FORT WORTH, Texas – LSU gymnasts Haleigh Bryant and Aleah Finnegan combined for a total of eight All-American honors following their performances at the NCAA Semifinals in Dickies Arena on Thursday.
Both Bryant and Finnegan finished as two of the top performers after the semifinal competitions to earn All-America honors in the all-around. Bryant scored a 39.6875 in the all-around while Finnegan scored a 39.650.
A native of Cornelius, North Carolina, Bryant finished as the top all-arounder in the first session with her score of 39.6875, which marked the second-highest score at NCAA Championships and the best in a semifinal in school history. Her score placed her third nationally between both sessions.
The junior also racked up All-America honors on vault, vars, beam and floor to earn five honors on the day and became only the second gymnast to earn All-American honors in all four events and the all-around. The only other LSU gymnast to reach that accomplishment was April Burkholder in 2005 and 2006.
Bryant now owns 17 honors in her career, which ties her at fifth in program history for most career All-America honors (2 BB, 3 UB, 3 FX, 4 AA, 5 VT). Her nine honors in 2023 marks the most in a single season by any LSU gymnast.
Finnegan also earned All-America honors on bars and floor to move her career total to six (1 BB, 1 UB, 2 FX, 2 AA).
The two led the Tigers to victory as the squad topped the first semifinal session with their score of 197.475 to advance to the NCAA Championship Final.
LSU began the meet on beam, where Bryant scored a 9.9375 to finish second in her session and fourth nationally. The score tied for the sixth highest score on the event at nationals recorded by a Tiger.In the next rotation, Bryant and Finnegan posted strong routines to elevate the squad on floor.
In her NCAA Championships debut, Finnegan posted a score of 9.9625 to tie for the highest score on the event recorded by an LSU gymnast at the NCAA Championships. Her performance placed her as the top floor performer of her session and second overall between all eight teams.
Bryant anchored the floor squad with a 9.950 to earn her third All-America honors on the event and finish second in her session. The junior also posted a 9.8625 routine on vault with her front handspring-front pike half, finishing fifth in the first session.
In the last rotation in Dickies Arena, Finnegan scored a 9.925 on bars while Bryant earned a 9.9375 to push the squad to a first place finish in the first session. The scores earned both gymnasts All-America honors on the event, as Bryant finished second in the session and Finnegan in third.
Bryant, Finnegan and the LSU squad will compete against Florida, Oklahoma and Utah in the NCAA Championship Final on Saturday at 3 p.m. CT on ABC.