Maddie Williams

Although Cal entered the semifinals as a strong contender for a spot in the national final, fatal mistakes ended the team’s historic season.

Cal begins the end of its season Thursday at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, looking for its first NCAA finals appearance and its best finish in history.

The Bears’ final score of 198.075 is both its highest away score and postseason score in program history, and it took first among all four regional competitions.

Cal finished third at the Pac-12 championship with a 197.825, its highest road score this season and the best conference championship mark in program history.

Over the weekend, Cal showed it has all the makings of a national championship contender, breaking several program and NCAA records.

With scores from the two meets, Cal could drop a 197.525 and a 197.6 from its national qualifying score, raising its ceiling before the Pac-12 championship.

While LSU ultimately won the meet, the real victory arguably belonged to Cal’s eMjae Frazier, who recorded the first perfect 10 on floor in school history.

When Cal, LSU, Washington and George Washington meet in Baton Rouge for the Purple and Gold Classic, each team will likely be competing against itself.

After two decisive wins against Stanford and ASU, Cal narrowly maintained its undefeated streak at Oregon State on Friday, tying the Beavers 197.375-197.375.

When Arizona State comes to Haas on Saturday, Cal will look to match its season-high score of 197.525 in front of what it hopes will be another record crowd.