Tag: sec gymnastics

Haleigh Bryant, Jay Clark headline postseason SEC awards for LSU gymnastics

The SEC champions dominate the postseason awards, and five Tigers made the All-SEC team.

LSU gymnastics captured its first SEC title since 2019 over the weekend, and now the Tigers head into their NCAA regional in Fayetteville, Arkansas, as a No. 1 national seed.

The Tigers have a program-best National Qualifying Score of 198.215, and that’s in large part thanks to superstar [autotag]Haleigh Bryant[/autotag]. She set the program record for Perfect 10s this season, and she’s been named the SEC Gymnast of the Year.

She’s joined as a postseason award winner by her head coach, [autotag]Jay Clark[/autotag], who was named the Co-SEC Coach of the Year alongside Kentucky’s Tim Garrison.

Further, five total Tigers were named to the All-SEC team, including Bryant as well as [autotag]Ashley Cowan[/autotag], [autotag]Kiya Johnson[/autotag], [autotag]KJ Johnson[/autotag] and [autotag]Konnor McClain[/autotag].

McClain was also named a member of the All-Freshman team.

 

LSU begins its postseason run in Fayetteville next Thursday, April 4, at 7 p.m. CT.

 

 

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LSU gymnastics earns top seed at SEC Championships next weekend

The Tigers have earned the top seed at the SEC Championships in New Orleans on Saturday.

The LSU gymnastics team capped off the regular season on Friday night with a victory on its home floor over North Carolina, and now it’s gearing up for Saturday’s SEC Championships after concluding the season with a 12-3 (5-2 SEC) record.

The Tigers rank No. 3 nationally, and with the top National Qualifying Score in the conference, they’ve earned the top seed at SECs. LSU will compete in the second session on Saturday at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, which begins at 7 p.m. CT.

LSU will be joined in that session by the other top-four seeds in the league: Florida, Kentucky and Alabama.

The Tigers are seeking their fifth conference title and the first since 2019, which was the last time they were the top seed and the last time the event was hosted in New Orleans.

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LSU superstar Haleigh Bryant earns 10th career SEC Gymnast of the Week award

Hailey Bryant recorded a season-best score in Friday night’s win against Alabama.

The No. 1 gymnast in America continues to add hardware to her collection.

On Tuesday, LSU’s [autotag]Haleigh Bryant[/autotag] was named the SEC Gymnast of the Week for the fifth time this season and the 10th time in her illustrious career. She leads the conference through all nine weeks of competition, and she’s coming off a season-best 39.850 as she helped lead the Tigers to a top-10 win over Alabama on Friday night.

She posted scores of 9.900 or higher in every event in that meet, including her 14th career perfect score on the floor. Her four titles in the meet put her at 78 in her career, which ranks sixth in program history.

With two weeks remaining before the SEC Championships, Bryant and the Tigers will be back in action at the Raising Cane’s River Center on Friday night for the Podium Challenge, which will feature No. 14 Auburn, George Washington and Texas Women’s.

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LSU’s Haleigh Bryant takes home another SEC Gymnast of the Week award

Haleigh Bryant became the first gymnast in LSU history to record a perfect 10 in every event in her career on Friday night.

For the second time in as many weeks, LSU star [autotag]Haleigh Bryant[/autotag] has been named the SEC Gymnast of the Week. It’s the fourth time she’s received the honor this season and the ninth time in her career.

Bryant was the Tigers’ top performer in a win over No. 19 Georgia on Friday night, recording an all-around score of 39.750. She also took home titles in the vault, beam and floor events.

She recorded a perfect score on the beam, giving her a gym slam — a perfect 10 in every event. She’s the first LSU gymnast to do so and the 14th gymnast in NCAA history. Bryant now has 13 career perfect 10s, the most in program history.

Bryant has ranked as the top gymnast in the nation for four weeks in a row now, and she will be back in action with the No. 3-ranked Tigers on Friday night as they return home to host Auburn.

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Gabby McLaughlin wins SEC Specialist of the Week

The senior captured two event titles in Auburn’s quad meet win last Friday.

No. 14 Auburn gymnastics posted its season-high overall score on Friday, and one of its best competitors is being recognized due to her strong efforts.

The SEC announced Tuesday that senior [autotag]Gabby McLaughlin[/autotag] has won SEC Specialist of the Week after winning two event titles in Auburn’s quad meet win over Fisk, Temple, and Talladega last Friday, where the team scored 197.425.

McLaughlin scored a 9.925 on the beam in Friday’s competition and reached a career-high on floor with a 9.95. Floor has been her strongest event this season, as she has scored a 9.9 or higher in four straight meets. Between floor, beam, and bars, McLaughlin has posted 9.9 eight times this season.

McLaughlin and the Tigers host No. 7 Alabama on Friday for what is expected to be a solid meet between two of the nation’s best squads. Alabama averages an overall score of 197.285, with bars being its strongest event with an average score of 49.460. As for Auburn, the Tigers average an all-around score of 196.950, with beam being their strongest.

The Tigers and Tide square off on Friday at 8 p.m. CT at Neville Arena.

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LSU gymnastics’ Konnor McClain takes home weekly award

LSU’s Konnor McClain recorded a perfect 10 on bars at last weekend’s quad meet.

LSU gymnastics star freshmen took home some SEC honors this week with [autotag]Konnor MccLain[/autotag] winning SEC Specialist of The Week.

McClain notched a perfect 10 on bars last weekend at the Sprouts Collegiate Quad Meet, where the Tigers finished second, behind Oklahoma but ahead of Utah and UCLA.

McClain’s 10 earned hers the bars title at the meet and continued a strong start to her career. McClain’s performance made her the seventh gymnast in program history to record a perfect score on bars and the first to do it away from home since 2019.

With the help of McClain, LSU posted its third-highest bars score in program history.

LSU’s off to a strong start after winning the season opener against Ohio State and following it up with second place at the quad meet.

The Tigers are set to begin conference play on Friday with Kentucky visiting the PMAC. It’s a top-10 battle with LSU sitting at No. 8 and Kentucky at No. 6.

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Auburn gymnastics vs. Kentucky: How to watch Friday’s home opener

The No. 11 Tigers host No. 9 Kentucky on Friday for the 2024 home opener at Neville Arena.

The No. 11 Auburn Tigers face the No. 9 Kentucky Wildcats on Friday night at Neville Arena, and if you’re wondering how you can watch the action live, you’ve come to the right place.

After a successful start to the 2024 season last weekend in Las Vegas, the No. 11 Auburn Tigers are set to host the No. 9 Kentucky Wildcats for the home opener at Neville Arena.

Auburn scored 196.600 in their debut meet, the Mean Girls Super 16 Championships. The Tigers came in third place, defeating then-No. 5 UCLA as part of a quad-meet session with No. 4 Alabama and No. 6 California. Kentucky, who participated in the same competition, scored 196.775. The Wildcats defeated No. 14 Michigan State and No. 20 Michigan as part of their session and lost only to No. 1 Oklahoma.

Head coach Jeff Graba welcomes the idea of hosting a top-10 squad for the home opener.

“I think it’ll be a really good test,” Graba said of Kentucky. “We’re just excited to get in Neville Arena. This is what they all signed up for. You can taste the excitement in our practice facility. I love the fact that we have top 10 teams coming. My goal is to beat them in the end of the year.”

Below, you will find everything you need to know ahead of Friday’s meet between No. 11 Auburn and No. 9 Kentucky such as a broadcast guide, last week’s leaders, and key gymnasts to watch.

Auburn gymnastics checks in at No. 11 in latest ranking by Road to Nationals

The Tigers have another challenging meet ahead of them as they host No. 9 Kentucky on Friday.

After a successful opening weekend in Las Vegas, Auburn gymnastics is nearing a top-10 ranking.

Auburn posted a 196.600 in last weekend’s Mean Girls Super 16 Championships, beating then-No. 5 UCLA in the process. The Tigers’ high score in Saturday’s competition pushes them to No. 11 in this week’s rankings from RoadToNationals.com. Rankings from Road To Nationals are based on average all-around scores every week.

“It’s obviously really early in the season and I’m more interested in how we’re ranked closer to the end,” Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said of the rankings. “However, I think being ranked 11th right now is exciting for such a team that has many new faces and many experienced gymnasts in new positions. It was a great start to the season in Vegas, but we had some work to do as we enter SEC competition.”

This week’s rankings are dominated by SEC squads, as six of the conference’s seven programs reside in the top 25. Missouri, Alabama, and LSU check in at No. 3-5 respectively. Georgia slides into the No. 15 slot this week.

Auburn’s next opponent, Kentucky, checks in at No. 9 this week after scoring 196.775 in their opening weekend meet in Las Vegas. The Wildcats finished second behind No. 1 Oklahoma and finished ahead of No. 14 Michigan State and No. 20 Michigan in a quad meet.

The Tigers square off with Kentucky on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. CT at Neville Arena in Auburn.

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Gymnastics opens season with 196.600 at Mean Girls Super 16 Championships

The No. 17 Tigers open the season by taking down No. 5 UCLA in Las Vegas.

The No. 17 Auburn Gymnastics squad opened the season by scoring 196.600 in its first competition of the season.

Auburn traveled to Las Vegas to compete in the Mean Girls Super 16 Championships on Saturday to take part in a quad match with No. 5 UCLA, No. 7 California, and No. 8 Alabama. The Tigers finished third in the meet, defeating UCLA (196.550) and finished behind Alabama (197.125) and California (196.850).

“Overall, I feel like we just had a really good night,” head coach Jeff Graba said following the meet. “I’m really happy with the fight that this team showed. We have a lot of new people in new positions, but I really felt like they stayed focused throughout all four events. I think that is going to bode well for the future.”

[autotag]Sara Hubbard[/autotag] carried the Tigers on vault by scoring a 9.875. [autotag]Sydney Schumaker[/autotag], [autotag]Julianne Huff[/autotag], and [autotag]Olivia Hollingsworth[/autotag] also scored a 9.8 in the event. On bars, three Tigers reached a 9.9 or better with [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag] earning a 9.925.

Hollingsworth and [autotag]Gabby McLaughlin[/autotag] each scored a 9.850 on beam. Hollingsworth also joined Stevens by scoring a 9.9 on floor to close the meet.

Hollingsworth ended the event with the fourth-highest all-around score with a 39.450. She is expected to be one of the heavy hitters this season following the departures of [autotag]Suni Lee[/autotag] and [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag]. She has trained hard this offseason, and her work paid off in Las Vegas.

“I’ve just been working hard and so I decided just to trust my training this year,” Hollingsworth said Saturday. “I know that I can score well and do my routines really well, so I just trusted myself tonight and it paid off.”

The Tigers open the home slate next Friday against No. 9 Kentucky. The meet begins at 7:30 p.m. CT inside Neville Arena, and will be broadcasted by SEC Network.

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Auburn checks in at No. 17 in WCGA preseason rankings

Auburn, as well as the rest of the SEC, is set to be extremely competitive again in 2024.

Preseason rankings were released Friday and the Auburn Tigers are ranked No. 17 according to the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association’s poll.

The SEC is set to be a very competitive environment this year, as all eight teams rank in the top 20, and four are ranked in the top 10. The Florida Gators are the conference’s highest squad, checking in at No. 2 in the initial poll.

Without [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag] and [autotag]Sunisa Lee[/autotag] on this year’s roster, Auburn head coach [autotag]Jeff Graba[/autotag] knows that his team will have to perform at a high level each week to achieve their goals for this season.

“The SEC is always very competitive, and this year is no different,” Graba said in a press release. “It will be a tight season once again this year with every conference team in the top 20. It will be a very exciting year and we’re looking forward to getting the season started!”

Despite Lee and Gobourne not returning this year, Auburn returns several key performers such as [autotag]Gabby McLaughlin[/autotag], [autotag]Olivia Hollingsworth[/autotag], [autotag]Sophia Groth[/autotag], and [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag]. Several talented transfers have also joined the roster this offseason, such as [autotag]Anna Hill [/autotag](Temple) and [autotag]Madelynn Crow[/autotag] (Georgia).

Auburn will officially open the season on January 6th at the 2024 Super 16 Challenge in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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