The No. 4 Arkansas gymnastics team continued to dazzle Friday night, defeating Auburn in front of a record-tying crowd at a sold-out Barnhill Arena.
The Gymbacks (2-0-1, 2-0-1 SEC) outscored the Tigers (1-5, 0-3 SEC) on bars and floor, soaring to a 197.225-196.675 victory, their first at home against Auburn since 2018. It was also the third straight meet with a score above 197, a feat they have reached only once before, in 2021, also under Head Coach Jordyn Wieber.
A capacity crowd of 7,147 was on hand, matching the program’s record inside Barnhill, set against LSU last season.
Eight Gymbacks posted top three finishes across all four events, which included a three-way tie for the bars title, with scores of 9.900 for junior Maddie Jones and sophomores Cally Swaney and Reese Drotar. Jones closed the event with a sensational, clutch routine, which ended with a stuck dismount, giving the Hogs a season-high 49.400 in the event.
Once again, the Arkansas floor party was the highlight of the show, with the scores growing as the event transpired. Junior Kalyxta Gamiao led off with a solid 9.850, followed by freshman Hailey Klein‘s career-high 9.875, and Jones’ 9.900, After junior Leah Smith posted a score of 9.825, sophomore Lauren Williams secured her second floor title of the year with a stellar 9.950. Sophomore Frankie Price finished the rotation with a 9.900, giving the Gymbacks a total score of 49.475, their second-highest mark on the apparatus this season.
Smith and Price posted team-highs of 9.875 on the vault, followed closely by sophomore Cami Weaver and junior Makie Sedlacek, with scores 9.850. On the beam, Gamiao and Jones paced Arkansas, each scoring 9.875.
Arkansas will now hit the road for the next four meets, beginning with trips to No. 3 LSU and No. 8 Florida the next two Friday nights. After competing in a couple of Texas tri-meets the following week, the Gymbacks will return home to host No. 7 Kentucky on Feb. 23, airing live on the SEC Network.