Three members of the West Virginia University gymnastics team are preparing to compete as individual event specialists at the 2026 NCAA Baton Rouge Regional Championships on April 2 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
This event is significant as it provides an opportunity for these athletes to advance individually in a national competition, even if their team does not qualify. It highlights both personal achievement and the strength of the program.
Junior Amber Lowe will participate on balance beam, while sophomores Sophia Rice and Emerson Smith will compete on vault and floor exercise, respectively. The Mountaineers are scheduled to compete in Session II of the Second Round alongside teams such as Louisiana State University, Clemson, Auburn, and either Air Force or Nebraska depending on the outcome of a First Round dual meet. The individuals from West Virginia will start with floor exercise and follow Olympic rotation order with winners from Air Force or Nebraska.
Lowe has qualified for her first individual regional appearance as a beam specialist with a National Qualifying Score (NQS) of 9.855. She is ranked ninth in the Big 12 Conference and eighteenth in her region on beam. Her career-high score came earlier this season when she scored a 9.9 at Towson on March 1.
Rice returns to regionals as an event specialist on vault after qualifying last year. She holds an NQS of 9.83 this season and is ranked thirteenth in conference play and twenty-third regionally; her best score this year was a 9.875 at Utah on March 7.
Smith earned her first qualification as an event specialist with a NQS of 9.87 on floor exercise; she ranks thirteenth in conference standings and twenty-second regionally, having reached scores of 9.9 twice this season.
The top two teams from each regional site plus the highest-scoring all-around competitor not advancing with their team will move forward to nationals; additionally, top-scoring event specialists who are not part of advancing teams may also earn spots at nationals for their events only.
The national championships are scheduled for April 16-18 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.
