SALT LAKE CITY – Fresh off an MPSF championship victory, the Southern Utah Gymnastics team secured a third-place finish at the NCAA Gymnastics Regionals Second Round at the University of Utah Thursday afternoon.
Making their 12th straight regionals appearance – and 20th overall – the Flippin’ Birds notched a solid 196.475 score to finish third in the four-team event.
SUU beat out regional foe Boise State (195.175), while finishing just behind No. 10 Minnesota (197.200) and No. 5 UCLA (197.750).
Senior Ellie Cacciola finished her career with a team-high of 9.900 on the floor, while Mia Hampton and Niya Randolph tied for the top team score on the vault (9.875). Hampton also recorded the top score on bars (9.850), and Randolph and Rylee Miller scored the highest on beam (9.875).
Randolph also led the T-birds and placed fourth in the session in the all-around with a score of 39.400, ending a season that saw her claim MPSF Gymnast of the Year for the second straight time.
First rotation – uneven bars
The Flippin’ Birds began the afternoon on bars, tallying a 49.075 score. Niya Randolph started with a 9.800, and Bella Neff followed with a 9.825. Mia Hampton was next, notching a 9.850 before Maria Ferguson added a 9.800. Brinlee Christensen and Alex Routsis rounded out the rotation with identical scores of 9.800, sending SUU to rotation number two.
Second rotation – balance beam
SUU moved to beam for the second rotation, recording a 49.100 score. Randolph began with a 9.875, and Christensen followed with a 9.675. Up next was Elliot Bringhurst, who scored a 9.825. Rylee Miller then answered with a 9.875, before Ferguson (9.450) and Ellie Cacciola (9.850) rounded out the rotation.
Third rotation – floor exercise
The third rotation saw the Flippin’ Birds move to the floor, where they shined like they have all season, totaling a 49.200. Hampton and Alyssa Fernandez began with 9.800 scores, before Christensen totaled a 9.825. Randolph followed with a 9.850, and Cacciola answered with a team-high score in the overall meet of 9.900. Senior Taylor Gull rounded things out for Southern Utah with a 9.825.
Final rotation – vault
SUU finished the meet on vault, recording a score of 49.100. Cacciola began with a 9.775, which Mackenzie Kelly followed with a 9.800. Hampton and Randolph would then each notch 9.875s, before Christensen (9.775) and Ellie Thomson (9.750) finished the afternoon for the T-birds.
Once the final scores were tallied, the Flippin’ Birds had secured a third-place finish with a 196.475 to conclude a historic campaign.
“They were amazing,” SUU head coach Scotty Bauman said.
“I thought our floor team was brutally underscored; they looked great. I think that’s the low score we’ve had on the floor in the last two months, and I think it’s one of our best performances on the floor.
I’ll be honest with you, I couldn’t be more proud of this team. They put it all out there, they gave themselves a chance, they kept putting pressure on other teams, and even with everything going on down on the floor, they kept their composure the entire meet. We only had really one big error, but just so proud of the team, they couldn’t have done better,” he added.
SUU gymnastics flying high
Although Thursday marked the end of the 2025 Southern Utah gymnastics season, it was one that supporters and program members alike won’t soon forget.
Led by multiple standout gymnasts, the Flippin’ Birds claimed a third straight conference championship title while making their 20th overall NCAA Regional appearance, further cementing their status as one of the top programs in the nation.
“It has been just an amazing season. This is still really a very young team, you know, and when we lost our juniors, Kayla (Pardue) does floor and vault for us, and she’s our vault record holder, and Trista (Goodman) was the number one bar worker in the conference. So, when those two went down, the way other people stepped up was pretty phenomenal. I loved watching them,” SUU head coach Scotty Bauman said.
“This team went through a lot of adversity this year with injuries, and just with all of the little things they’ve had to battle through, it’s been pretty amazing. And they do it with such strength and confidence, and they know, they don’t even worry about the next person coming into the slot. They’re like, ‘we’ve got this, we’re good,’ and this has been one of the easiest, most enjoyable teams to coach in my entire career. And I can say that with all honesty,” he added.
A record-setting senior class
None of the success would have been possible without the senior class of Ellie Cacciola, Taylor Gull, Bella Neff, and Kennedi McClain.
All four of them were part of some of the greatest seasons in SUU gymnastics history, and their names can be found all over the program record book.
“Kennedi (McClain), Ellie (Cacciola), Bella (Neff), and Taylor (Gull), you know, they’ve changed the trajectory of our program and what we expect out of our athletes. All four of those girls have gone 9.900 or better on just about every event they do. That’s kind of what their standard is and their level,” Bauman said of his senior class.
“I’m so proud of them. They’re just amazing,” he added emotionally.
And perhaps the highlight of the evening was senior Ellie Cacciola recording a team-high score of 9.900 on the floor, cementing her status as one of the greatest gymnasts in Flippin’ Birds history.
“I’m just really happy. This was my last meet, so I’m just so glad I went out there and did my best gymnastics,” Cacciola said post-meet.
And what about being forever part of the SUU gymnastics family?
“It means so much. Coming out of high school and club gymnastics, I never expected myself to get to where I am today, so I’m just making little Ellie proud,” she added.
Cacciola – and the entire SUU gymnastics team – certainly made Cedar City and Flippin’ Birds supporters proud in 2025.
Photo courtesy of SUU Athletics.
