Beam Queens: Alabama Rising Toward Top of Beam Rankings

The Crimson Tide has one of the deepest beam lineups in the country highlighted by NCAA champion Luisa Blanco.

Four inches.

That's the width of a balance beam in NCAA gymnastics. Every event in gymnastics is challenging and awe-inspiring, but the ability to perform those type of skills on that tiny of a space perhaps might be the most impressive. The average person would have trouble balancing on anything four inches wide for any period of time, much less twisting, turning, leaping and flipping on that four-inch apparatus. 

Yet this is nothing new for the Alabama gymnasts who have been training that event most of their lives, and the balance beam is a challenge that this year's team has fully embraced and is slowly mastering week after week. 

"I love to compete, but I would say beam is definitely my favorite event to compete," junior all-arounder Mati Waligora said. "I think it’s just the thrill of a being on a four-inch piece of wood, and just knowing that you have prepared and done all the training and just being confident up there. It’s definitely a thrill. It’s just so much fun."

The Crimson Tide is ranked No. 7 in the country overall but No. 3 on the balance beam. Junior Luisa Blanco has anchored the beam rotation every meet this season and ranks second in the country on the apparatus. 

Twice this season, both times on the road in rowdy environments, Alabama has posted scores of 49.625 or better on the beam with at least five gymnasts scoring a 9.9 or better. The first came at Auburn on Jan. 28 when the team closed out the meet with a 49.650, the second highest beam score in program history. Most recently, Alabama scored a 49.625 at LSU with all six gymnasts going 9.9 or better. 

Alabama head coach Dana Duckworth is the event coach for beam and was a beam specialist herself as a gymnast at Alabama. She said the consistency in practice is what has led to the big performances to close out meets on the road.

"How they’ve handled themselves from the second preseason started to all the pressure sets and the environments we try to create in the gym, and then each meet has presented an opportunity, and they’ve capitalized on that," Duckworth said. "Hasn’t been perfect, but they have a lot of faith and confidence in themselves, and that’s what we want on all four events. And that’s where it stems from. We have some great beam workers, and it’s fun to coach."

Duckworth truly feels like she has eight or nine gymnasts that are capable of posting consistent scores of 9.9 or better, but the lineup that has started to settle in is junior Ella Burgess leading off, Olympian Shallon Olsen in the second slot, senior Lexi Graber going third, Waligora fourth, freshman Lilly Hudson in the five spot and the individual NCAA beam champion Blanco anchoring the rotation. 

Alabama Athletics

With Graber returning for her fifth year, Alabama didn't lose a ton from last year's team. However, one of the biggest holes that would need to be replaced was Alonza Klopfer in the leadoff spot on beam, who was always a steady, consistent presence in that pressure-filled role. Coming off an Achilles injury in 2021, Burgess has seamlessly slipped into that leadoff position. She said her teammates have full trust in her in that spot which makes it an honor to fulfill that role.

"Our beam team is very strong," Burgess said. "Every day is like a competition in practice. So I think just doing that every single day and putting ourselves as if we're competing at the meet each and every routine that we do, kind of set us up for showing off with great performance."

Alabama Athletics

Olsen has been in and out of the beam rotation throughout her four years at Alabama, but the second spot in the lineup has been a good home for her the last two meets, scoring a 9.9 both times. She was a last-minute lineup addition in the home meet against Georgia, but Duckworth said she has earned that spot.

"I was ready to be put in that position," Olsen said. "I'm just really happy that she did because I've been working really hard in the gym, and I'm just really excited that I was able to show that.”

The Canadian Olympian has some of the highest level of difficulty skills in college gymnastics, including her pike double back dismount on beam. She has stuck the landing two weeks in a row which has helped lead to the high scores. 

Alabama Athletics

Even though she's in the middle of the order, the fifth year Graber is no stranger to the beam. She is the 2019 and 2021 individual SEC champion on the event, and Duckworth said on Hey Coach! that she asked Graber if she wanted to move down in the lineup, but she feels comfortable in the three spot. 

Alabama Athletics

Waligora was unavailable for one meet, but she has gone on beam in all six meets in which she's competed, scoring a 9.925 three different times. After the team-high total at Auburn, Waligora said that team was focused on being aggressive on the beam.

Alabama Athletics

While Alabama has eight or nine gymnasts who can give strong performances on beam, the back end of the rotation is where the star power really shines with Hudson and Blanco.

Hudson, the three-time SEC Freshman of the Week this season, has been absolute nails on beam this season. Whether it's coming up after a fall, or just trying to close out a strong rotation, Hudson has not looked like a freshman with her calm demeanor and solid routines week after week. During Hey Coach!, Duckworth joked that Hudson was one of the veterans on beam because of the way she's performed.

In seven meets, Hudson has not scored below a 9.875 on beam and is currently ranked No. 8 in the country on the event. 

Alabama Athletics

The Crimson Tide gets to close out the rotation with one of the most beautiful beam workers in the country. Blanco won the individual championship on beam at SECs and NCAAs last season, joining her head coach as the only gymnasts in program history to accomplish that feat.

"We both love the balance beam, and when you love what you do and do what you love, amazing things happen," Duckworth said about Blanco.

Last season, Blanco scored a perfect 10 on beam at NCAA regionals and came close last meet against LSU with a 9.975. She has the talent and consistency to likely hit a perfect 10 again at some point this season. Blanco has scored a 9.9 or better on beam 17 times in her career with zero falls. She is a coach's dream beamer to be able to put in the final spot of a rotation. 

Alabama has shown its capabilities on the beam and the three other events this season, but Duckworth wants to see a meet where the Crimson Tide puts together all four events on the same night. (Alabama is ranked third on beam, fourth on bars and eighth on floor and vault.) Her team essentially did that in the tri-meet against North Carolina and Western Michigan on Feb. 4, but the next opportunity comes this Friday night at 5 against Missouri at home inside Coleman Coliseum. 

With it being a home meet, Alabama will begin on vault before moving to the uneven bars then the beam before closing things out on floor. The last event performed by the Crimson Tide was the 49.625 on beam against LSU, and Graber wants to carry that momentum into the meet against Missouri. 

"I think we just need to carry that into each event that we do, because I think we're capable of going 49.500+ on all four events," Graber said. "And so I think carrying that confidence into the first event, vault this week, and knowing that we're capable of doing that on every event is important.”