Another year of NCAA women's gymnastics has nearly arrived for the University of Utah, as the annual Red Rocks Preview was held Friday night at the Huntsman Center.
It wasn't a sellout, scores weren't kept and 14 of Utah's 16 gymnasts competed at least once -- sixth-year senior Jaedyn Rucker is out for the year with a torn Achilles, while freshman Zoe Johnson did not compete with a sore back -- but it was college gymnastics returned to center stage in a way at least, before the season kicks off in earnest in early January.
Here are some quick impressions from the night, a unique one as far as Red Rocks Previews are concerned.
Arguably no gymnast was more impressive Friday night than Avery Neff. The Utah native is the highest rated gymnastics recruit ever -- since College Gym News started rating gymnastics prospects in 2021 at least -- and she showed why.
Her first routine was a stuck 10.0-valued Yurchenko 1.5 on vault. Competing inside the Huntsman Center has been a lifelong goal for Neff and her first opportunity was nearly flawless.
She didn't exactly disappoint after that, though, showcasing on each event why she was so highly rated. Based on the routines competed Friday, it would not be a surprise to see Neff compete in the all-around from the get-go for Utah as her floor and vault routines were arguably the best performed by anyone on the team.
"What an entrance into the Huntsman," Utah head coach Carly Dockendorf said. "But then again, I was thinking, 'Would she have done it any other way?' No. She would not have."
Dockendorf praised Neff's work ethic, noting that yes, the freshman has talent, but it is her drive and effort that really sets her apart.
"She comes in every single day and competes every day," Dockendorf said. ".... Between her character and her quality of gymnastics, she is going to be a huge star."
Neff was all smiles afterward, and understandably so
"It was a dream come true," she said "I dreamed about this a couple of weeks ago. I feel like I was on cloud nine the whole night. I could't get the smile off my face. Every event I went to I thought, 'I just dreamed about this.' It was so cool that I finally got to have my dream come true."
If Neff competes every week during the season at the level she did Friday, Utah has a star on its hands.
Raposo is part of the much ballyhooed freshman class for Utah, which includes Neff, Johnson and Poppy-Grace Stickler.
Neff was great, Johnson didn't compete and Stickler is still making her way back from injury -- she performed well considering she arrived at Utah unable to walk.
Raposo, though, was one of the more impressive gymnasts of the night -- freshman or otherwise -- and the Canadian looked capable of holding down multiple spots in lineups, specifically on vault and floor. Maybe even beam.
Dockendorf has praised Raposo's artistry on floor plenty already, and Raposo showed why with a captivating routine. He dance elements may be the best of any Utah gymnast.
On vault, Raposo showed some of the most power of any Red Rock. She was a little out of control on her landing, taking a big step, but on the whole she blocked well and had the kind of effort that Utah can do something with.
Dockendorf didn't single out Raposo afterward, but did praise the overall performance of the freshmen, Raposo included.
"I was so proud of our freshmen tonight," Dockendorf said. "It is intimidating. You can compete in all your club meets your whole life, but to step in this arena and know that everyone cares about you so much and this program is definitely a different kind of pressure. I feel like they handled it so well."
Padurariu transferred to Utah from UCLA in the fall as a late addition to the Red Rocks.
She competed both bars and beam at the Red Rocks Preview, and both routines looked generally competition worthy. Her beam routine especially will be in contention for a lineup spot.
That alone is of real value to Utah, which has to replace the beam routines of Maile O'Keefe and Abby Paulson.
"I don't know if we will ever replace Abby and Maile on beam," Dockendorf said, "and so we have to keep finding people who can keep hitting under pressure.
"We have a lot of beautiful beam workers who hit in their comfort zone, and so I am going to keep testing them to see who can handle it when it counts the most."
Padurariu is one of those gymnasts whose beam routine could, maybe even should, become a regular thing in Utah's lineup this season, but both Dockendorf and multiple Red Rocks noted that more important than her skills, Padurariu has been a boon to the overall spirits of the team.
"Ana is such a positive person. She lights up the room," senior Jaylene Gilstrap said. "She talks to you with so much love in her heart and you can really feel that.
"She is just a pure person. You saw her bars and beam. Absolutely beautiful. Her technique, her toe-point and her lines, but she can bring so much to this team as a person. I love her to death already."
Newcomers often get the majority of the attention, which Glynn was a year ago after transferring to Utah from Temple.
Now she is one of the regulars though.
With the injury to Rucker, Utah needs a few standout vaulters, and Glynn is poised to be maybe the most impressive of them.
She has already proven capable of competing well on vault on the biggest stage -- she scored a team-high 9.9125 on vault at the national championship last season -- and Friday she showed that she is maybe even a little bit better.
Her vault was the most explosive of those competed by the Red Rocks, and she nearly stuck the landing, stepping back slightly due to an under-rotation.
If Utah is going to turn things around on vault -- a necessity if the Red Rocks are going to compete for a national title -- Glynn will have a major hand in it.
Not to be overshadowed by anything else Friday was McCallum.
A senior this season, McCallum has -- somehow -- kind of flown under the radar for a large portion of her Utah career, a crazy thought given she is an Olympic silver medalist.
On Friday, though, she was clearly in her element. She took things easy on vault -- competing a 9.95-valued routine -- and her tumbling on floor wasn't exact, but on the whole McCallum looked poised and confident, maybe the most she has in her time at Utah.
And one thing she has proven in her career is that a confident McCallum is one of the better gymnasts in the country. It was only the Red Rocks Preview, but it really looks like McCallum may be in line for that kind of senior season, a special one that befits her talent level.
"She looked much more confident (tonight)," Dockendorf said. "One thing we've talked about is enjoying being out there. She is a perfectionist. She wants to be perfect every routine and on every skill and the reality is nobody is, and she cares so much.
"With this being her last year, I think she wants to enjoy it and be the best she can be for herself and maybe accomplish some big goals she hasn't met yet in college. I think she has matured a lot, is an exceptional leader on our team and is trying to enjoy this last chapter of her gymnastics career."
Every year, the Red Rocks come into the their annual showcase hoping to entertain, showcase their skills and get a quasi-competition under their proverbial belts before the season starts, and occasionally, a gymnast or two will compete their routines at the level that should be expected during the season.
Last year, it was O'Keefe, performing like it was midseason. On Friday, more than one or two gymnasts competed at that level.
On every event, multiple Red Rocks competed their routines at a competition-ready level. There wasn't nearly as much easing into things as there has been in the past (there still was some).
Be it McCallum on uneven bars and balance beam, Neff on floor exercise and vault, Glynn on vault, Ella Zirbes on bars and floor, Makenna Smith on bars and floor or Amelie Morgan on bars, many were in regular season form.
There is a reason for that.
Dockendorf said that the team hopes to get off to a much quicker start to the season this year. Utah wants to establish itself early as one of the national title contenders, rather than slowly build and have to pull of upsets on its way to the national championship.
Dockendorf believes it will happen because there is a drive present with this team that maybe hasn't been there before. After four consecutive third-place finishes at the national championships, the Red Rocks want more.
"Four years in a row with a third-place banner didn't really sit right with our team," Dockendorf said. "There is a lot of motivation and determination to do something different this year. I think that that is felt collectively, throughout the entire team, but also the whole staff.
"We want to do something really special for (the program's 50-year anniversary), for ourselves, but also for the whole community of Utah gymnastics, for everybody that came before us and everybody who is coming next. That is a really big driving force."
Dockendorf noted that the team has been as consistent as any she's seen. The ebbs and flows of motivation that often come with training gymnastics haven't been there. Instead, Utah has been steady all offseason, steadily improving.
"They do the best that they can do every day. They give 100%," she said. "The collective work that has been happening in our program since we arrived on campus, I don't know that I've seen that consistency. ... Just building and building."