BATON ROUGE – On Senior Night in the Maravich Assembly Center, the LSU gymnastics team looked to finish off its home schedule against Southeast Missouri State after going through nearly a week of practice without head coach D-D Breaux.
Breaux spent a majority of the practice week away from the gym after the death of a close friend. The Tigers (9-3, 3-2 SEC) defeated SEMO, 194.500-192.425, in front of 1,194 Friday night, however, the team was a little out of focus throughout the meet.
I think the fact that I was out of the gym this week had the team a little shaken tonight, but this is nothing that cannot be fixed, Breaux said. We re just going to return to the gym and work on the little glitches in our routines. We ll be fine.
Abbey Burns, Colleen Barger and freshman Marina Degteva competed all-around for the Tigers, finishing first, third and fourth, respectively. Burns title was her second in a row.
This was the first all-around competition of Degteva’s short career as a Tiger.
LSU opened the meet by tying a season high, 48.90, on vault. The Tigers were led by Kim Descalopoulis who scored the third-consecutive 9.90, a perfect score for the vault she competes. Burns added a 9.85, Degteva scored a 9.625 in the first vault of her career, and freshman Nicki Arnstad came back from a five-week absence to score 9.775.
The Tigers led SEMO, 48.90-47.925, through one rotation.
In the second rotation, the Tigers overcame two falls on the uneven bars to score a 48.775, including a 9.925 by Sharene Mamby and a 9.90 by Degteva. Beth Boudreaux added a 9.825 to pace the Tigers.
Through two rotations, LSU led the Otahkians, 97.675-95.950.
For only the fourth time this season, the No. 1-ranked LSU beam lineup had to overcome a fall off the balance beam. After the first Tiger fell, LSU was perfect until the final competitor’s dismount. Yet, for the first time this season, LSU was forced to count a beam fall and scored a 48.875.
The Tigers were led on the apparatus by Boudreaux’s 9.925 and Wegener’s 9.90. LSU continued to lead, 146.550-144.100.
In the final rotation, LSU finished the meet on a sour note, scoring a 47.950 on the floor.
LSU returns to action Saturday, March 26, in the Southeastern Conference Championships to be held in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The final meet in the Maravich Assembly Center will be the NCAA Region 4 Championships on April 10, the first round of the Women’s Gymnastics National Championship.
Tickets to the Regional Championships are available through the LSU Ticket Office or by calling 388-2184.