The defending champions are ready to rumble for their NCAA title. April 3, 2025 – Penn State. Rec Hall- LSU gymnastics entered the NCAA Penn State Regional Final. Finnegan and freshman Kailin Chio outshone many by tying for first place with an all-around score of 39.625, while senior Haleigh Bryant was a close fourth (39.575). But the road ahead is not easy for the team. On April 5, LSU, Arkansas, Michigan State, and Kentucky will compete in the regional final. The last two are going to be big trouble for the team from Baton Rouge and LSU star Olivia Dunne‘s coach, Jay Clark, has a decision to make.
The defending NCAA champions are not going to have it easy in the finals. The Spartans from Michigan State are all warmed up and ready for war. On April 3rd, in the NCAA regionals, they recorded their best-ever finish at a regional semifinal, scoring 197.625. Kentucky was also not far behind. They finished second with a 0.100 point difference. Both of these teams surpassed LSU’s season NQS (National Qualifying Scores) average. The Spartans were at 197.360, and the Wildcats at 197.315 for the season. “Both of them are worthy of going to nationals,” LSU head coach, Jay Clark, said of them. But he wants to defend the title too. So what’s his plan? Who is his ace of spades?
Clark is in a kind of dilemma here. A part of him does not want to switch things up in this LSU lineup that has won them the SEC championship, yet the threat of Spartans and Wildcats force him to. The Georgia native is thinking of resting Kailin Chio and bringing in sophomore Konnor McClain for the first time on the floor this season. Last year, McClain was great with her performances. She even scored her career high on the floor, 9.975, versus Arkansas.
But as they what you love can also harm you. The 20-year-old sustained a serious injury to her Achilles tendon while warming up for her floor routine at the Core Hydration Classic in May. In January 2025, she did return to gymnastics but not to the floor. Cut to April 2025. If Clark can convince himself to take the risk, we might see her grace the floor in the upcoming meets, as per reports by The Advocate.
Though the semifinal score on the floor marked the fourth-highest floor score at an NCAA Regional in program history, adding in McClain can be a surprise factor. She won a bronze for the floor in the City of Jesolo Trophy. Last season, during the NCAA semifinals, she recorded a pair of 9.9125 on bars and beam and a 9.9375 on the floor. She was named a postseason All-American on bars, beam, and floor for her performance. But apart from her, another injury is haunting the LSU Tigers.
Olivia Dunne is set to miss another final after injury
Last year, as history unfolded in front of her eyes, Olivia Dunne sat on the sidelines. LSU won its first NCAA title, but Dunne was not a part of the final roster that did it. When she came back for the 2025 season, fans were hopeful that if the team made it to the NCAA finals, Dunne might finally get her chance. Well, the Tigers have reached the regional finals. But once again, Dunne will not be a part of it. She has had injuries like torn biceps, a couple of ruptured labrums, and a stress reaction, but none have kept her out of action as long as her avulsion fracture has. Well, in her defense, it is a pretty significant injury that takes about 3-6 months to recover from.
In one of her TikTok posts, Dunne shared the news of her heading home. Fans were left confused and wondering over one question: Why so early? Many of them asked her the reason for this. She replied to one of the comments, “I’m recovering from a fractured kneecap.” That sums it up. No more Dunne in the 2025 season. But she did leave with an open ending as well.
In another of the comments, she was asked if she would return for her ninth season with the team. Dunne replied to this comment with, “I should.” With her February announcement of her relationship not being long-distance after this year and the constant trolling for her still being in college, it will be interesting to see how that pans out.
What do you think of Dunne’s Tigers’ chances in the NCAA final without her and the possibility of her 9th-season return? Let us know in the comments below!
The post Cautious of Rising Threat, Olivia Dunne’s Coach Clark Ready to Possibly Unleash Ace of Spades for NCAA Gymnastics Regionals appeared first on EssentiallySports.