Emotional Scenes at Clemson University as Gymnastics Star Drops Tearful News Amid Ongoing NCAA Season

The NCAA season is progressing in full swing! One after the other, colleges are bringing the finest talent to the gymnastics mats. But with all the highs, there are, unfortunately, some tough lows too— injuries being one of them. And that’s the fate that one of Clemson Athletics’ best met with recently.

Over four rotations, the Clemson Tigers had sealed a 195.350-195.275 win over the Pittsburgh Panthers on Friday. The Tigers were particularly good on the floor with a season-high 49.225 finish. Yet, the jubilation of their latest win against Pittsburgh would have crashing down, as one of Clemson’s star players has now declared herself retired hurt for the entire season.

Trinity Brown, a Clemson Tiger took to Instagram on February 1 to share the tough update, writing, “This is the last thing i was expecting to post, but unfortunately i have ruptured my achilles tendon and will be out for the remainder of the season.” Although, a crestfallen Brown still hoped to see the good in it. She reflected, “God gives the toughest battles to his strongest soldiers,” a reminder to everyone that she’s staying positive.

And she made sure to show love to those who’ve been by her side. For her Clemson tribe, she penned, “While this is hard to process, I cannot say thank you enough to my Clemson family, friends, teammates, and coaches for the unwavering support, love, and kindness.” 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by trinity (@trinityjanaee)

Well, this indeed is a big blow to the side. In just the recent game against the Panthers, Trinity Brown had come out a star! She’d leadoff on the vault with a 9.825 on her Yurchenko Full to tie a season-high. In fact, she was very hopeful for her second year at Clemson. No wonder she added a post on her Instagram in April 2024, saying, “Thanks Clemson for the best first year. Warning: we’re coming back even harder next season.” Guess those plans will have to be on hold for sometime.

And this is not just the case with the Clemson Tigers, but also LSU. Here’s why they are dealing with another injury scare to one of their pro gymnasts.

Another gymnastics team suffers a similar fate as Clemson

The LSU gymnastics team has also been battling an injury crisis of sorts. Their fifth-year senior, Haleigh Bryant ended up straining her Ulnar Collateral Ligament (UCL) right in the first pre-season exhibition thrown by LSU, namely the Gymnastics 101 meet. While she is gradually returning to events, having put up a show on the vault and beam, the team is awaiting her to reach peak fitness or at least start performing on the vault.

Another player from LSU whose return is awaited due to injury is KJ johnson. Despite her blazing performance last year, surprisingly, KJ Johnson has been missing from the team’s roster and the poster this season. And all Jay Clarke has said up until now is, “Nothing really to share more than I already have on either of those fronts… I haven’t gotten the full report from the medical people,” when asked about the senior KJ Johnson’s return on the mat during a press meet. So these conditions of gymnasts do put their teams in a tough spot for now. Let us know what you think below!