TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The LSU gymnastics team completed its regular season with a fourth-place finish at the Southeastern Conference Championships in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Saturday night and now looks forward to the 1999 NCAA Region 4 Championships to be held in Baton Rouge on April 10.
After counting a fall on vault in the fourth rotation, LSU lost its chance at a third-place finish. The Tigers’ 195.375 was enough for a fourth place overall. Georgia won its 10th league title with a 197.475, followed by Alabama (196.775) and Florida (195.875). Kentucky (194.875) was fifth and Auburn was sixth (194.000).
“Vault devastated us,” LSU head coach D-D Breaux said. “I felt like we had the strongest lineup we’ve had all season on vault and two juniors sat down two vaults. You just don’t have two seasoned competitors do that in a meet like this.”
“We’re looking forward to intense training these next two weeks,” Breaux said. “We’re going to find some people who want to vault and will step up in the lineup.”
LSU’s Abbey Burns finished fifth overall with a 39.275, earning All-SEC honors all-around. Georgia’s Karin Lichey won the all-around with a 39.675. She was named SEC Athlete of the Year while Auburn’s retiring coach, Robert Dillard, took Coach of the Year honors.
“Abbey did an outstanding job tonight. I just wish her teammates would have backed her up on vault,” Breaux said. “She along with Stacey and Beth could have all placed all-around if every one of them vaulted.”
LSU began the meet on the apparatus that has been its calling card the entire season – beam. Under the pressure of an SEC Championship meet berore a hostile crowd, the Tigers’ second-ranked beam team responded by hitting six consecutive routines without batting an eye.
The Tigers scored a 48,975 in the typically-conservative first-rotation scoring. Junior Stacey Wegener led LSU with a 9.85 followed by Beth Boudreaux and Burns’ 9.80. Through one rotation LSU trailed only Alabama. Georgia and Auburn began with byes.
After taking a bye in the second rotation, LSU returned to the floor exercise for the third rotation.
On floor, LSU improved with every routine, beginning with Sharene Mamby’s 9.7 and ending with Burns and Wegener’s 9.85. In between, Colleen Barger added a 9.75, Boudreaux hit hit for 9.80 and Kim Descalopoulis scored a 9.825.
Halfway through the meet, Georgia led with a 98.425, followed by Alabama (98.30), LSU (98.05), Kentucky (97.60) and Auburn (97.250).
LSU had its most difficulty on vault in the fourth rotation, as the Tigers were forced to count a fall and scored a 48.125. Plagued throughout the season by injuries on the event, the Tigers were led by Burns’ near-perfect 9.775 (out of 9.8) and freshman Nicki Arnstad’s 9.75.
The Tigers took a bye in the fifth rotation while Florida and Alabama finished the meet scoring 195.875 and 196.500, respectively.
In the final rotation, LSU finished on a positive note, scoring a meet-high 49.150 on bars. Burns and Boudreaux led LSU with a pair of 9.85s, while Canadians, MacEachern and Degteva, scored a pair of 9.825’s.
LSU returns to action April 10 at 6 p.m. when the Tigers play host to the 1999 NCAA Region 4 Championship in the Maravich Assembly Center. Tickets to the Championships are available now at the LSU Ticket Office or by calling (225) 388-2184.