BOISE, Idaho — Boise State senior Courtney Blackson on Thursday became the first Bronco gymnast to ever capture back-to-back NCAA Regional titles by scoring a 9.950 on bars.
Blackson's performance on bars was good for first place out of all competitors in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and ties the Boise State all-time record for highest regional score.
The California native is likely on her way back to the National Collegiate Women's Gymnastics Championships. According to NCAA rules, the highest-scoring individual in each region qualifies for nationals, which are scheduled for April 18-20 in Fort Worth, Texas.
Blackson was one of four Broncos to reach the second round of the NCAA Regional Championships, each earning a spot as individuals following Boise State's tight loss to BYU in the opening round. The Broncos and Cougars both scored 195.750, but BYU secured the win with a 0.25 advantage in the dropped scores.
Fifth-year senior Adriana Popp notched a 9.875 on beam Thursday, finishing in a tie for fifth. Popp was recognized as the Mountain West Co-Beam Specialist of the Year, alongside San Jose State's Lauren Macpherson, with a national qualifying score of 9.895.
Boise State made history in March by winning the first-ever Mountain West Championship. Also making history was Bronco senior Emily Lopez, the MW Gymnast of the Year, and MW Coach of the Year Tina Bird. Lopez also earned MW Bars Specialist of the Year after capturing 10 individual titles during the regular season.
Lopez also competed on beam in Fayetteville Thursday, scoring a 9.725. She trailed fellow Bronco and junior Emma Loyim, who scored a 9.825 in the first rotation. Loyim was among the league's best this season, named All-MW first team on beam and second team on vault.
"Our four individuals that competed (Thursday) and represented Boise State made us so proud," Bird said. "It's really different to compete without your team and they did a fantastic job."
Blackson was the national runner-up on vault with a 9.925 at the 2023 NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships. The second-place performance marked the highest vault score ever at nationals by a Boise State gymnast and led to a first team All-American nod.
Individual qualifiers for the 2024 NCAA Championship in the Lone Star State are expected to be announced Monday.
Watch more Sports:
See KTVB sports coverage in our YouTube playlist:
HERE ARE MORE WAYS TO GET NEWS FROM KTVB:
Download the KTVB News Mobile App
Apple iOS: Click here to download
Google Play: Click here to download
Watch news reports for FREE on YouTube: KTVB YouTube channel
Stream Live for FREE on ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching 'KTVB'.
Stream Live for FREE on FIRE TV: Search ‘KTVB’ and click ‘Get’ to download.