Provo • Utah gymnastics co-coach Megan Marsden sounded reasonable earlier in the week, when she explained that it would be unfair to expect freshman MyKayla Skinner to win every time she stepped out on the floor for the Red Rocks.
But Skinner dominated BYU on Friday. She won every event and led the Red Rocks to a 196.9-194.175 victory in front of 3,864 fans at the Marriott Center.
Skinner won the all-around with a 39.6, the floor with a 9.95, the vault with a 9.9 and scored 9.87 in both the uneven bars and balance beam.
Apparently the Utes can expect more ground-breaking efforts from Skinner, who looked more like a seasoned veteran than a rookie on the floor. Not only did she seemed confident and comfortable in her first road collegiate meet, Skinner took a victory lap after her floor routine.
"It felt good after the first pass," Skinner said of the routine. "It was strong. I had a little extra hop on the landing but I hit the other two and finished strong so I thought it was a good routine."
The Utes were expecting big things from Skinner, who was an alternate for the 2016 Olympic team. But elite gymnasts often have a hard time competing consistently on a weekly basis because they are accustomed to training for big meets held every few months or so.
Skinner, though, seems unflappable.
She now has nine out of a possible 10 victories. Last week Utah senior Baely Rowe won the beam with a 9.925, and Skinner was second with a 9.85.
"She improved her all-around in her first away meet," Utah co-coach Tim Farden said. "It was tremendous, but she also has a good supporting cast around her too."
Skinner's efforts helped the Utes draw away from the Cougars, who are improving under second-year coach Guard Young, but don't yet have the talent to threaten the Utes.
Utah led 98.425-97.575 at the halfway mark, then pulled away in the third rotation when the Utes scored 49.275 on the floor while the Cougars struggled some on the beam, earning 47.875.
Young sees improvement in his team this season, but acknowledges the Cougars still have a ways ago to be competitive with a team like the Utes.
"I'm not following the scores as much as looking for hits and sticks," Young said. "We hit about 77 percent of our routines and that is a C. To beat teams like Utah, you have to be As. I think we stuck six dismounts the entire night."
Farden noted a slow start on the uneven bars, but said the team got stronger as the meet evolved.
"That wasn't indicative of our bar sets," he said. "We had some missed handstands and we were swinging tight, not like we normally do."
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Kari Lee competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Kari Lee competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Baely Rowe on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the vault during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the vault during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Sabrina Schwab competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner celebrates with her teammates after competing on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner celebrates with her teammates after competing on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Mykayla Skinner competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Sabrina Schwab competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Makenna Merrell competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Makenna Merrell competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Macey Roberts competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Macey Roberts competes on the floor during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Sabrina Schwab competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Utah's Sabrina Schwab competes on the beam during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Tiffani Lewis celebrates with her teammates after competing on the vault during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune Kim Tessen competes on the vault during the gymnastics meet against Brigham Young University at the Marriott Center Friday January 13, 2017.
