Coach Tim Garrison, right, celebrated after Anna Flynn Cashion's winning vault at Excite Night. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Anna Flynn Cashion’s collegiate career could not have started any better when she won the vault title in her first match in 2025. However, she competed in only three meets in 2025 after fracturing her foot and went about 11 months before she got to compete again.
She started her sophomore season with a bang winning the vault title a second straight year at the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad with a score of 9.875. She came back the next match on UK’s Excite Night to win vault again with a career-high score of 9.950. She hit 9.875 again at No. 2 LSU last week to tie for third and tonight will be competing against 2025 national champion Oklahoma, the nation’s No. 1 team this year, in Memorial Coliseum.
Kentucky coach Tim Garrison was not surprised with the way Cashion has started the season based on what he had seen in practice. The sophomore from Cornelius, N.C. ranks No. 9 nationally on the event with an average of 9.900.
“She does one of the biggest vaults of that type in the country that’s been done and is currently being done. It does not surprise me one bit for her to go out there and perform it to the level she did tonight, and stick it (the landing),” Garrison said after UK’s Excite Night.
Garrison said she had some “technical issues” with her vault after that career opening win in 2025 and then ended up hurting herself in training.
“It was just something she was vaulting and pounding and eventually had to have surgery (on her broken foot). Having her back and competing the way she is is very satisfying for her and us,” the UK coach said. “We are excited to have her back and want to add her in more events because she’s capable of more than just vaulting. You’ll see more out of her going forward.”
Garrison wants to evaluate her progress before using her on bars or floor exercise like she did last season.
Teammates are glad to have her back. Junior Delaynee Rodriguez calls her an “amazing vaulter” and All-American Creslyn Brose believes she is “one of the best vaulters” in the NCAA.
“We’re really proud of the injuries she has overcome. I know last year wasn’t easy for her, but she kept a positive mindset,” Brose said.
The sophomore from North Carolina appreciates the support she has received from teammates
“I’m just learning to relax and just have a good time out there and do it for my team,” Cashion said. “When I go out there no matter if I have had some rough times, I know I have had great vaults for the past couple of weeks and know my work will give me good results.”
Cashion never lost faith that she would regain her skills and ability to compete again when she was injured.
“I know that the Lord had a plan for me when I was taken out (by injury) and I was able to come back even better and have consistency and peace of mind. Even though I had some battles that I fought, I was able to come back and show that you can do it no matter what happens.”
Cashion credits junior Sharon Lee and her roommates, sophomores Alyssa Orgen and Chesney Bennett, for helping her “come back to reality and just calm down” if things were not going well” for her.
“Last year was really hard for me but it was also kind of nice to be able to watch everybody else compete,” she said. “Everybody knew that I had it in me to come back and they made that known. They were always supportive knowing that I would come back.”
She is as anxious to do more as Garrison is for her to do more to help the team.
“I’m working on bars, dialing in my dismount, trying to put that together, and then I’m hoping to start training floor again soon,” the sophomore gymnast said. “I’ve been trying to ease back in with my foot and making sure that I’m not taking on too much at once. I’ve been taking my time with that.”
She limits her vaults each day to five unless she’s having a “good day” and may go up to seven.
“But I try not to pass the limit of seven just to keep myself in a good place because the hard landings can be a lot on your body,” Cashion said.
Cashion explained that perfecting her vaulting skills started in high school and has not been a short process.
“I am excited to just be back out competing and showing everybody what I can do,” Cashion said. ‘I actually didn’t start gymnastics until I was 7. My parents threw me in there and it has worked out very well for me.”
