Maile O’Keefe Becomes Second Pac-12 Specialist Of The Week For Red Rocks
Feb 7, 2023, 2:10 PM
SALT LAKE CITY – Maile O’Keefe earned the Pac-12’s Specialist of the Week award after posting a perfect 10 on beam last weekend against UCLA.
She is the second gymnast for the Red Rocks to win the award this season with Kara Eaker who also scored a perfect 10 earlier at the Best of Utah Meet. The perfect score was O’Keefe’s fifth career perfect 10 on the event and first weekly award of the 2023 season. O’Keefe also finished the meet with the high score on bars with a 9.950.
Utah matched their school record team score on 49.775 on beam in last Friday’s meet that was set back in 2020. The Red Rocks ultimately finished the day posting their highest score of the 2023 season so far with a 198.200 against the Bruins.
Your @pac12conference Specialist of the Week!
🔗 | https://t.co/on159oc6AG#trUSt pic.twitter.com/fS5MateTS0
— Utah Gymnastics (@UtahGymnastics) February 7, 2023
Maile “Ice” O’Keefe
Last weekend the Red Rocks celebrated the legacy of their long-standing intro music- the score from the 1986 film, “Top Gun” with a themed night around the classic movie. The girls came into the arena wearing aviator sunglasses and warm-up shirts that played off of the movie logo while various songs from the hit film were played.
Swoop was also dressed for the occasion in a full-on aviation suite and sunglasses to match.
It’s #TopGuns night here at the Hunty so naturally @SwoopHawk aka #PrettyBird dressed appropriately for the occasion.#GoUtes #RedRocks #trUSt pic.twitter.com/lnQGGXfJtC
— Michelle Bodkin (@BodkinKSLsports) February 4, 2023
Part of the fun included the entire team choosing call-names that fit their personalities. O’Keefe opted to go with “Ice” due to being so clutch as the anchor on beam.
“Usually if I have to hit a really clutch beam routine when we end on a go-away meet, people say I have ‘ice in my veins’,” O’Keefe said of her call-name.
O’Keefe certainly lived up to the nickname last Friday being her usual solid-self on beam along with bars and posting a season-best on floor of 9.925.
The talented gymnast now sits at 13-13 on her routines for the season as well as a remarkable 145-146 for her career. O’Keefe has not scored below a 9.950 so far this season and is one perfect 10 away from tying the school record with legendary Red Rock, Theresa Kulikowski.
Michelle Bodkin is the Utah Utes Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of both the Crimson Corner Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and The Saturday Show (Saturday from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.) on The KSL Sports Zone. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram: @BodkinKSLsports
