BATON ROUGE — For the second time in three seasons the Utah gymnastics team came to the Maravich Assembly Center holding the No. 1 ranking in the nation. And for the second time in three years they left on the short end of a close decision, as LSU shocked top-ranked Utah on Friday evening in improbable fashion.
With its top gymnast sitting on the side of the floor with an ice pack on her right foot, LSU called on true freshman Rachel Franzella to deliver in the clutch. It was simple if Franzella scored a 9.85 or higher, the Tigers would pull the upset.
In the first non-exhibition performance of her career, Franzella did just that, delivering a 9.85 that propelled the Tigers to a 196.125-196.100 victory over Utah before 1,899 fans. Franzella had been slated to compete in the exhibition, but a mid-foot sprain to the right ankle of Nicki Arnstad forced LSU head coach D-D Breaux to make a late substitution.
“That was just an incredible finish, it was an amazing win for us,” said Breaux. “I’m a loss for words and that doesn’t happen often. For Rachel to step up and deliver that score was amazing. I think we put ourselves in position to win by competing well over the first three rotations. Then we were able to close it out when they came storming back.”
LSU got off to a strong start, posting its second highest score of the season on vault, a solid 49.100. Marina Degteva nailed a near perfect vault to the tune of 9.925 to lead the way, while Shanyn MacEachern and Kristin Uransky turned in scores of 9.85 and 9.825 respectively.
At the same time, Utah struggled out of the blocks, scoring only a 48.600 on beam after counting a fall when two of its first three competitors fell.
A week ago the bars were the difference between victory and defeat in the Tigers’ match-up with Florida. The Tigers struggled, scoring only a 47.875 and lost the meet by the tightest of margins. On Friday night, however, they made amends, scoring a 49.175.
After a fall by Nicki Arnstad to open the rotation, the Tigers nailed five strong routines, as Brooke Cazeaux followed with a 9.825 before Uransky came up with a career-best 9.90. Degteva followed with a 9.850 and Beth Boudreaux and Sharene Mamby closed the door on a strong rotation with identical 9.80s.
With Utah scoring only 48.900 on vault, LSU staked itself to a 98.275-97.500 lead at the midway point.
The Utes closed the gap as the teams moved to the third rotation, coming up with a 49.250 on floor behind a trio of 9.875s from Theresa Kulikowski, Deidra Graham and Melissa Vituj.
Despite Utah’s strong effort on floor, the Tigers kept the damage minimal, performing admirably on beam. After a fall by Lindsay Beddow in the second routine, LSU nailed four straight routines to post a 48.900.
Rebecca Lightsey closed out a strong rotation with a 9.90 in only her second outing of the year after missing most of the 2001 season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Nicki Arnstad added a 9.85 in the fifth spot, but it was a costly injury, as the senior suffered her injury during the routine.
The Tigers held a .425 advantage heading into the final rotation. Utah put the pressure on the Tigers, coming up with a 49.350 on beam behind a 9.95 from Kulikowski. LSU answered with a 48.950 and held on by .025 when Franzella delivered her clutch performance.
The road ahead gets no easier for the Tigers next weekend, as fifth-ranked Alabama comes to the Assembly Center on Friday night at 7 p.m. The meet will be broadcast by ESPN and aired on a tape-delayed basis.