I hate to say it, but it’s time to at least start considering world team scenarios without Bridget Sloan.  I’m not saying she can’t come back from this, but I’m going to have to see more before I actually believe it.  Falling on beam was the very last thing she needed to do here, and I just have no idea what to think of her status at this point.

Vanessa Zamarripa threw her Cheng on vault…and STUCK IT!  I haven’t seen it yet, but I will be eagerly looking for it.  I believe it may have landed out of bounds, but what a bold and gutsy decision…not to mention an interesting one for the selection committee to consider.  I believe she scored a 15.6 on it, and I don’t know why her all-around total shows a 14.775 for vault, which I believe was the average of her Cheng and Yurchenko full.  A 15.6 on vault would have put her in 5th in the all-around.

What a surprise with Chelsea Davis!  How interesting to see her put it together just in time for this meet after what she has been through.  Not only was she 4th in the all-around with 14’s across the board, but her bars score of 14.8 was actually the third highest of the night behind Bross and Caquatto.  Hmmm…

Mattie Larson, Aly Raisman, and Kytra Hunter may all be battling each other for a spot on the world team.  All three could be used on floor and vault, and we may have to use one of them on beam and/or bars, especially if Sloan doesn’t get healthy. That’s why beam is critical among these three, and why Larson may need to nail beam on Saturday to really secure her spot.  What she does have going for her is that she has now hit two strong bar routines in a row, whereas Raisman and Hunter would never be used on that event.

Larson’s floor was breathtaking…probably one of the best she’s ever done.  She is such a complete package of gorgeous tumbling and exquisite dance…even the triple turn was right on.  But I’d also love to see Hunter’s full twisting double layout in Rotterdam, and I think Raisman could be a really dependable team competitor as well.  Raisman was pretty solid, but seemed just a bit nervous and lacked a “spark.”  I have no idea why she does so many split leaps on beam when she’s obviously getting deducted heavily on them…find some jumps that don’t require a 180 degree split!

Caquatto placed 2nd on bars again.  This is a great sign for her, and if she hits a 15 again on Saturday I don’t see how she could be denied a spot…regardless of what she does on the other events.  But of course we’ve seen stranger things happen.

Bross and Sacramone were awesome.  I fully expect both to make the world team, and I fully expect Bross to win this meet.  Now if only Alicia can teach Rebecca how to do an interview…