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Oklahoma Back in Nationals After Winning Lexington Regional
Oklahoma's Faith Torrez scores a perfect 10 on the beam during the SEC Gymnastics Championships at BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., Saturday, March 21, 2026. BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Oklahoma Back in Nationals After Winning Lexington Regional

Originally posted on Oklahoma Sooners on SI
By Ryan Aber  |  Last updated Apr 5, 2026 6:57 PM ET

Oklahoma is back in the NCAA women’s gymnastics championships.

The top-ranked Sooners earned their 22nd consecutive appearance in nationals Sunday, with a 198.350 to win the Lexington Regional Final in Lexington, Ky.

The score was their second-best of the season.

OU was already well on its way to the regional championship when Faith Torrez put the exclamation point on the performance with a perfect 10 anchoring the balance beam rotation to give the Sooners an eye-popping 49.750 in the event.

Arkansas also advanced to the NCAA championships with a 197.450 to finish second ahead of Missouri (197.225) and Ohio State (196.700).

The regional title was Oklahoma’s 16th consecutive.

The NCAA championships will begin with the four-team semifinals on Thursday, April 16 in Fort Worth, Texas. The first semifinal will begin at 3:30 p.m. with the second at 8 p.m. Both will be televised on ESPN2 and streamed on ESPN+.

The finals will take place two days later and be on ABC/ESPN+.

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Sunday, the Sooners set the tone from the start, with a 49.525 on vault in the first rotation.

While it was far from the best score the Sooners have posted in the event, it was a steady improvement from the disappointing score posted in the SEC Championships and the 49.450 the Sooners posted in the event in Friday’s second round of the regional.

After a 9,875 from Lizzy Blessey in the opening spot and a 9.850 from Keira Wells, Oklahoma’s next three gymnasts helped Oklahoma take the lead.

Mackenzie Estep posted a 9.950, her fifth 9.950 or better of the season, before Elle Mueller and Addison Fatta followed with 9.925s.

Lily Pederson finished out the rotation with a 9.850 to give the Sooners a 49.525-49.400 lead on Arkansas after one rotation.

The Sooners stretched their lead in the second rotation with a 49.475 on bars.

Ella Murphy and Torrez turned in the highlights of the rotation, with 9.925s to build Oklahoma's lead to 99.000-98.675 over the Razorbacks.

That lead figured to be plenty to get the Sooners to the regional final, but then they blew the doors open in the third rotation.

Oklahoma built steadily on the beam, starting with back-to-back 9.900s from Fatta and Wells before back-to-back-to-back 9.950s from Murphy, Pederson and Mueller.

Pederson's score was a season high.

Torrez then earned the first regional finals 10 on the beam this season with her perfect mark.

It was a big departure from her most recent beam performance, where she scored just a 9.100 on the beam in Friday’s regional opener.

Torrez also scored a 10 on the beam in the SEC Championships on March 21 in Tulsa.

The Sooners' 49.750 was its season high.

"That beam rotation was killer," Sooners coach K.J. Kindler said on the ESPN+ stream.

Oklahoma went into the final rotation without any drama other than if they could become just the recond team so far in NCAA Regionals this season to reach the 198.000 mark.

Florida scored a 198.05 in its regional final in Tempe.

The Sooners started the floor exercise with back-to-back-to-back 9.900s from Murphy, Fatta and Pederson. After a 0.875 from Wells, Mueller posted a 9.950 to tie her career and season high and clinch the 198-plus score for OU.

Estep also posted a 9.950 to end the night for the Sooners.

BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

This article first appeared on Oklahoma Sooners on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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