Boise State women’s gymnastics capped an inconsistent regular season with a runner-up finish at the 2026 Mountain West Championship on March 21, posting a 196.200 and placing just two-tenths behind conference champion Utah State.
Following a weekend of conference title meets across the country, three Broncos punched their tickets to the NCAA Regional in Corvallis, Oregon, the NCAA announced March 23.
For the trio, appearances at the regional stage are familiar territory.
Senior Sydney Kho, who qualified on beam, will compete at the NCAA Regional for the fourth time in her career and first as an individual. Her 9.845 National Qualifying Score (NQS) is the best single-season mark of her career. The California native also earned All-Mountain West honors on beam for the season.
Kristina Shchennikova, one of Boise State’s top performers and a conference standout, qualified on bars and will appear at the regional for the second consecutive year. The sophomore’s 2026 campaign came with multiple milestones.
Her biggest feat came on March 7 when she tallied a 9.925 on bars at California. This marks Boise State’s highest individual score in any event this season. She also competed on beam and floor, posting a career-high 9.900 on each apparatus in 2026. One of the Mountain West’s top gymnasts, Shchennikova is one of three athletes in the conference to score 9.900 or higher on three events this season. Riding a hot streak, she has accomplished seven bars routines of 9.800 or higher in the last eight meets.
Following a season marked by numerous highlights, Schennikova will enter the regional with a renewed sense of conviction, something she worked to develop this past offseason.
“My confidence level. Just knowing that I can hit every routine that I do,” Schennikova said when asked what she focused on coming into the season.
Another Bronco gymnast with a strong individual 2026 campaign, Mahleea Werline, who posted a 9.850 NQS, will join Shchennikova on bars in Corvallis.
Werline won her first event title and notched a career-best 9.900 on March 13 against Southern Utah. Earning All-Mountain West honors for the first time in her career, she enters the regional meet on a streak of seven-straight routines of 9.825 or higher, Boise State’s longest streak since Emily Lopez had 11-straight routines from 2023-24. This will be her third time competing at the regional.
With postseason experience under their belts, all three regional-bound Broncos are no strangers to high-stakes competition.
While Boise State will not compete as a team at the regional, individual gymnasts can still advance. The highest-scoring competitor in each event, along with the top all-around finisher not on a qualifying team, will earn spots in the NCAA Championship. With a chance at national recognition on the line, focus and precision will be crucial for Kho, Shchennikova and Werline.
At the conference title meet, all three of Boise State’s regional qualifiers were difference-makers.
The Broncos opened on floor, where Shchennikova led off the night with a team-high 9.825. Fifth-year veteran Blake Pascal, along with sophomores Bridget Kemp and Delaney Reeves, each followed up with 9.800s to cap a 49.000 floor rotation. The squad added a 48.775 on vault, led by freshman Miraya Nero’s 9.800 and anchored by Kho, Kemp and freshman Isabella Delarosa, who each scored 9.750.
Boise State saved its best for last, delivering its top single-event performances of the season in the final two rotations.
Sophomore Noelle Ball, junior Carly Buell and senior Kylee Hamby each turned in 9.850s on bars, with the latter two earning season-high marks. Regional qualifiers Shchennikova and Werline both added 9.825s to cushion the team’s total and lock in a 49.200, the Broncos’ best team score on bars of the season.
Beam, the final rotation of the night, told the same story. Season-highs continued to fall on the board.
Freshman Sydnie Whipple rose to the occasion on the conference stage and notched a career-high 9.900, finishing third on beam. Shchennikova posted a 9.875, her second-best score of the season, with Nero and Kho recording a 9.850 and 9.825, respectively. Boise State’s 49.225 team score marked its best of the season and was the sixth-highest score at a conference championship in program history.
For head coach Tina Bird, there’s no shortage of confidence in her team’s ability on beam, something she’s shown all season long.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our beam squad. They showed incredible focus, confidence and heart out there,” Bird said after the Metroplex Challenge on Feb. 15. “Watching them rise to the moment and deliver the way they did was truly special.”
Despite navigating a season filled with highs and lows, Boise State continued to grow and surge down the stretch, delivering some of its strongest performances of the season when it mattered most and finishing second at the conference championship meet.
With three Broncos set to compete at the NCAA Regionals in Corvallis on April 3, the trio looks to carry the team’s late-season momentum onto the national stage while representing the Blue and Orange.
