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Florida Gymnastics Falls to No. 1 Oklahoma After Scary Injuries – ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF

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Florida Gymnastics Falls to No. 1 Oklahoma After Scary Injuries – ESPN 98.1 FM / 850 AM WRUF


It was a heartbreaking Friday night in Norman as the No. 5 Florida Gators gymnastics team fell to the No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners 198.075-196.625. Two pillars of the Florida program went down with scary injuries – Anya Pilgrim and Sloane Blakely.

The Gators tried to bounce back, but the injuries cast a shadow. Resultant lineup changes saw Ly Bui and Riley McCusker competing on beam. Unfortunately, they both fell, resulting in Florida matching its lowest team score of the season.

Meanwhile, the Sooners had their best meet of the season, breaking 198 for the first time. The No.2 all-arounder in the country Faith Torrez capped off the night with a perfect 10.0 on the floor – Oklahoma’s first perfect score of the season.

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Heartbreak for Florida

Instead of Florida’s performance being headlined by perfect 10.0s like last week, Friday’s meet saw scary injuries for the Gators.

In Florida’s first routine of the night, Anya Pilgrim peeled right off the bars and laid on the ground for several minutes while her coaches checked on her. The sophomore eventually finished her routine with the audience’s encouragement. However, she did not return to the competition.

Then, in the third rotation, reigning SEC Specialist of the Week Sloane Blakely suffered a lower leg injury on her first tumbling pass on floor. She immediately hopped off into the locker room, and her younger sister Skye was seen crying to the side before joining Sloane. Floor was the very event Sloane scored her second career perfect 10.0 on last week.

She eventually rejoined her teammates on crutches and in a boot. She appeared to be holding back tears as she hugged associate head coach Adrian Burde.

The Bright Side

Before her sister’s injury, Skye Blakely redeemed herself on bars after a fall last week with a stuck landing, matching her career-high with a 9.900. SEC Co-Gymnast of the Week Leanne Wong then followed with a 9.9 of her own.

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The Gators also proved their resiliency on floor, bouncing back from Sloane’s injury. Wong posted a 9.925 before a 9.9 from the other SEC Co-Gymnast of the Week, Selena Harris-Miranda.

Sooner Success

Starting on vault, the Sooners proved why they are ranked No. 2 in the country on the apparatus. They counted three scores at 9.9 or above, highlighted by a stick and a 9.950 from Torrez. 

Oklahoma also counted three scores at 9.9 or above on bars. Senior Jordan Bowers anchored with a 9.925 after 9.9s from Torrez and Audrey Davis. The three veterans helped the Sooners extend their lead 98.900-98.650 halfway through the meet.

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They lost a little momentum on beam, their only score above 9.9 coming from Torrez (9.925). But that didn’t matter because Oklahoma came back lights out in the final rotation on floor. The Sooners didn’t see a single score under 9.925. They ended with perfection from Torrez, helping Oklahoma break 198 for the first time this season.

This was the first meet this season the Gators didn’t take at least a share of a single event title. Oklahoma’s Faith Torrez won every event except for bars, which went to Jordan Bowers.

Looking Ahead

The Gators will return home and try to bounce back next week as they host No. 8 Missouri for Equality Night. The status of Pilgrim and Blakely will likely be the storyline, but new faces may have to step up in their absence. On the bright side, Florida has immense depth, something the Gators will have to use to their advantage in the coming weeks.

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FBI says suspects tried to rob Offset outside a Florida casino when he was shot in the leg

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FBI says suspects tried to rob Offset outside a Florida casino when he was shot in the leg


The rapper Offset was ambushed by a “large group” of people who tried to rob him outside a Florida casino last week when he was shot in the leg, the FBI said Tuesday.

Federal investigators said that they are still searching for the suspects who assaulted Offset last Monday night outside of Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, just north of Miami. Throughout the assault, a single shot was fired into Offset’s leg before an unsuccessful attempt to remove the rapper’s watch, the statement said. Offset, who rose to fame as part of the influential hip-hop trio Migos, was hospitalized for a couple of days, but swiftly returned to the stage at a performance at a music festival at the University of Arkansas on Saturday.

The suspects fled the scene in two Chevrolet SUVs that went in separate directions: A black Suburban that fled towards Hollywood, Florida, and a Tahoe that fled southbound towards Miami.

Following the shooting, officers detained two people, but law enforcement hasn’t shared evidence to directly tying either one to the shooting.

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One of the people detained was rapper Lil Tjay, born Tione Jayden Merritt. He was arrested in connection with an altercation that occurred before the shooting, the Seminole Police Department in Florida said. He was charged with disorderly conduct and operating a vehicle without a valid license. His lawyer, Dawn M. Florio, told The Associated Press last week that Lil Tjay did not have a gun and was not charged with any weapons or gun-related crimes. He was swiftly released after posting bond.

Offset, born Kiari Kendrell Cephus, launched his career with Migos, one of the most popular hip-hop groups of all time. The Atlanta trio is celebrated for their rapid-fire triplet flow, an often-imitated delivery that changed the trajectory of trap.

The group had several multiplatinum selling singles, including “Bad and Boujee,” which went No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart, “Stir Fry,” and “Narcos.” Migos released four full-length albums across their career.

More than three years ago, Offset’s cousin Takeoff, another member of Migos, was shot and killed at a Houston bowling alley.

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Florida teenager charged with sexually assaulting and killing stepsister Anna Kepner on cruise ship

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Florida teenager charged with sexually assaulting and killing stepsister Anna Kepner on cruise ship


A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder and aggravated sexual abuse in Florida in the 6 November death of his 18-year-old stepsister on a Carnival cruise ship, the US justice department said Monday.

Timothy Hudson was initially charged in February and subsequently indicted on 10 March. But the breadth of the case was not known until a seal was lifted Friday, weeks after US district judge Beth Bloom in Miami said he would be prosecuted as an adult at the request of the government.

Anna Kepner, Hudson’s stepsister, had been traveling on the Carnival Horizon ship with her family. Before the ship was scheduled to return to Florida, her body was found concealed under a bed in a room she was sharing with two other teens, including the younger stepbrother.

The cause of Kepner’s death was determined to be mechanical asphyxia, which is when an object or physical force stops someone from breathing.

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Email and voicemail messages seeking comment from Hudson’s attorneys about the charges were not immediately returned Monday. Hudson, whose name was disclosed through his signature on documents filed in federal court, has remained free in the care of an uncle since his arrest in February.

Kepner’s father, Christopher Kepner, released a statement, saying the family was placing “trust in the justice system to pursue the truth with care and integrity”.

“At the same time, we are deeply troubled that, despite the seriousness of the charges, he has not been taken into custody,” Kepner said. “The situation is deeply painful and complex for the entire family.”

In a written statement, US attorney Jason Reding Quiñones said, “Our hearts go out to the victim’s family during this unimaginable loss. A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging serious offenses that allegedly occurred aboard a vessel in international waters.”

Kepner was a high school cheerleader at Temple Christian school in Titusville, Florida, about 40 miles (65 kilometres) east of Orlando. At her memorial service in November, family members encouraged people to wear bright colors instead of the traditional black “in honor of Anna’s bright and beautiful soul”.

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Teens are rarely prosecuted in federal court. Hudson pleaded not guilty when he was initially charged in February, though the proceedings were not public because of his age – and neither were court documents. He was seen at the courthouse wearing a ball cap and a hoodie pulled tightly around his face.

A judge on 6 February said Hudson must wear an electronic tether while living with an uncle. The order was changed to allow him to join his father for a few days recently at a landscaping business, newly unsealed court records show.

Prosecutors objected to Hudson’s release, citing dangerousness, and asked a judge Monday to revisit that order now that he has been charged as an adult. Defense lawyers were given a week to respond.

“He committed these crimes against a victim with whom he had no apparent relational strife, and whom he was being raised to view as a sibling,” assistant US attorney Alejandra López said in a court filing.



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16-year-old from Florida charged with sexually assaulting, killing stepsister on Carnival Cruise ship

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16-year-old from Florida charged with sexually assaulting, killing stepsister on Carnival Cruise ship


MIAMI – A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder and aggravated sexual abuse in Florida in the death of his 18-year-old stepsister on a Carnival Cruise ship, the U.S. Justice Department said Monday.

The teen, identified by the government as T.H., was initially charged as a juvenile on Feb. 2, but the case was sealed until U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom ordered that he would be prosecuted as an adult, the department said.

An email and voicemail seeking comment from T.H.’s lawyer about the indictment were not immediately returned.

Anna Kepner had been traveling on the Carnival Horizon ship in November with her family. Before the ship was scheduled to return to Florida, her body was found concealed under a bed in a room she was sharing with two other teens, including the younger stepbrother.

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The cause of Kepner’s Nov. 6 death was determined to be mechanical asphyxia, which is when an object or physical force stops someone from breathing.

Kepner was a high school cheerleader at Temple Christian School in Titusville, Florida, some 40 miles (65 kilometers) east of Orlando. At her memorial service in November, family members encouraged people to wear bright colors instead of the traditional black “in honor of Anna’s bright and beautiful soul.”

Teens prosecuted in federal court are extremely rare. T.H. was seen at the Miami courthouse on Feb. 6, wearing a ball cap and a hoodie pulled tightly around his face. But his status at that time was not fully known because his age barred public disclosures by his lawyer, the government or the court.

Experts believe the case is in federal court, and not a state court where teens are commonly prosecuted, because Kepner died in international waters.

Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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