Saturday night in a sold-out Huntsman Center, No. 5 Utah gymnastics hosted No. 4 UCLA in the Red Rocks’ regular season finale.

The meet offered Utah a chance to make a major statement ahead of the postseason. While ranked in the top 5 nationally all season long, the Red Rocks hadn’t fared particularly well against teams considered national title contenders.

Utah lost head-to-head to Oklahoma, LSU, Florida and Cal earlier in the year, all of whom are ranked in the top six nationally, and the Red Rocks were only really competitive against Florida and Cal.

UCLA was the only top six team Utah hadn’t faced this season before Saturday, the only other team available before the postseason for Utah to prove it can contend with the best.

The version of Utah gymnastics that showed up against the Bruins has national title-winning potential.

Led by a trio of star all-around gymnasts in Grace McCallum, Avery Neff and Makenna Smith, Utah scored a season-high 198.100 and ran away from UCLA (197.425).

McCallum, Neff and Smith all scored a 39.675 or better, with Smith winning the all-around title with 39.700.

McCallum recorded the first perfect 10 of her career on balance beam, on Senior Night no less, while Neff and Smith notched new career highs.

Combined, the trio accounted for 60% of Utah’s points in the meet.

It wasn’t just the all-arounders, though, as good as they were. Utah scored a season high on beam and vault and tied its season-best score on floor, as gymnasts such as Ella Zirbes, Camie Winger and Jaylene Gilstrap all contributed 9.9-scoring routines.

It was simply the Red Rocks’ best meet so far this season, and it came against top tier competition, which made it all the more meaningful.

Utah proved it can compete with the best.

“I think this is exactly what we needed,” Utah head coach Carly Dockendorf said. “I think that there’s been doubt every now and then, whether it was with the whole team or certain individuals, but in order for us to do what we’re on a mission to do, everybody needs to be bought in. Everyone needs to believe that we’re capable of doing this.

“That’s something I feel like we’ve been missing here at Utah with this program, a deep belief that we’re not just good, but we’re great, that we’re good enough to win a national title. I really think that this (performance) is going to help instill that belief moving forward.”

Added McCallum: “I think (tonight) just really helped build our confidence. Seeing the hard work we put in the gym and really those little details showing up — sometimes it’s hard and you can get discouraged because those little things won’t show up right away, but everything’s coming together and I think it’s perfect timing for the postseason.”

Defining moment

The Huntsman Center is known its large crowds for gymnastics — boisterous, loud and enthusiastic crowds.

Saturday night was different, though. The sellout crowd was as loud as any crowd that has filled the arena at the University of Utah in years.

So say McCallum and Gilstrap.

“By far,” Gilstrap said.

And the loudest it got was a direct result of McCallum’s performance on beam.

In her Utah career, McCallum has largely been known as a great all-around gymnast and an elite bars worker. She’s always been good at beam, too, but was overshadowed at times by teammates like Maile O’Keefe and Abby Paulson.

This season, McCallum has been Utah’s best gymnast on the event, but she hadn’t broken through for a perfect 10. Until Saturday night.

Sandwiched in the middle of Utah’s beam lineup, McCallum was flawless, competing the best she ever had on beam in her collegiate career.

The result was a perfect score and a standing ovation from 15,000 people who were nothing if not overjoyed.

“You couldn’t ask for more on Senior Night,” Dockendorf said. “She has worked for that and she deserves that, and I’m just so excited that happened tonight for her.”

Neff saw McCallum’s perfect score come up before anyone else — she was next to go in the beam lineup. She won’t soon forget it.

“That was my first 10 that I’ve really seen on beam,” Neff said. “It was super special for me to see it, and just so special for me to see it for Grace on Senior Night.”

For McCallum, the perfect score was the culmination of years of hard work.

“I just felt really grateful,” she said. “I’ve put in a lot of work the last four years and have really tried to build my confidence on that event, so to finally see it all pay off was just really an amazing moment.

“I just felt very grateful to have had gotten a 10 on senior day.”

Needs work

Utah was great overall, but wasn’t perfect — McCallum’s perfect score notwithstanding.

The Red Rocks left tenths of a point on the board on every event. Where that was most apparent was on vault, Utah’s weakest event this season and weakest for six years now.

Outside of a pair of excellent vaults by Smith and Neff — both stuck their landings and had little obvious deductions — the Red Rocks struggled, with landings in particular.

McCallum’s vault was on track to be her best of the year, but she struggled with the landing, shuffling her feet.

Ashley Glynn got more height and distance on her vault than any Red Rock but was completely out of control on her landing, somehow managing to only take a single large step.

Zirbes too took a large step forward on her landing and Zoe Johnson’s first 10.0-valued vault of the season included a significant hop forward.

Compared to previous outings, Utah was better on vault than it had been this season, at any point, with more amplitude and distance than usual, especially.

“I thought our vault rotation was awesome,” Dockendorf said. “Our vaults are getting bigger and bigger, and we’re dialing in on those landings. That’s exactly what we need to continue to do.”

And yet, Utah still has a ways to go.

Utah had strong outings on bars, beam and floor, meanwhile, but left tenths of point out there with landings again — on bars especially.

Even on floor, where Utah ended the night in impressive fashion, multiple Red Rocks couldn’t control the landings of tumbling passes, mistakes that added up and prevented Utah from get a mid-198 score as opposed to the 198.100 it finished with.

Utah was better than it had been all season against UCLA. There’s no denying that.

“We’ve been really focused on fine tuning every single detail,“ Gilstrap said, “and I could see that just in the warmups, like we went out there from the start with confidence and just kind of carried that through all the way.”

There is room for more fine tuning, though, as the calendar shifts to the postseason.

That’s encouraging

There was a lot to be excited about for Utah.

The team responded in the best possible way from a disappointing meet at Washington a week ago, and Utah showed itself elite on three events, with glimpses of real potential on the fourth.

Moreover, multiple gymnasts contributed significantly, and on different events, too. Gymnasts who had been struggling a bit — like Camie Winger on beam — found their form again.

If there is something that is especially notable about this particular Utah team though it is its trio of all-arounders.

McCallum has been a stalwart for Utah throughout her career, but Smith has undergone a transformation into a superstar this season. Against UCLA, she was Utah’s best gymnast on two events (bars and floor) and second-best on a third (vault).

Smith has turned into an incredibly reliable competitor, scoring regularly in the 9.9 range on every event. She’s comfortable, too. Prior to her floor routine she egged on the crowd and relished in it, and her performance didn’t disappoint.

As for Neff, well, she has quickly regained the form she showed early in the season prior to her severe ankle sprains. For 75% of Saturday’s meet she was the best gymnast in the arena, and that was with Olympians like McCallum and UCLA’s Jordan Chiles competing.

Neff competed the best vault of the night, plus one of the best bar and beam routines. The freshman has become the superstar that she was expected to be and nothing less.

Those three make Utah capable of competing with anyone, and Smith and Neff in particularly give hope for future seasons as well.

“I mean, this is kind of the passing of the baton, even just looking at the all around scores, you know, both with (Neff) and Makenna,” Dockendorf said.

“Those are massive all-around scores. To have Grace graduate out as an all-arounder and to know that the future is still bright for many of these athletes on our team — it’s really exciting.”

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — UCLA’s nine-meet winning streak ended on the road as the No. 4 Bruins fell to No. 5 Utah, 198.100-197.425 on Saturday.

The Bruins opened with a 49.425 on uneven bars, matching Utah’s score on vault. Frida Esparza led the way with a 9.950, while Jordan Chiles scored 9.925 and Macy McGowan added a 9.900.

In the second rotation, Utah pulled ahead with a 49.525 on uneven bars, while UCLA posted a 49.175 on vault. Chae Campbell led the Bruins with a 9.900, receiving a 9.95 from one judge.

UCLA moved to floor exercise in the third rotation, scoring 49.375, while Utah extended its lead with a 49.600 on balance beam, led by Grace McCallum.

In the final rotation, UCLA recorded a 49.450 on balance beam. Emily Lee led off with a 9.900, and Mika Webster-Longin made her competitive debut. Campbell earned a career-high 9.950, while Ciena Alipio and Emma Malabuyo each posted 9.900s to close the meet.

UCLA will compete next at the Big Ten Championships in Ann Arbor, Mich., on Saturday, March 22, as the No. 1 seed.

LAS VEGAS (ABC4 Sports) – Utah State cut a 28-point second half deficit down to seven, but ultimately ran out of gas in the Mountain West Conference Tournament semifinals against Colorado State, 83-72.

The Aggies (26-7) are still expected to make the NCAA Tournament. Utah State will find out its postseason fate on Sunday.

Nique Clifford had 26 points to lead the Rams in the MWC Tournament finals against Boise State on Saturday.

Clifford added 11 rebounds and six assists for the Rams (24-9). Kyan Evans scored 14 points, shooting 4 for 6 (4 for 5 from 3-point range) and 2 of 3 from the free-throw line. Jalen Lake had 14 points and shot 5 of 8 from the field, including 2 for 4 from 3-point range, and went 2 for 3 from the line. It was the seventh straight win for the Rams.

Aggies shut down UNLV in Mountain West quarterfinals

The Aggies were led by Mason Falslev, who posted 22 points, seven rebounds and four steals. Ian Martinez added 13 points, six rebounds and four assists for Utah State. Karson Templin also had 11 points and nine rebounds.

The Aggies struggled to keep pace early with hot shooting from the Rams, who shot 64 percent from the floor in the first half to jump out to a quick advantage. Colorado State established firm control of the contest early on, using a 13-1 run to take a 14-point lead less than nine minutes in. Utah State responded with seven-straight points of its own, but the Rams continued to find success shooting the ball.

The Rams made nine first-half 3-pointers in 16 attempts, while also making 11 of their final 12 2-point field goals of the half. On the flip side, Utah State made just 11 of its 30 field goals in the first 20 minutes. Despite that, the Aggies held the deficit within single digits for much of the half before a 14-5 CSU run to close the half gave the Rams a 49-30 lead at the break.

The second half started like the first. After a pair of quick USU free throws, Colorado State scored 11 of the game’s next 13 points to extend its advantage. The Rams would eventually go up by as many as 28 points.

The teams held even for several possessions before the Aggies made a surge with just under 10 minutes to go. Utah State used a 16-1 run to cut its deficit to 12 with 5:38 to play, but wasn’t able to pull back within single-digits until the final two minutes of the contest. Colorado State iced the game from the charity stripes, making five free throws in the final two minutes to help secure the victory.

Utah State was led by an outstanding performance from sophomore guard Mason Falslev, who finished with a team-high 22 points, including 14 in the second half. He also went for seven rebounds, one assist and a game-high four steals in 35 minutes of action.

Other double-figure scorers for USU were fifth year guard Ian Martinez, who went for 13 points, six boards, four assists and a steal, and sophomore guard Karson Templin, who fell just shy of a double-double with 11 points and a team-best nine rebounds.

Aggies dominate Air Force in regular season finale

The Aggies won the rebounding battle 39-34, including pulling down 20 offensive boards. The team’s efforts on the offensive glass led to 18 second chance points, while it allowed just a single second chance point to CSU.

Utah State finished the game shooting 36.5 percent (23-of-63) from the floor, 21.2 percent (7-of-33) from behind the 3-point arc and 63.6 percent (19-of-30) from the free throw line. Colorado State shot 59.5 percent (25-of-42) from the field, including 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from 3-point range and 62.6 percent (23-of-37) at the charity stripe.

This is Utah State’s second loss in two weeks to Colorado State.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah.

SEATTLE (AP) — Eeli Tolvanen scored two goals, the first just 51 seconds into the game and the second into an empty net with 1:09 left, and the Seattle Kraken beat the Utah Hockey Club 4-2 on Friday night.

Brandon Montour and Kaapo Kakko also scored for the Seattle. Tolvanen also had an assist and Jordan Eberle had two assists, giving him five in his last two games. Philipp Grubauer made 22 saves.

Nick Schmaltz and Kevin Stenlund scored for Utah and Karel Vejmelka made 18 saves.

Tolvanen’s first goal from the left of the net that went behind Vejmelka was his 20th, the first time in his career that he has hit that milestone.

Schmaltz tied it at 1-1 with 3:12 left in the first period, then Stenlund converted a turnover in the neutral zone into a goal for a 2-1 lead 7:35 into the second. Montour tied it at 2-2 with 1:06 left in the period.

Takeaways

Utah: Schmaltz’s goal was the third straight road game in which he has scored. Stenland, Dylan Guenther and Jack McBain also have had three-game road scoring streaks this season.

Kraken: Although it wasn’t their quickest first-period goal, Tolvanen’s tally just 51 seconds into Friday’s game was the sixth time this season the Kraken have scored in the opening minute, the most in the league. The fastest one was by Jaden Schwartz just 19 seconds in at home against Carolina on Dec. 3.

Key moment

With the game tied at 2-2, Utah’s Mikhail Sergachev tried to clear the puck behind the back of his net, but it bounced off the side. Kakko swooped in, picked it up and wrapped it around the post to Vejmelka’s left.

Key stat

Grubauer made his second start since a brief in the minors at Coachella Valley. He has won both of them.

Up next

The Kraken host Winnipeg and Utah visits Vancouver, both on Sunday night.

___

AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL

Seattle • Utah Hockey Club dropped a game in a desperate-for-points moment of the season.

It was a no-show for most of Friday night’s 4-2 loss against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena. The consensus from players and head coach André Tourigny alike was the team simply did not have it.

“Our execution was not there,” Tourigny said. “I do not think we had our usual transition game, our usual offense, our usual inside presence. It’s one of those off nights where you put the tape right in the trash and move on.”

Unfortunate timing, yes. But it does not have to deter Utah from the same mission of fighting for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The Club has the veteran voices – like Kevin Stenlund who had two points (one goal, one assist) against the Kraken — to settle the disappointment.

“You just have to take it game by game,” Stenlund said. “Just don’t get frustrated if it happens that we lose one. Just have to focus on the next one.”

There was likely plenty of frustration to pass around after the final buzzer. Utah turned the puck over often, struggled to contain Seattle’s rush and did not register its regular quantity or quality of offensive opportunities the other way.

The team is trying to adapt a playoff mentality, though, and that involves a short-term memory.

“If you lose 9-1, 22-0 or 1-0 in the playoffs, you need to be ready for the next game and that is us,” Tourigny said. “Probably the most important game of this season to this point is next game.”

Utah was outplayed for the better half of the opening frame and found itself behind just 51 seconds into the game. Eeli Tolvanen buried the loose puck left in front of Karel Vejmelka for the 1-0 advantage.

Stenlund was called for high-sticking late in the first period but made up for it when leaving the penalty box two minutes later. The forward popped into the zone, picked up the puck along the boards and broke out the other way on an odd-man rush with Nick Schmaltz. Stenlund dished it cross crease to Schmaltz who one-timed the puck past Kraken netminder Philipp Grubauer to tie things 1-1 at 16:48.

The Club earned its first lead of the night in the second with Stenlund’s ninth goal of the season. John Marino broke up a Kraken breakout at center ice and sent the puck into the offensive zone where he slickly set up Stenlund for a knock-in tally in front. The play marked Stenlund’s second goal in five games and first multi-point performance of the season.

“I want to be a leader. Obviously play good defensively and then always want to create offense and score goals. Still working on that, get better,” Stenlund said. “Most importantly, it’s being consistent in the D-zone and trying to help the team that way.”

Stenlund has been somewhat of an unsung hero for Utah in all of those respects.

General manager Bill Armstrong brought in the 28-year-old due to his veteran experience during the offseason. After hoisting the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers in June, Stenlund inked a two-year, $4 million contract with Utah. He quickly became an important depth piece to the Club’s forward group while dominating at the face-off dot (with a team-best 58.8%) and on the penalty kill.

“It makes such a huge difference the way he plays defensively,” Tourigny said. “His play on the PK speaks for itself but more than that it’s big faceoffs, it’s the way he plays in our zone and key moments of the game where you either have to win the draw or need a guy who is playing really well down low — he does all of the above.”

Stenlund’s goal ultimately was not enough to earn Utah the win, though.

Brandon Montour knotted the contest 2-2 with a deflected shot while crashing the crease at 18:54 ahead of the third period, when Kaapo Kakko put the Kraken up. An empty-net goal from Tolvanen brought the game to its final 4-2 scoreline at 18:51.

“We feel like we let that one slip away,” Marino said. “Obviously every game here on out is a playoff game with the race being so tight. We feel like we had our chances and we kind of gave them the goals that they got.”

The Club’s maturity will be tested now. It would be easy to dwell on what did or did not happen against the Kraken. How the team responds will show how much it has grown.

“We have guys who have won Stanley Cups,” Tourigny said. “They’ve been there. They know, ‘Okay, it’s not what we want.’ We’re frustrated but at midnight we’ll turn the page.”

Marino agreed.

“Having those guys around when things aren’t going your way and everything – just kind of stick with it and keep playing your game,” the defenseman said. “We always have them to rely on.”