Florida Gators gymnastics star Trinity Thomas competed Friday night at the NCAA Pittsburgh Regional meet. After a stellar performance during the first season of the meet, people expected the senior all-rounder to do well. However, the Gators star, who had posted a 9.90 on the uneven bars during the first session, had a disappointing end to her night at the regional meet. The college gymnastics star suffered an injury mid-routine and had to sit out the rest of the event.

The 21-year-old was on the verge of tying a 27-year-old NCAA record. However, Florida gymnastics made it through to the regional finals despite Thomas’s absence for the latter half of the night. The Gators made the finals after topping Arizona State, Penn State, and Maryland.?

An abrupt end to a graceful Trinity Thomas routine

Florida?s career leader with 20 perfect marks took the floor on Friday night and began her routine. The gymnastics star was one perfect 10 away from tying a 27-year-old NCAA record set by Jenny Hansen. In 1996, the Kentucky native set the record for the most perfect-10s in a career. However, things didn’t go according to plan for the Gators star.

Her routine began, and Thomas immediately drew cheers from the crowd as she executed the initial phase of her routine. However, after pulling off the first big skill in her routine, the double layout, Thomas could only continue for a few more steps. The 21-year-old stopped abruptly in the middle of the floor as the music played.

She doubled over, and after the music stopped, Florida’s athletic trainer Jannet Clark helped Thomas to the locker room. About 20 mins later, Trinity Thomas emerged from the locker room, visibly upset. While she didn’t have wraps on her legs, the AAI Award finalist didn’t compete. The Gators later announced that Thomas suffered a right lower leg injury during her routine.

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Despite her absence, Florida cruised to the NCAA regional finals, thanks to Kayla DiCello’s exceptional performance for her team.

Filling in some big shoes

The performance of the night came from Florida freshman Kayla DiCello. The SEC freshman of the year award winner stepped up to the challenge of leading a Florida team devoid of Thomas. She posted exceptional scores. The gymnast posted an all-around score of 39.800, winning the vault with a near-perfect 9.950.

However, the freshman’s best performance of the night was on the uneven bars. DiCello scored a perfect-10 on the uneven bars besting Thomas’s first session score of 9.90. Florida will square off against Arizona, California, and Michigan in Sunday’s Pittsburgh Regional finals.

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The top two teams of the regional finals will compete in the NCAA Championships. However, only time will tell if Thomas recovers enough to compete on Sunday.