Utah’s success Friday was overshadowed by a devastating injury to star freshman Avery Neff. Neff, the highest rated recruit ever (since College Gym News started ranking gymnastics recruits starting with the 2021 class), collapsed on the floor at the tail end of her floor routine.

The #4 Utah gymnastics team came away with an easy victory over Iowa State in its Big 12 Conference opener Friday night, but it came at a price. Freshman Avery Neff, the #1 recruit in the country, suffered what looked like a devastating injury on her floor routine,

The star freshman sprinted into the final act of her floor routine and flipped into the air. As she landed, Neff took a fall on the mat and immediately grabbed her left ankle, writhing in pain. The air was sucked out of the thousands of Red Rock fans in attendance.