2 weeks Ago
Carly Dockendorf is still processing what happened. Utah finished in fourth in the NCAA national championship last weekend, placing behind UCLA, Missouri and newly crowned national champion Oklahoma. It’s the fifth consecutive season the Red Rocks have reached the finals but fallen short of earning their first national championship since 1995.
Utah’s head coach said this season felt different, like the Red Rocks were finally ready to make the leap to win their 11th title. That ultimately wasn’t the case. “I’m definitely a processor, and it takes me a little bit to talk through things,” Dockendorf said.
“We haven’t really talked a lot as a staff yet, which kind of helps to kind of put some of the pieces together.” In warmups on Saturday, Dockendorf could feel something was off. The Red Rocks were making uncharacteristic mistakes during their routines and it continued into the meet.
Grace McCallum fell off the balance beam. Amelie Morgan had several balance checks in the same event. Those errors compounded, leading to Utah’s fourth-place finish.
The beam team has struggled all postseason. Against Arizona State on Feb. 14, the Red Rocks had several errors and deductions; Dockendorf said her team’s confidence never fully returned after that.
“It just never felt like it settled,” Dockendorf said of Utah’s balance beam stretch. “There was kind of always someone who was a little bit off or something. I can’t put my finger on it exactly yet.
” While Dockendorf is still disappointed with how the season ended, she said there are positives to take away from 2025. One is that star freshman Avery Neff will have an offseason to grow, improve and get back to full health. The South Jordan native was still rehabbing from her severely sprained ankles throughout the season, but found a way to return to the all-around by the postseason.
Dockendorf said Neff’s leadership and intensity should help the team heading into next season. (Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah’s Avery Neff competes on the floor during the Big 12 Gymnastics Championship at Maverick Center in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 22, 2025. “She’s going to continue to spread that mentality within our team,” Dockendorf said of Neff.
“I think that’s going to ignite other athletes to step up their competitiveness more than maybe they felt like they needed to before, because she has that effect on people. “I know that she doesn’t like to lose, and I’m pretty sure that that’s going to leave a bad taste in her mouth. She’s not going to want to finish like that again.
” With the departures of McCallum, who is set to become a student-coach next season , Morgan and other seniors, the Red Rocks will need new faces to step up. Utah’s coach said sophomore Ella Zirbes is someone she thinks can become an all-arounder in 2026. Zoe Johnson and Clara Raposo are also expected to be contributors next year.
“Ella is an amazing all-arounder,” Dockendorf said. “I truly believe we could see her on beam next year. I know she’s going to keep working for it.
“Zoe, she could do all four events. Her bars are awesome. No one’s seen her bars yet in the Huntsman.
I definitely expect Clara to be in the bar lineup next year. Her bars are just gorgeous.” While the Red Rocks didn’t achieve their goal of winning a national championship this season, Dockendorf is still feeling positive about the direction of her program.
But at this time next year, she hopes Utah will have finally taken that final step. “We definitely won’t take it for granted,” Dockendorf said. “Knowing how many times we’ve finished fourth or third the last few years, I would guess the energy and the intention will be even higher this summer.
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