No. 16 Kentucky Hosts NCAA Lexington Regional
LEXINGTON, Ky. – No. 16 Kentucky is set to host NCAA Regional action inside Historic Memorial Coliseum for the first time since 2010, welcoming eight other teams to Lexington for three days of competition from April 2-5.
Competition at the NCAA Lexington Regional is slated to begin at 2 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 2, with a First Round dual meet between Central Michigan and Rutgers. The winner of the dual will move into Friday’s Second Round.
The Wildcats will begin competition in Session II of the Second Round at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, April 3. Joining No. 16 Kentucky will be No. 1 Oklahoma, Ohio State, and the winner of Central Michigan-Rutgers. Semifinal I will be at 1 p.m. ET and feature No. 8 Missouri, No. 9 Arkansas, NC State, and Maryland. The top two teams from each session will advance to the Regional Final.
The Lexington Regional Final will be at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 5 and see four teams vie for two spots at the 2026 NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championships in Ft. Worth, Texas from April 16-18. One all-arounder and one event specialist on all four apparatuses from non-advancing teams will also qualify for nationals.
Every session of the NCAA Lexington Regional will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Bart Connor and Bridget Sloan on the call.
Kentucky will begin its Second Round meet on the uneven bars, followed by the balance beam, floor exercise, and finishing on vault.
Since Regionals was expanded to a multi-day format in 2019, the Wildcats have advanced to the Regional Final in every season, a trend the Wildcats can extend with a top-two finish on Friday night.
The Wildcats enter their 37th all-time regional appearance, and 21st consecutive appearance, as the No. 16 national seed. Kentucky has earned a national seed in each of the last nine championships, dating to 2017. The Wildcats had to work hard to continue that streak, climbing from No. 39 in the national standings on January 19 to No. 16 at the time of selections, a jump of 23 ranking spots in nine weeks.
After not scoring above 196.500 in any of its first four meets, the Wildcats have scored above that mark in each of its final seven meets of the season—including four scores above 197. Kentucky enters the postseason with a National Qualifying Score of 196.550.
Delaynee Rodriguez and Creslyn Brose enter the Regional as 2026 WCGA Regular Season All-Americans. Rodriguez earned Second Team honors in the all-around for her first career All-America honor, ranking No. 10 in the NCAA with a 39.520 National Qualifying Score. The junior from Las Vegas has set career highs on all four events and the all-around and has claimed 16 event wins this season.
Brose was named to the Second Team on floor for the third consecutive season, ranking No. 11 with a 9.935 NQS. Brose has scored at least a 9.900 on every floor routine this season and 32 of 35 in her collegiate career. The junior from Holly Springs, N.C. has won five titles on the event this season, bringing her career total to 11, and has scored a season-high 9.950 four times.
A program-record seven Wildcats earned All-SEC recognition this season. Joining Brose and Rodriguez are Chesney Bennett, Anna Flynn Cashion, Ryan Noonan, Cecily Rizo, and Gabby Van Frayen. The septet were honored for their performances at last month’s Southeastern Conference Championship.
The Vault – Kentucky Gymnastics Booster Club
The Vault is the Official Booster Club of Kentucky Gymnastics. Joining The Vault means investing directly in our program. Your contributions help us provide top-notch training facilities, essential equipment, and opportunities for our athletes to excel in this challenging environment. Every dollar counts, and every Vault member makes a difference. Our various membership club levels offer fantastic benefits with each contribution strengthening our program and empowering our athletes as they compete at the highest levels.
You can join The Vault by clicking this link or you can donate directly by visiting this link. For questions or any other information, please contact Amy Coyle (amy.coyle@uky.edu)
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