Olivia Dunne reacts to LSU finishing regular season as SEC co-champions

Olivia Dunne expressed her thoughts as LSU Gymnastics closed out the regular season with a share of the SEC title. The Lady Tigers beat Auburn 198.200-197.550 in their regular season finale on Friday (March 15), but Dunne was just watching on the sidelines.

Dunne has been dealing with a knee injury and has missed seven consecutive meets, including Friday night's meet. However, she was present with her family at senior night last week and cheered on the Tigers as they tied with the Oklahoma Sooners for the regular-season SEC title.

It marked the first regular season title for the Tigers in six years, having earlier won it twice in 2017 and 2018. Dunne was joyous over the victory, and as the LSU Gymnastics posted pictures of the team's celebration on Instagram, she commented:

"Keep the good times rolling."

Olivia Dunne's comment

Dunne is in her fifth and final year with the LSU after graduating with a bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies last summer. She is now planning to do a master's degree, and it would likely also be the end of her gymnastics career as the 22-year-old has no intentions of doing elite gymnastics.

While it's unclear when Dunne will return from the injury, LSU head coach Jay Clark has expressed optimism about her recovery. She could compete in at least one event during the SEC Championships on Saturday (March 22). The Lady Tigers will then get back to their NCAA title defense next month.

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Olivia Dunne calls out misogynist trolls over returning to LSU for fifth-year

Olivia Dunne at the Mardi Gras 2025 - Source: Getty

Olivia Dunne has faced a significant amount of criticism for returning to the LSU Gymnastics for a fifth season. While the majority of collegiate athletes have four years of NCAA eligibility, Dunne and all the other athletes who were enrolled during the COVID-19 pandemic received an extra year.

Despite that, the trolling hasn't stopped, and Dunne recently suggested that the criticism was misogynistic in nature.

“I only ever see this comment on female athletes’ posts. Football and basketball players redshirt and take fifth years all the time," she argued (via LSU Reveille).

Dunne joined the Tigers in the 2020-21 season, and while she seemingly didn't initially plan to return for the fifth year, the gymnast said helping the LSU win its first-ever women's NCAA Gymnastics Championships rejuvenated her love for the sport.