Sunday, 26 June 2011 22:50

Graduation Day 2011: Losses and Openings

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It's another summer of offseason work, and we've unfortunately had to say "goodbye" to some of our favorite seniors.  On the women's side, we're going to lose some standout champions like 2011 NCAA AA Champion Kylie Botterman of Michigan, Bama's Kayla Hoffman and UCLA's Brittani McCullough.  Although rosters for next season are not finalized, here's a quick summary of the status of Top 25 women's teams from this past season, with their key losses summarized and highlighted. 

In "routines returning" column, we have estimated the number of routines returning, based on the lineups for the last competition of the 2010-2011 season.  To get an idea of the distribution of the losses, we've noted the number of departing athletes per event.  This list is not final; transfers and offseason retirements could impact the final tallies.  All statistics are from Troester.com GymInfo and posted school rosters.

Statistically, you might expect a quarter of all routines to come from any given class.  But in NCAA gymnastics, despite the wear and tear of years of training, experience does count.  Thus, the starting lineup of many teams is often filled with upperclassmen, especially on high pressure events like balance beam.  In the table below, we've highlighted teams in with the color RED where the losses hit 9 or more routines (out of 24) OR where losses in any given event run more than three.  In contrast, we've highlighted teams with 3 or fewer losses (out of 24) in GREEN.  This rough measure shows where the teams have the most capability to replace, and where others will just add to their depth and experience when the newcomers join the rosters this fall.

Some teams are adept at "reloading" and will simply rely on talented incoming classes or their depth to cover their losses.  For teams on the fringe of qualifying to Nationals or the Super Six, this can be a difference maker.  We'll see how the Incoming Classes stack up in our annual ranking, as the season approaches.  And, later this summer we'll do a short preview of the incoming classes for the top returning teams. 

Until then, Happy Graduation!

Final
Rank
 Team
 NQS  Season High
 Routines
Returning
 Routines Gone
VT UB BB FX
1 Alabama 394.395 197.675 20  1 1 1  1
2 UCLA 394.110 197.475 18 1 1 2 2
3 Oklahoma 394.045 197.225 22  1  0 1  0
4 Nebraska 392.825 197.300 15 2  2 2  3
5 Utah 393.045 196.975 18 1  2  2 1
6 Michigan 393.575 196.800 11  3 4  3  3
7 Florida 393.615 197.725  21 1  1 0 1
8 Oregon State 393.795 197.200 19  2 1  1 1
9 Georgia 393.285 197.225  17  2  1 2 2
10 Arkansas 392.610 196.700  21  1  1  1 0
11 Illinois-Champaign 391.850 196.975 15  2  2  2 3
12 Kent State 390.695 195.950 17 1 2 2 2
13 Boise State 392.395 197.050 18  1  2  1  3
14 Penn State 392.060 197.075 21  1  1 1  0
15 Stanford 391.940 196.975 15  2  2  3  2
16 Ohio State 391.150 196.100 20 1 1 1 1
17 Denver 391.060 196.375 17  1 2 2  2
18 Washington 391.000 196.075 17  1 2 2 2
19 Auburn 390.905 195.925 18  1  1  2  2
20 L.S.U. 390.880 196.350 20  1  1  1 1
21 Arizona 390.830 195.625 21  1 1  0 1
22 Minnesota 390.480 196.125 18 1 2 2  1
23 Central Michigan 390.265 195.900 17 2 1 1 1
24 Iowa State 390.125 196.350 18  2 2  2  0
25 Kentucky 390.120 195.650 11  4  3 3 3
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