Every NCAA season brings a new glimmer of hope thanks to the rookies, while also observing senior athletes as they mature into professionals in their respective journeys. This year will be the last for Olivia Dunne at her beloved LSU, where she has spent five years and has achieved a ton of accolades on and off the mat.

As a super senior at LSU, when the season officially begins in January, Olivia Dunne will be excited to showcase her brilliant skills for the last time in those golden and purple colors. However, prior to this, she delivered one of the most captivating performances at the latest Gymnastics 101 Exhibition on December 16, Monday, which not only captured the attention of many in the gymnasium but also sparked interest in a negative way among those hiding behind their social media handles.

Olivia Dunne gracing the mat all over again

At the Maravich Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, it was a packed crowd set to watch the Tigers in action. Indeed, fans are hyped up to watch the gymnasts ready to roll in the NCAA season, but a small performance in his exhibition wouldn’t hurt, would it? So, to be accurate on all the anticipation, the Tigers didn’t disappoint a single person in the arena.

On X, the official profile of LSU gymnastics posted the performance of the senior star of the Tigers, Olivia Dunne. And what exactly was the achievement of the gymnast? It’s merely a sneak peek of what’s to come when the official NCAA season begins, and she didn’t hesitate to showcase her potential. The moment Dunne took the mat, everyone cheered and watched her with interest.

This year Livvy opened up about the “professional bench warmer,”  trolling she faced soon after the NCAA Championships. Livvy was a substitute in the finals, and the trolls didn’t miss a beat. “There’s people calling me just mean things, calling me a professional bench warmer,” she shared in Amazon Prime’s The Money Game. Ouch. LSU gymnastics coach Jay Clark weighed in on the hate during a chat with All Things Gymnastics, defending Olivia Dunne’s dual success. He pointed out how her massive off-court fame makes her a target: “You know, they want to discredit everything she’s accomplished outside of gymnastics by saying, you know, something negative about her in gymnastics.

Fast forward to December 10, and Dunne is flipping the script. She shared a glimpse of her progress as an artistic gymnast at LSU’s Baton Rouge campus, captioning her post, “just had to let me cook.” And cook she did! At LSU’s Gymnastics 101 Exhibition, the fifth-year senior tackled all the apparatuses—except vault—and absolutely delivered. Her floor routine? Pure fire. She kicked things off with a front tuck through to a double tuck, with only a tiny step out. Her leaps were chef’s-kiss perfect, and she nailed a solid double pike to close. Talk about a crowd-pleaser!

This will be her final season, and as a superb career is about to end, she wants to achieve that fairytale ending. Furthermore, Dunne has a new floor routine for her senior year, and she did not disappoint. Everyone at the Maravich Center enjoyed a terrific exhibition show from the LSU Tigers, especially the performance of Dunne. The social media post also caught the attention of many on the internet. While many people expressed their admiration for the gymnast, others chose not to acknowledge her brilliant moves.

Attracted both sides of the boat

Despite the divergent opinions among social media users regarding Olivia Dunne’s preview performance, she successfully captured their interest. Many loved the way she presented her new floor routine, and one of them even had a demand, stating, “She should have been on the 2024 usa Olympic roster,, she is better than any of them !!!!” Another fan noticed a certain detail of the gymnast, stating, “Even with a bandaged foot @livvydunne still performs on the floor with elegant and grace.” “She has springs in her legs,” One fan wrote a unique, appreciative remark.

Dunne has been a massive influence all over the sports world. While most of the people thought she wouldn’t be competing this season, it wasn’t the case. She became an NCAA champion with the Tigers in the 2024 season at Fort Worth. This event brought about significant changes in her life, particularly the realization of achieving the coveted gold medal she had long desired. However, this experience also inspired her to strive for more, and she is now determined to achieve one more before she officially departs from LSU and begins a new chapter in her gymnastics career.

Despite all the glamor she put into her performance, it didn’t make some set of people a fan of her, as one of them commented, “They could’ve put two teams together for team usa and she wouldn’t have been on either.” Another person stated, “Lmao my man, she’s not even among the 5 best gymnasts at LSU, let alone the whole country, and hasn’t competed at the Elite level in years.”

Indeed, there is criticism behind what she has been achieving even in her final season in the NCAA, but that’s the least of her concerns. Such harsh comments have been a part of her career, but has she ever responded to them? Does it really matter, given that she has already won an NCAA championship and is eager to achieve more?