How to Watch and Start Time: LSU Gymnastics in Elite Eight of NCAA Championships

Jay Clark and Co. will take center stage on Thursday, set to compete in the Elite Eight.

Courtesy of LSU Gymnastics.

FORT WORTH, Texas – The LSU Gymnastics team is set to compete on the sport’s biggest stage this week, advancing to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Championship. The Tigers will take the floor in Semifinal Session I on Thursday, April 16, as they continue their pursuit of their second national title.

Competition in Fort Worth is set to begin Thursday inside Dickies Arena, where eight of the nation’s top teams will vie for a spot in the finals for the national title. No. 2 LSU will face off against No. 3 Florida, No. 6 Georgia and No. 7 Stanford in the afternoon session to kick off the action in Fort Worth. The evening semifinal will include No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 8 UCLA and No. 14 Minnesota. 

Session I is slated for 3:30 p.m. CT while session II will follow at 8 p.m. CT. Both competitions will air live on ESPN2 with John Roethlisberger, Aly Raisman, Sam Peszek and Taylor Davis covering the meets on ESPN2. 

The top two teams from each session will advance to the NCAA National Championship meet on Saturday, April 18, at 3 p.m. CT on ABC. There will also be a championship pre-show airing at 2:30 p.m. CT on Saturday prior to the championship.

ESPN+ will once again feature “Stream Team” commentary for a unique complementary offering surrounding the championship. Returning to this year’s coverage are team streams where fans can follow their specific squad in action throughout the arena with a dedicated stream and commentators. Streams will be split up with two teams and commentators per feed. Bridget Sloan, Trinity Thomas, Anastasia Webb and Kennedy Baker make up this year’s stream team.

Courtesy of LSU Gymnastics.

NCAA Postseason History

Thursday’s meet marks the program’s 35th overall trip to the NCAA Championship and the fourth consecutive under head coach Jay Clark. Under Clark’s leadership, LSU has consistently remained among the nation’s elite.

With a berth in the national finals on the line, LSU will look to secure its 11th NCAA Championship finals appearance in program history.

LSU entered the NCAA postseason as the No. 2 overall seed, beginning their journey to Fort Worth at home in the Baton Rouge Regional, when they successfully claimed their 16th NCAA Regional Championship title and secured their spot in the Elite Eight.

In the NCAA Second Round, the Tigers posted a school-record regional score and a season high 198.375 to finish first in the meet and advance to the regional finals, where they finished on top yet again with a score of 197.825 to book their ticket to nationals.

Stanford finished in second in the Baton Rouge Regional Finals with a 197.225 to also secure their spot in the Elite Eight.

On the other side of the bracket, Oklahoma and UCLA both won their respective regional championships while Arkansas and Minnesota finished amongst the top two to secure their spots in Fort Worth. Oklahoma and Arkansas advanced out of the Lexington Regional while UCLA and Minnesota were the two to come out of the Corvallis Regional.

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