Completed Event: Volleyball at Abilene Christian on August 30, 2025 , Win , 3, to, 0
Final
Volleyball
3
at Abilene Christian
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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Staff Directory
Kindler, K.J.
K.J. Kindler
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
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It has been 19 years since Oklahoma Athletic Director Joe Castiglione brought head coach K.J. Kindler to Norman to lead the Oklahoma women's gymnastics program. In the last two decades, Kindler has seen her transformative vision for the Sooner program become a reality.
A four-time National Coach of the Year, Kindler led her program exactly where many said it could never go. OU's head coach has taken the Sooners to the absolute height of the NCAA gymnastics world with NCAA Championships in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022 and 2023, 12 top-three national finishes, 14 straight regional titles, 189 All-America honors and 14 Big 12 titles.
The 2024 National and Big 12 Coach of the Year, Kindler led the Sooners to record-breaking heights as her squad set the NCAA scoring record with a 198.950 at the Big 12 Championships. The 20-year-old record was shattered as three Sooners combined for five perfect scores – just the second time in NCAA history a team earned a perfect score on every event in the same meet. Kindler led her team to a Big 12 Championship and NCAA Ann Arbor Regional title before a sixth-place finish at the NCAA Championship.
Audrey Davis and Faith Torrez each brought home individual titles, with the duo sharing beam and Davis earning the bars crown after ending the year as the No. 1 ranked athlete on the event. At the Big 12 Championship, a Sooner brought home every individual title as Torrez, Jordan Bowers and Ragan Smith combined for five perfect 10s. Bowers was named the Big 12 Gymnast of the Year before securing a Central Region Gymnast of the Year nod and a spot as a Honda Sport Award Finalist.
The 2024 squad also set program records on bars (49.825), beam (49.800) and floor (49.825), while securing an NCAA record NQS score of 198.500.
The 2023 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Kindler once again led her team to the triple crown of gymnastics with an NCAA Championship, NCAA Norman Regional title and Big 12 Championship. For the second time in school history, the Sooners won back-to-back national titles, also achieving the feat under Kindler in 2016-2017.
Eight Sooners combined for 10 All-America honors and Olivia Trautman capped off her illustrious Sooner career as the seventh gymnast in program history to win an NCAA individual title and fourth on vault. At the 2023 Big 12 Championship, six Sooners claimed a total of eight individual crowns as OU won every event and the all-around. Katherine LeVasseur was named the Big 12 Event Specialist of the Year and Faith Torrez was crowned the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.
Not only did the Sooners excel on the competition floor in 2023, but academically as well. Meilin Sullivan became the second Sooner to win the NCAA Elite 90 Award, following in the footsteps of two-time winner Emma LaPinta. Katherine LeVasseur was named the Big 12 Winter Scholar Athlete of the Year and a College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Selection. Danielle Sievers and Olivia Trautman were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-Americans – the first time that multiple OU gymnasts received the honor.
The 2022 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Kindler led her team to the triple crown with a Big 12 Championship, the Norman Regional title and the NCAA Championship. The 2022 squad went 31-2 on the season, posting an undefeated record at home with their only losses in top-five matchups. The Sooners had a comeback for the ages at the NCAA Championship, climbing from fourth place after the first rotation to claim the crown with an incredible beam routine from Ragan Smith.
Nine Sooners combined for 14 All-America honors at the NCAA Championship with two top-three finishes in Jordan Bowers earning second on floor and Allie Stern coming in third on vault. Bowers was crowned the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and Carly Woodard was named the Big 12 Event Specialist of the Year.
With Kindler named the Big 12 Coach of the Year, the Sooners finished the 2021 season as the National Runner-Up. Kindler led her squad to a 30-2 season, with the only losses coming at the Big 12 Championship and the NCAA Finals. The Sooners won their 11th-straight regional title, knocking off host Alabama who lost a regional at home for the first time in program history.
Anastasia Webb had a season to remember as she became the first OU gymnast to earn CWSA Top Three Honors after being named the 2021 Honda Sport Award Winner. Webb joined an elite group of collegiate gymnasts, becoming the ninth to ever win three titles in one championship as she was crowned the all-around, vault and floor champion.
Six Sooners combined for a nation-best 15 All-America honors, including Webb’s five first-team accolades. Webb was the only gymnast in the country to earn first-team nods on every event and the all-around. Olivia Trautman also brought home five All-America honors with a first team nod in the all-around and second-team honors on all four events.
The 2020 season was shortened due to the outbreak of COVID-19. In the time the Sooners had to compete, Kindler’s squad was ranked No. 1 for the entire season and posted the nation’s top score with a 198.450. The Sooners were undefeated at 16-0 before the season was canceled. Five Sooners combined for a nation-best 14 All-America honors, including Maggie Nichols’ five first-team honors. Nichols and Ragan Smith brought home a pair of Big 12 Conference Awards, being named the Gymnast and Newcomer of the Year, respectively.
The 2019 season was one for the record books as the Sooners finished with a 32-0 record and a fourth national championship. Just the second undefeated season in program history, Kindler’s squad held the No.1 ranking all season en route to posting a 198.3375 at the NCAA Championships to end their season with yet another national title.
Eight gymnasts combined for 17 All-America honors including Jade Degouveia, Brenna Dowell, Nicole Lehrmann, Maggie Nichols, Karrie Thomas, Olivia Trautman, Anastasia Webb and Carly Woodard. Dowell and Nichols were national champions once again as Dowell earned the floor title and Nichols defended her all-around crown while also taking home a share of the vault title. Nichols was just the sixth gymnast in NCAA history to earn back-to-back all-around titles and became the OU record older for career individual titles with six.
Dowell, Degouveia and Trautman swept the Big 12 Conference Awards, being named the Gymnast, Event Specialist and Freshman of the Year, respectively. It marked the third-straight year that OU swept the yearly awards and fifth time overall.
The Sooners won their eighth-straight Big 12 title and 10th straight regional title while posting a third consecutive season with an RQS over 198. OU notched eight scores of 198 or better in 2019, including posting the highest away score in NCAA history with a 198.475 at the Athens Regional.
In 2018, the Sooners were the No. 1 team in the nation the entire season, culminating in a runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships. The Sooners earned their seventh-straight Big 12 title and ninth straight regional title along the way to setting a program and NCAA record of 10 scores of 198 or better during a season. The Sooners finished the season with three-consecutive scores of 198 or better, a feat they achieved three times throughout the season.Â
Eight gymnasts combined for 16 All-America honors, including Stefani Catour, Jade Degouveia, Brenna Dowell, AJ Jackson, Nicole Lehrmann, Maggie Nichols, Bre Showers and Anastasia Webb. Dowell and Nichols became individual national champions, with Dowell earning the vault title and Nichols taking home the all-around, bars and floor titles. Additionally, the Sooners added 10 regular season All-America accolades from the NACGC/W. Nichols became a five-time All-American, joining Chayse Capps (2016) and Kelly Garrison (1988) as the only Sooners to accomplish the feat.Â
In 2017, the Sooners won their second straight and third overall national title with a 198.3875, the highest ever score by any team at the NCAA Championships. OU finished the year with a perfect 33-0 overall record, the first undefeated season in program history.
Five gymnastics combined for 12 All-America honors, including Chayse Capps, Stefani Catour, AJ Jackson, Nicole Lehrmann and Maggie Nichols, while Lehrmann and Nichols became individual national champions on the bars. Additionally, OU paced the nation with 14 regular season All-America accolades from the NACGC/W.
Kindler earned Co-Big 12 Coach of the Year and South Central Region Coach of the Year honors in a season that saw her squad win the conference for a sixth straight season and advance to national meet behind an eighth straight regional win.
In 2016, the Sooners snagged their second national title in program history and first outright win, posting a 197.675 during the Super Six in Fort Worth, Texas.
The meet capped a season in which the Sooners posted a 38-1-0 overall record, with their lone loss coming in their season opener. Nine Sooners earned a program-record 18 All-America honors. Leading the way was junior Capps, who was named a five-time All-American.
The Sooners continued their recent postseason dominance in 2016, securing an unprecedented fifth straight Big 12 title and a seventh consecutive regional crown, doing so at the NCAA Iowa City Regional. In total, seven Sooners earned a combined 10 regular season All-America accolades from the NACGC/W.
Kindler's 2015 Sooners were impressively dominant throughout the season, earning a perfect 14-0 record during the regular season for the nation's only undefeated regular season. The Sooners also spent the entirety of the regular season ranked No. 1 nationally, earning the top spot in the rankings for an impressive 12 straight weeks. OU captured its fourth consecutive Big 12 Championship (a league first), the NCAA Norman Regional title and 11 regular season All-America honors.
Kindler led her Sooners to a strong finish at the NCAA Championships in Fort Worth as the team achieved its fifth Super Six appearance since 2010, taking third place overall. Kindler's OU squad earned a then-program-record and nation-leading 13 All-America honors and every Sooner competing in event finals finished in the top 10 nationally on their individual events.
In recognition of Oklahoma's extraordinary and dominant season, NCAA gymnastics coaches voted Kindler the 2015 National Coach of the Year. Kindler has been named Coach of the Year three times in her career (2005, 2010, 2015), including two times as head coach at Oklahoma.
A visionary with the heart and willpower to accomplish what few thought was possible, Kindler made Oklahoma only the sixth team in NCAA history to win a women's gymnastics championship in the 2014 season. Kindler's 2014 Sooners were Big 12 champions, NCAA Minneapolis Regional Champions and earned nine NCAA All-America awards. She also coached three gymnasts to top-two finishes at the NCAA Championships, including balance beam champion Taylor Spears. Spears became OU's first individual national champion in 26 years and was joined by Maile'ana Kanewa (floor exercise) and Haley Scaman (floor exercise) in earning top-two NCAA finishes.
The 2014 Sooners won their title in record-breaking fashion at the 2014 NCAA Championships, posting a meet-record 198.175 to tie Florida atop the podium. OU earned program-record scores at an NCAA Championship meet on three out of four events.
In 2013, Kindler led OU to the program's third NCAA Super Six team finals appearance. The squad earned seven All-America honors en route to a second-place team effort overall, tying for the highest finish in program history. The performance marked OU's third top-three finish in the last four seasons under Kindler.
The 2013 season marked one of the finest in Oklahoma program history. OU spent the entirety of the season ranked in the top three nationally, including two weeks at No. 1. The primary beam coach, Kindler led the beam squad to a No. 1 ranking for 11 consecutive weeks during the regular season. OU defeated nine top-25 teams, including four top-10 squads, en route to the program's 11th conference title and an NCAA Regional championship.
The Sooners' regular season efforts were recognized with a nation-best 11 NACGC/W All-America awards. Kindler's leadership throughout the team's stellar season earned her Coach of the Year honors from the Big 12 and the South Central Region.
Kindler's OU squad was marked by excellence at both the team and individual levels in 2013. The team posted a 197.375 at the NCAA Championships to finish as the nation's runner-up, tying for the highest finish in Sooner history. OU scored a 197.000 or better at 13 meets in 2013, tying an NCAA record for most such meets in a single season.
In 2012, Kindler led the Sooners to team titles at the Big 12 Championship and the NCAA Champaign Regional. Kinder was named conference coach of the year and OU captured seven All-America awards and a seventh-place finish in the country.
Kindler was named the South Central Regional Head Coach of the Year in 2011 after guiding OU to its third undefeated regular season in four years. A program-best 11 OU gymnasts were named All-Americans as the Sooners went on to win an NCAA Regional title and finish third in the nation.
In 2010, the National Coach of the Year, Regional Coach of the Year and Big 12 Coach of the Year led Oklahoma to a national runner-up finish at the NCAA Championships with seven All-Americans, including Big 12 Sportswoman of the Year Hollie Vise. Vise was an All-American on bars, beam and floor and finished as the national runner-up on bars and floor.
Kindler's 2010 team also achieved a second-place finish in OU's first-ever Super Six appearance. With the performance, Kindler became the first head coach in NCAA history to lead two separate programs to the Super Six after reaching the Super Six in 2006 with Iowa State.
Under the direction of Kindler, the Sooners closed 2010 with a final record of 29-3. The win total broke the previous program best of 26 that was set in 1989 under Becky Switzer. Kindler guided the Sooners to the only undefeated regular season in the NCAA in 2010 (22-0) en route to postseason titles at the Big 12 Championship and NCAA University Park Regional. OU was ranked first or second in every regular season poll in 2010, as the Sooners were the only squad in the country to score above a 196.000 in every meet.
Kindler's squad continued its Big 12 dominance, winning its third straight Big 12 title with a team score of 197.175, the highest score by a conference champion since 2001. OU swept all four team event titles and won at least a share of all four individual event titles.
The Sooners won their second-straight Big 12 title in 2009, while posting individual event titles on bars and beam at the conference championship. Megan Ferguson earned All-America status with her stellar performance on beam as the Sooners won eight beam titles in 2009.
In 2008, Kindler guided Kiara Redmond as the senior capped off her illustrious career with four additional All-America honors, moving her career total to nine - the highest tally of any gymnast in program history. The 2008 campaign started with 21 consecutive victories, including all 18 regular season meetings, as OU finished the regular season as the only undefeated team in the country.
Oklahoma produced a conference-leading nine spots on the 2008 regular season All-Big 12 Team.
OU recorded only two scores lower than 9.8 in the final three events of the 2008 conference championship as the Sooners clinched at least a share of all four individual event titles - marking just the third time in Big 12 history that a school clinched at least a share of all four apparatus wins.v
Named head coach of the Sooners in the summer of 2006, Kindler quickly positioned the OU squad among the nation's elite in her first season in Norman in 2007. That year, the Sooners rattled off a streak of 12 consecutive victories, nine of which came on the road, including an upset of then-No. 6 Nebraska in Lincoln, a feat no OU team had accomplished since 1991.
Oklahoma finished second at the Big 12 Championships before heading to the NCAA Central Regional, taking second place before finishing eighth at the NCAA Championships, the highest finish up to that point in program history.
Prior to her hiring at OU, Kindler spent six seasons as the head coach at Iowa State. In her final season in Ames in 2006, Kindler led Iowa State to its third trip to the NCAA Championships and its first appearance in the Super Six team finals.
The 24-10 Cyclones produced three All-Americans for a second-consecutive season while posting an undefeated mark at home, a 10-1 dual record and an 8-1 standard in duals against ranked opponents. The team also snapped Nebraska's 60-meet home winning streak.
The 2006 squad won its first Big 12 Championship since 2000, and three Cyclone gymnasts earned either an outright or share of an individual title at the meet.
During six seasons at ISU from 2001-06, Kindler coached nine regional event champions, seven NCAA individual championship qualifiers and 13 Big 12 champions.v
Kindler, an Iowa State graduate, joined the Cyclone staff as an assistant coach in 1992.
As an ISU gymnast, Kindler was a three-time MVP for the Cyclones and runner-up in the all-around at the 1992 Big Eight Championships. She was the school's first individual NCAA Regional qualifier and competed three times in the postseason meet.
Kindler hails from Lake Elmo, Minn., and trained under Mary Jane Olsen at Hamline University in St. Paul. In high school, she moved to Connecticut and trained under Frank and Laurie DeFrancesco at Arena Academy in Stamford and Walter Hawkes at Wilton High School. In Connecticut, she won multiple conference and state titles.
The eldest of five siblings, Kindler hails from a gymnastics family. One sister, Lori, competed at the University of Minnesota. She and her husband own and operate Flips Gymnastics in the Twin Cities area. Kindler's nieces, Emma and Lucy Kindler, enjoy recreational gymnastics.
Kindler is married to OU assistant coach Lou Ball. The couple has two daughters, Maggie and Adelade.
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