female gymnasts in the country (and, in some instances, the world).
"Figuring out lineups is no joke,'' Rowland said this week. "It's the biggest challenge."
Rowland and her staff have an open-door policy. If a gymnast has questions about the lineup once it's finalized for competition, they encourage them to stop by for answers. That approach has helped Rowland build a winning culture and lead the Gators to seven appearances in the NCAA Championships and back-to-back national runner-up finishes in 2022 and '23.
The Gators, who opened the season with a quad-meet home victory last week, will face No. 2-ranked LSU on Friday night. This rivalry recalls the Florida-Florida State football rivalry in the 1990s when the Gators and Seminoles met 13 consecutive times, with both teams ranked in the top 10.
The defending national champion Tigers and No. 7-ranked Gators match that dominant longevity when they meet for the 13th consecutive time as top-10 teams on Friday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge. Florida seeks a sharper performance than in its opener, which it squeaked by Michigan State (196.675-196.650) for the top spot.
The Gators' final score dipped when they turned in a less-than-stellar (48.650) performance on the floor routine, an area that could see some lineup changes Friday.
"This team is highly competitive,'' Rowland said. "They are ready for the fight. We're going to go in and try to ruffle some feathers. We do have some great depth. With depth comes the ability to switch out and change up lineups here and there.
"It was really exciting to see everybody so hungry to get a little bit better. When our weakest link is hungry, and they're trying to push to get into the competition lineup, it's just pushing everybody else and making us better. We don't need any great leaps and bounds made from this last meet."
Rowland experimented with different combinations in the opener, balancing the goal of winning the meet with a desire to allow younger Gators to gain valuable experience in competition. Freshman Ly Bui debuted on vault, newcomer Selena Harris-Miranda competed in three events, Skye Blakely and Riley McCusker returned from injuries to compete on the uneven bars, and freshman Taylor Clark took a turn on the floor exercise.
Two veterans, seniors Leanne Wong and Sloane Blakely, competed in the all-around, with Wong (39.725) winning the title. Meanwhile, sophomore Anya Pilgrim did not perform on the floor a week ago.
That could change at LSU.
Pilgrim scored a 9.800 on vault, 9.925 on uneven bars, and a 9.875 on balance beam. Mixing Pilgrim into the floor exercise rotation is just one example of the tweaks that Rowland faces as the season progresses. As an all-around performer last season, Pilgrim earned Second Team All-American honors at the NCAA Championships.
Pilgrim is eager for her first trip to LSU and is unfazed by the raucous crowd that turns the Maravich Center into a party on the Bayou.
"When I'm competing, I think it's actually easier to be away sometimes because you don't really know the crowd,'' Pilgrim said. "They don't really expect anything from you."
Instead, the Gators focused on themselves leading up to the Southeastern Conference opener. As Rowland put the final touches on the lineup at LSU, she emphasized that it's a fluid process from week to week.
The season has just started, and many things are unknown. What is known is what a trip to LSU means.
"Going into LSU is always a lot of fun. You know you're going into an environment that is going to be really loud with lots of energy," Rowland said. "This week of training has been exceptionally great. It will more than likely, it always has come down to the last routine."
Can you imagine a trip to that closet to find the perfect pumps for an afternoon stroll?
Rowland's dilemma is not as cluttered as the shoe lady's, but it can be difficult to sort the pieces when you have a roster of 19 that features some of the top female gymnasts in the country (and, in some instances, the world).
"Figuring out lineups is no joke,'' Rowland said this week. "It's the biggest challenge."
Rowland and her staff have an open-door policy. If a gymnast has questions about the lineup once it's finalized for competition, they encourage them to stop by for answers. That approach has helped Rowland build a winning culture and lead the Gators to seven appearances in the NCAA Championships and back-to-back national runner-up finishes in 2022 and '23.
The Gators, who opened the season with a quad-meet home victory last week, will face No. 2-ranked LSU on Friday night. This rivalry recalls the Florida-Florida State football rivalry in the 1990s when the Gators and Seminoles met 13 consecutive times, with both teams ranked in the top 10.
#Gators start 2025 road 𝘢𝘯𝘥 @SEC competition tonight on the bayou.
— Gators Gymnastics (@GatorsGym) January 17, 2025
No. 7⃣ 🐊 🆚 No. 2⃣ LSU 🐯
📍 Peter Maravich Assembly Center
🕢 7:30 pmET
📺 ESPN2
💻📱🖥️ https://t.co/DuaHNe6cPj
📊 https://t.co/4tbTmxPnCW
🎟️ https://t.co/TTIXTWAlKR#GoGators | 🐊🤸♀️ pic.twitter.com/MTKXjubU7J
The defending national champion Tigers and No. 7-ranked Gators match that dominant longevity when they meet for the 13th consecutive time as top-10 teams on Friday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge. Florida seeks a sharper performance than in its opener, which it squeaked by Michigan State (196.675-196.650) for the top spot.
The Gators' final score dipped when they turned in a less-than-stellar (48.650) performance on the floor routine, an area that could see some lineup changes Friday.
"This team is highly competitive,'' Rowland said. "They are ready for the fight. We're going to go in and try to ruffle some feathers. We do have some great depth. With depth comes the ability to switch out and change up lineups here and there.
"It was really exciting to see everybody so hungry to get a little bit better. When our weakest link is hungry, and they're trying to push to get into the competition lineup, it's just pushing everybody else and making us better. We don't need any great leaps and bounds made from this last meet."
Rowland experimented with different combinations in the opener, balancing the goal of winning the meet with a desire to allow younger Gators to gain valuable experience in competition. Freshman Ly Bui debuted on vault, newcomer Selena Harris-Miranda competed in three events, Skye Blakely and Riley McCusker returned from injuries to compete on the uneven bars, and freshman Taylor Clark took a turn on the floor exercise.
Two veterans, seniors Leanne Wong and Sloane Blakely, competed in the all-around, with Wong (39.725) winning the title. Meanwhile, sophomore Anya Pilgrim did not perform on the floor a week ago.
That could change at LSU.
Pilgrim scored a 9.800 on vault, 9.925 on uneven bars, and a 9.875 on balance beam. Mixing Pilgrim into the floor exercise rotation is just one example of the tweaks that Rowland faces as the season progresses. As an all-around performer last season, Pilgrim earned Second Team All-American honors at the NCAA Championships.
Pilgrim is eager for her first trip to LSU and is unfazed by the raucous crowd that turns the Maravich Center into a party on the Bayou.
"When I'm competing, I think it's actually easier to be away sometimes because you don't really know the crowd,'' Pilgrim said. "They don't really expect anything from you."
Instead, the Gators focused on themselves leading up to the Southeastern Conference opener. As Rowland put the final touches on the lineup at LSU, she emphasized that it's a fluid process from week to week.
The season has just started, and many things are unknown. What is known is what a trip to LSU means.
"Going into LSU is always a lot of fun. You know you're going into an environment that is going to be really loud with lots of energy," Rowland said. "This week of training has been exceptionally great. It will more than likely, it always has come down to the last routine."
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