Lopez Ties For Bars Title at NCAA Regional Semifinal Session

Courtesy of Boise State

SALT LAKE CITY – Boise State concluded its 2025 team competition with a fourth-place finish at the first session of the NCAA Regional Championships Second Round, scoring 195.175. The No. 30 Broncos finished behind regional finalists No. 5 UCLA (197.750) and No. 10 Minnesota (197.200), as well as No. 24 Southern Utah (196.475). Emily Lopez tied for first on bars with a 9.900, her 21st-career win on the apparatus.

The Broncos opened the meet on beam, posting a 48.700 team score. Freshman Kristina Shchennikova led the Blue and Orange with a 9.800. Senior Alyssa Vulaj backed her with a 9.775.

Boise State posted a team score of 48.775 on floor in the second rotation. Junior Sydney Leitch and senior Elaina McGovern both tallied a 9.775 to pace the Broncos. 

In the next rotation, the Broncos recorded a 49.075 on vault, the team’s second-highest score of the season. Fifth year Emily Lopez and Vulaj tied for the team’s top mark, each earning a 9.875 to tie for third.

The Blue and Orange closed the meet with a bars score of 48.625. Lopez tied for first in the session with a 9.900, while Leitch matched her career-high on the apparatus with a 9.875.

Top Broncos

• Emily Lopez tied for first on bars, posting a 9.900. She added a 9.875 on vault, tying for third.
• Alyssa Vulaj also notched a 9.875 on vault to tie for third.
• Sydney Leitch scored 9.875 on bars, tying for seventh.

Notables

• Emily Lopez scored at least 9.900 on bars at regionals for the fourth time in five seasons. Her 2025 mark of 9.900 is tied for third in program regionals history.
• Lopez tied for first on bars, her 21st-career victory, one shy of the school record held by Emily Muhlenhaupt (2018-22). The fifth year has eight bars wins this season, tying Lindsay Ward (2008) for second in program single-season history. The record of nine is held by Krystine Jacobsen (2016).
• Sydney Leitch matched her career-high on bars with a 9.875.
• Lopez and Alyssa Vulaj each notched a 9.875 on vault, tying the 10th-highest vault score at regionals in program history.
• Kristina Shchennikova notched a 9.825 on bars, the highest bars score at regionals by a Bronco freshman since Lopez logged a 9.900 in 2021.
• Shchennikova’s 9.800 is the highest beam score by a Boise State freshman at regionals since Emma Loyim also notched a 9.800 in the second round in 2022. In 2021, Lopez tallied a 9.850 in the second round to cap her freshman campaign.
• Noelle Ball’s 9.800 is the highest vault score by a Bronco freshman at regionals since Vulaj posted a 9.800 in the second round in 2022. In 2021, freshman Courtney Blackson registered a 9.875 and Lopez notched a 9.800.
• The Broncos’ team vault score of 49.075 marked the second-highest of the season and seventh-best at regionals in school history.
• This was Boise State’s 17th-consecutive appearance at an NCAA Regionals meet.
• Boise State concludes the year with a 15-9-1 record. The Broncos have at least 15 wins in 13 of the last 20 seasons.

Quotables

• “This is a bittersweet ending to our season. There were so many highlights and precious moments with our seniors,” said head coach Tina Bird. “They have been the heartbeat of this team since they stepped foot on campus and they are irreplaceable. I’m so proud of each one of them.”

What’s Next

• The Broncos await the results of the April 3 evening session and the April 5 regional final to see if any individuals qualify for the NCAA Gymnastics Championships, held April 17 and 19 in Fort Worth, Texas.