Mizzou Gymnastics to Confidently Rely on 'Fabulous Floor' to Open NCAA Semifinals

The Tigers have continuously impressed on floor, and they will look to continue that trend at the NCAA Championship Semifinal.

Missouri gymnast Kennedy Griffin beams after finishing her floor routine at the 2024 SEC Championship. / John Gronski, Mizzou Athletics

Missouri gymnastics has been a force to be reckoned with throughout the 2025 season.

The Tigers have accomplished many large feats, from posting a program-best 198.100 in the regular season to advancing to the NCAA Championship Semifinal for the fourth time in history.

Through it all, Missouri's floor squad, nicknamed the "Fabulous Floor," have stuck out as an impressive unit.

"I think floor has been a strength of ours for the last few years," head coach Shannon Welker said in a press conference Thursday. "I think we can kind of bank on that event most of the time to really perform at a high level."

Earlier this season, the Tigers earned a program-best 49.725 on floor at the Zou to the Lou quad meet. There, sophomore Kennedy Griffin logged a perfect 10 on the apparatus.

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Missouri's strong floor has proven valuable in the postseason. The Tigers struggled with beam and bars in the NCAA Regional Final, posting a 49.275 and 49.300, respectively. Luckily, the Fabulous Floor came through.

Floor was Missouri's best event of the meet, with the Tigers earning a 49.550. That marked the second-highest floor score at an NCAA meet in program history.

The high score was made even more impressive because Missouri's lineup was altered at the last minute.

"We had to make a quick adjustment because (Elise Tisler's) back was bugging her, and that floor was really stiff and she was having a hard time with it," Welker said. "We made that lineup change on Night 1 at the end of the four-minute touch, within 30 seconds of us competing."

Sophomore Rayna Light was moved from the third spot to the first spot, while freshman Kaiai Tanskanen was added to the lineup in the third spot.

Competing as the leadoff gymnast in any event can be tough, but Light embraced the challenge. She logged 9.875s in both the NCAA Second Round and the NCAA Regional Final.

Tanskanen also looked strong, earning two 9.875s as well. The ability of two younger athletes to put up strong scores in an unusual situation reflects Missouri's depth in its floor lineup.

"I thought they did a really nice job with that, especially those two that we shifted around," Welker said. "Those guys did great."

The Tigers had to open on floor in both NCAA meets, and their first rotation at the NCAA Championship Semifinal will be floor.

Whichever event a team starts with can be subject to more mistakes, but if there is any event the Tigers want to place their confidence in, it's floor.

Missouri will compete in the NCAA Championship Semifinal at 3:30 p.m. on April 17 in Fort Worth, Texas. The Tigers will face tough competition in No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 3 Florida and No. 8 Alabama, but Missouri's Fabulous Floor is ready to go.

"We're starting on a great event," Welker said. "The repetition of doing that rotation will pay off for us."

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