| 2021 ALABAMA ROSTER |
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| Seniors | ||
| Lexi Graber |
VT UB BB FX |
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| Alonza Klopfer |
BB FX |
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| Juniors | ||
| Emily Gaskins |
VT UB BB FX |
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| Jensie Givens |
UB |
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| Griffin James |
FX |
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| Sania Mitchell |
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| Shallon Olsen |
VT BB FX |
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| Kaylee Quinn |
VT |
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| Sophomores | ||
| Luisa Blanco |
VT UB BB FX |
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| Ella Burgess |
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| Makarri Doggette | VT UB BB FX |
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| Mati Waligora |
UB BB FX |
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| Freshmen | ||
| Shania Adams |
VT UB BB FX |
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| Sarah Duhe |
VT |
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| Cameron Machado |
UB BB |
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| Isabella Martin |
VT BB FX |
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RANKING HISTORY
2020 – 8th
2019 – 12th
2018 – 8th
2017 – 6th
2016 – 3rd
2015 – 4th
2014 – 4th
2013 – 3rd
2012 – 1st
2011 – 1st
THE 2020 STORY
Alabama’s 2020 season wasn’t…as bad as 2019? It didn’t take nearly as long to get into 197 gear, and the team was probably on track for a surprisingly good ranking and a pretty cushy postseason draw following those last couple road meets that never happened.
To some extent, the artificial end of the season scuttled Alabama’s chance to change that DECLINE narrative, but still, 2020 did not represent a recovery to the Alabama of old, and this team wouldn’t have challenged for a title or (probably) made the team final.
DEPARTED ROUTINES
Shea Mahoney – VT, UB, FX
Maddie Desch – VT, BB, FX
Wynter Childers – UB
Kylie Dickson – VT, UB
INCOMING ROUTINES
Shania Adams – VT, UB, BB, FX
Isabella Martin – VT, BB, FX
Cameron Machado – UB, BB
Kaylee Quinn (JR) – VT
Sarah Duhe – VT
2021 PROJECTION
Steady.
Alabama has lost some important routines here and there but not an excessive amount. It shouldn’t crumble to bits as a result. Likewise, there are some critical new routines coming in but not enough to represent a drastic roster reinvention or massive talent influx. Signs point to a pretty similar team overall to the one we saw last year.
VAULT
2020 Event Ranking: 12
| Lineup locks: Lexi Graber, Shallon Olsen |
| Lineup options: Makarri Doggette, Shania Adams, Luisa Blanco, Kaylee Quinn, Isabella Martin, Emily Gaskins, Sarah Duhe |
Alabama did not have enough 10.0 starts to rank exceedingly well on vault in 2020, though things did start to pick up after a shaky first month. There is a chance for improvement in 2021, and foremost in that quest will be getting sophomore Makarri Doggette into the lineup regularly. As a JO athlete, Doggette profiled as a lineup anchor with a gorgeous 1.5, but she was able to compete vault just once last season. If she can vault this year, that more than makes up for a lost Yfull. Alabama will also hope to get something difficult out of Shania Adams, who is currently training a 1.5 that may or may not materialize, to provide a core of four high scores that could be quite competitive within the conference.
Luisa Blanco’s Yfull was pretty last season, so I’d expect that to make it back, joined by any number of viable full options on a roster that shouldn’t have a problem coming up with a lineup of six. Though that’s not the big concern. Mahoney and Desch were comfortably getting mid-9.8s last season, so upgrading from a team that ranked 12th on vault last season will hinge on having more than 9.8s and solid Yfulls.
BARS
2020 Event Ranking: 6
| Lineup locks: Makarri Doggette, Shania Adams, Lexi Graber, Jensie Givens |
| Lineup options: Cameron Machado, Emily Gaskins, Mati Waligora, Luisa Blanco |
Overall on bars, Alabama should feel pretty good about a “last season’s team plus Shania Adams” approach. This is my favorite event for Adams, and she should become a late-lineup contributor who can make up for not having Mahoney. Doggette and Givens turned into two of Alabama’s best bars scores last season, and Graber has been a stalwart in the lineup for years. That’s a comfortable four, but Alabama will feel the last-minute departure of Kylie Dickson here, as it lessens the options on an already slightly sparse event.
Cameron Machado has the difficulty on bars, so if we see her, this seems the most likely event. Meanwhile, Emily Gaskins has been a 9.9er in the past on bars, and Alabama is trying to get Mati Waligora and her DLO 1/1 dismount back to compete this event. Luisa Blanco could be lovely on bars, but last season’s one showing for 8.975 meant we had to content ourselves with the other three events and not get greedy.
Alabama doesn’t have a billion bars routines but should six 9.850+ gymnasts to choose from. Should.
BEAM
2020 Event Ranking: 13
| Lineup locks: Luisa Blanco, Lexi Graber, Makarri Doggette, Shania Adams, Alonza Klopfer |
| Lineup options: Shallon Olsen, Emily Gaskins, Cameron Machado, Mati Waligora, Isabella Martin |
Alabama’s entire beam lineup from the final meet of 2020 returns, but Shania Adams should also make an appearance here, which bodes well because it means it will be harder to make this lineup in 2021 than it was in 2020. But who gets bumped?
Obviously not Luisa Blanco, whose beam is perfect, and Lexi Graber is a lock (she has a weaker NQS but that’s because of counting a fall—she’ll be there). Alonza Klopfer has carved out a lineup-steadying early role for herself that I see the team valuing, and Makarri Doggette has started to show some reliable 9.850+ potential. So I’m down to edging out either Shallon Olsen or Emily Gaskins to make room for Adams. Olsen has improved tremendously as a beamer, but it’s still not a natural event for her, while with Gaskins…I never feel confident knowing what we’re going to get out of Emily Gaskins. The all-around? A redshirt season? Who can say. The Mary Lee Tracy Magic 8 Ball might be defective.
Beam ranked as Alabama’s weakest event in 2020, which was weird because it definitely wasn’t the team’s weakest event, but rough road performances held the NQS down. So, just sort of naturally we can expect the beam ranking to move up in 2021 even without a ton of changes.
FLOOR
2020 Event Ranking: 6
| Lineup locks: Makarri Doggette, Lexi Graber, Shallon Olsen, Luisa Blanco |
| Lineup options: Shania Adams, Alonza Klopfer, Mati Waligora, Emily Gaskins, Isabella Martin, Griffin James |
Alabama loses two important floor scores from 2020 (just like on vault and bars), but floor is where I see the most uncertainty because there aren’t natural replacements for those scores from Mahoney and Desch, which were two of the top three floor routines for Alabama last year.
Doggette, Graber, and Olsen will look to lead the way in the tumbling department. It will be interesting to see how things progress with Olsen because she’s prepping for the Olympics, so I imagine they’ll want to retain her difficulty readiness. Yet, we’re also getting to an “is this difficulty helping or hurting?” point in her college gymnastics. Olsen has never consistently received HUGE floor scores in college because it’s almost like landing a Silivas is harder than landing a rudi. Go figure.
Luisa Blanco can also just point a toe and get a 9.9 (as she should), and the path to success for Alabama on floor will be 9.9+ routines from the aforementioned quartet. While I can pick out more than enough possible and competitive routines on floor—it was an excellent event for Waligora in JO, Klopfer went a few times successfully last season, Adams has plenty of comfortable skill options—Alabama most of all needs 9.950 leaders to emerge. The best teams have multiple people who are consistently getting 9.950s on floor, and that’s what’s required avoid the possibility that Alabama gets a bunch of solid, clap-worthy 9.850s for 49.250 and then is like, “Wait Florida got 49.7 and we lost by a lot.”
It’s too bad about Burgess. She’s lovely on beam when she hits. If Doggette is at full strength, and Adams lives up to expectations, I think they can challenge for a top 5 spot this year. I’d love to see Blanco get the scores she deserves. She’s gorgeous.
Waligora has looked fantastic in insta-stories and training this preseason. A full, 9.9y bars routine with that DLO 1/1, training a Y1.5, a great full out on floor, and a full beam routine. To me, she’s the game changer for them (besides Adams/Doggette/Blanco) and a real dark horse.
Forgot to mention her! She had great success in JO.
I’d like to see them utilize Shallon in better ways, I feel like she has more potential then they’ve been able to get out of her. Even her bars at last years Canadian nationals were really well executed and I think if they coached her to be a cleaner all-around she could be a better asset than just “look we have someone with big tricks and its high ceiling low floor”
Isn’t Kylie Dickson graduating early? She lists Alabama ’20 in her social media profile.
Maybe she is doing a masters degree? She is still on the roster.
Bama also seems to have a lot of programs where you can get a combined bachelors/masters in four years. She could be in one of those.
Most likely an error on Dickson’s part. She is listed as a senior on the Alabama roster. If she had graduated and was competing in graduate school she would be listed as “5th year senior”. https://rolltide.com/sports/womens-gymnastics/roster/kylie-dickson/6878
She wouldn’t be listed as a 5th year senior if she is only in her fourth year, which she is. I’ve seen plenty of cases where the gymnast has graduated from their undergrad and is still listed as their “gymnastics year.” To give an example off the top of my head, Ivy Lu finished her undergrad in three years and competed last year while doing her master’s but was just listed as a senior on the roster. Sticking with Minnesota, Abbie Nylin is listed as a junior on the roster now, but she actually graduated from undergrad last year after only two years. Presumably she is doing a master’s now to stay on the roster.
Back to Dickson, I don’t think it really matters for us. She is on the roster, so she must be in school in some capacity.
Cool good to know about those.
Alabama previously listed a graduate student as “5th year senior”. Since grad school is technically your “5th year”. Even though it took me 3.5 years to get my graduate degree HAHA.
Well, it appears Dickson has in fact graduated from undergrad, but it’s nice of you to assume she made an error on her own graduatuon date:
https://www.facebook.com/127589541026/posts/10157686590081027/
Is the vaulting issue at Alabama a coaching issue or a recruiting issue or both? It doesn’t feel like the team has been in a top vaulting team in a while, and every year, it feels like gymnasts are working on Y1.5s that never materialize in competition or they came in with a 10SV vault and don’t compete it (Doggette).
Doggette came in with an injured knee. It has nothing to do with coaching, and they were trying to be careful with her knee. Waligora injured her ankle at the beginning of the season. Desch had one but stopped competing it. By no means am I defending Dana, because she is not my cup of tea. Is it that they aren’t recruiting as many 10.0 vaulters?
I think last season’s vaulting team was good. They didn’t have the big vaults (except for Graber, Olsen, and Doggette that one time), but their fulls were actually great (Burgess, Blanco, Mahoney). I’ve seen them in person many times and technically they were very well executed. I think the problem is twofold: they seem to not want to push too hard when they have good fulls (poor strategy? maybe), but also the home scoring was not on par with the rest of the SEC for how “strict” it was. Burgess’s leadoff full would have consistently gotten 9.9s at Georgia, Florida or LSU. Same with Olsen, who is always scored accurately in a vacuum but strictly for SEC/NCAA double fulls.
Yes. Olsen would routinely score higher on her DTY on other teams. Still, having 3-4 Yfulls just isn’t going to keep pace with some other teams, especially when the fulls may be good, but they’re not Sarah Finnegan or Kayla Hoffman-level fulls.
It was so disappointing not to see Luisa Blanco in the lineup on Jan 8. She did vault, but that’s it. No beam – are you kidding me? I keep looking to see if she’s injured, which I hope not. Why wouldn’t she be in that lineup?