University of Missouri
#2 Oklahoma
Mizzou Gymnastics Concludes Best Season in Program History With Third-Place Finish at NCAA Championship Final
4/19/2025 7:00:00 PM | Gymnastics
Mizzou earned its best finish in program history, posting a score of 197.2000.
FORT WORTH, Texas – It was a historic ending to University of Missouri gymnastics' season, as the team finished in third at the NCAA Championship Final on Saturday at Dickies Arena to not only secure the best finish in program history, but the best postseason finish for any women's team in Mizzou history.
The Tigers scored 197.2500 in their first appearance in the national championship meet, earning a third-place finish to eclipse the 2022 squads' ranking of fifth, which was the previous school best by any MU women's team.
"I'm so proud of our group, not just tonight but in the semifinal as well," Mizzou head coach Shannon Welker said. "This is a gritty group, a group that believed in themselves and just kept fighting all night long. I'm so impressed that even when small things go off track, they just do not let that deter them. They were just going to be undeniable at putting their best out there and fighting at every turn."
Oklahoma won their seventh national title with a score of 198.0125 followed by UCLA (197.6125), Mizzou and Utah (197.2375).
SHOW STOPPERS
The beam queen and national champion Helen Hu (Chicago, Ill.) capped off a historic career, scoring 9.9650 on her final balance beam routine, taking the event title. Sophomore Kennedy Griffin's (Strongsville, Ohio) 9.9000 on the floor exercise marked the third-best score of the meet on the event, while senior Amari Celestine (Wildomar, Calif.) scored 39.5375 in the all-around, her fifth time this year to reach 39.5000 and the fourth-best all-around score on the day.
"I'm just so full of pride to be part of this amazing program and to play a role in making history by getting to the Four on the Floor," Hu said.
RECAP
Vault
-Missouri opened the meet on vault, where it scored 49.2000.
-Going fourth, Hannah Horton (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) scored 9.8375.
-She was followed by Jocelyn Moore (Hillsborough, N.J.), who notched 9.8500.
-Celestine anchored the rotation with a score of 9.9000.
Uneven Bars
-MU tallied 49.1750 on uneven bars.
-Kyra Burns' (Blue Springs, Mo.) opened event for the Tigers with a score of 9.8250.
-Moore and Mara Titarsolej (Zutphen, Netherlands) each posted scores of 9.8500 in their final routine on bars.
-Celestine earned 9.8625, the highest mark on the team on the apparatus.
Beam
-Mizzou scored 39.3875 on the balance beam, the second-highest mark on the event at the meet.
-Five of the Tigers' six routines earned a 9.8500 or higher.
-Junior Amy Wier (St. Louis, Mo.) opened the team's rotation on beam and scored 9.5500 before a video review corrected her mark to 9.8500, the same as Addison Lawrence (Olathe, Kan.).
-Going second and third respectively, Celestine and Railey Jackson (Forest Park, Ill.) both scored 9.8625.
-Hu's score of 9.9650 won the meet's event title for the fourth time in five postseason meets.
Floor
-Mizzou capped off the meet on the floor exercise, where it posted a 49.4875.
-The Tigers wrapped up the season with three scores of at least 9.9000, highlighted by sophomore Kennedy Griffin (Strongsville, Ohio), who notched a 9.9500.
-Celestine's final routine saw her earn a 9.9125, while Moore's scored 9.9000.
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Players Mentioned
