Utah’s Makenna Smith (gymnast) headlines the second-to-last set of the 2026 Big 12 gymnastics awards, earning honors with teammate Ashley Glynn (co-event specialist) and Denver’s Mila Brusch (co-event specialist) and Shyla Bhatia (newcomer).
Smith celebrated her senior night with two high-scoring performances, setting a season-high 9.925 on bars and registering a career-high 9.975 on floor during the tri-meet between BYU and West Virginia. She also scored a 9.85 on vault as the Red Rocks secured a Big 12 win to finish the league schedule with a perfect 6-0 record for the second consecutive season and their second-highest overall score of 197.650. This is her first Big 12 honor this season.
Glynn, also a senior, made the most of her last meet at the Huntsman Center. The senior scored a 9.90 on bars to place third, which was her first time performing on the apparatus this season. She also tallied a 9.90 on vault to tie for second. The Utes registered a 49.500 in each rotation that the Hockessin, Delaware native competed in.
Brusch collected two podium finishes in the meet against Air Force. During her senior night, she set career-highs in vault and bars with a 9.900 on both apparatuses. The Cincinnati native finished third in both events, helping the Pioneers score their season-best 197.075. This is her first event specialist honor, marking her third career Big 12 honor after winning the newcomer award twice in 2023.
Bhatia posted two scores that were 9.900 or better after competing in three events. The freshman tallied a 9.775 on bars, a 9.990 on floor to tie for third, and anchored Denver’s vault rotation with a career-high 9.975 to earn the event title. This is her second honor this season.
The regular season concludes this week with Big 12 teams facing non-conference opponents. BYU travels to No. 14 Clemson, while Arizona hosts a quad meet against No. 17 Ohio State, Southeast Missouri and Texas Woman’s on Friday.
Saturday’s lineup features Denver at No. 25 Oregon State and Utah at No. 5 UCLA. Arizona State hosts Southeast Missouri and Utah State on Sunday. West Virginia travels to No. 21 NC State on Friday before competing in a tri-meet on Sunday at Pittsburgh against the Panthers and Illinois State.