NORMAN, Oklahoma – After having to wait nearly 48 hours to see if her score would hold up, Illinois State freshman standout Jaye Mack qualified for the 2022 NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championship after Oklahoma and Minnesota advanced as teams out of the Norman Regional Saturday night at the Lloyd Noble Center.
Mack's score on floor of 9.925 tied her for second overall at the regional, but after tiebreaker scenarios were sorted through and the advancing teams were known, her score came out on top as the highest for an individual on floor (who was not on an advancing team). That resulted in Mack receiving an automatic berth to the NCAA Championship which will take place April 14-16 in Fort Worth, Texas, at Dickies Arena.
"It was down to the last few routines from Minnesota and Cal to see if Jaye would make it to nationals," ISU head coach Bob Conkling said. "Minnesota pulled from 3rd to 2nd to overtake Cal, solidifying Jaye's qualification. I couldn't be more excited for Jaye. She had a fantastic floor routine on Thursday and deserves to compete at the NCAA Championship in Fort Worth."
The Kansas City, Missouri, native becomes the second Illinois State individual to qualify for the NCAA Championships and the second in as many years, after teammate Angelica Labat qualified on vault last year. The 2022 Midwest Independent Conference co-champion on floor, Mack's score of 9.925 tied her career high set previously this season. Overall, she has posted 9.0 or higher score performances six times this season. During her freshman campaign, Mack was a two-time MIC Newcomer of the Week selection and earned Performance of the Week honors once.
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