BATON ROUGE — A busy weekend for the LSU gymnastics squad paid off when the team jumped three spots to No. 5 in the national rankings.
The Tigers, thanks in part to two 10.0 scores by junior Ashleigh Clare-Kearney, defeated Michigan State, 197.775-196.200, last Friday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. The team posted the second highest overall total in school history, and notched season-high scores on the vault (49.525) and on the floor (49.550).
Last Sunday, the Tigers defeated Centenary, 197.050-193.125, in Shreveport, La, notching a season-high on the bars (49.475).
With the two 197-plus scores, the Tigers’ RQS jumped from 196.000 to 196.496.
Georgia (197.215), Utah (197.030), Florida (196.915) and Michigan (196.640) held the top four spots for the third straight week. LSU jumped SEC rival Alabama, who finished sixth with an RQS of 196.420.
Oregon State (196.355), UCLA (196.255), Stanford (196.165) and Oklahoma (196.095) round out the top 10 in this week’s polls.
For the third straight week, LSU placed fourth on the vault with an RQS of 49.220.
However, the Tigers found themselves gaining ground in the other three events. The Tigers jumped to No. 5 on the bars with a 49.240 RQS. The squad placed fifth on the floor after placing seventh last week. Their RQS is a 49.220. On the beam, the Tigers jumped from No. 15 to No. 7, with an RQS of 49.005.
Individually, Ashleigh Clare-Kearney stayed put at No. 2 in the all-around this week with an RQS of 39.520. She posted one of the best individual meets in school history against Michigan State, scoring a 39.800 in the all-around. That score ties her for the third-highest all-around score in school history.
Clare-Kearney did jump a spot to No. 1 on the vault with a 9.945. She also jumped to No. 5 on the floor with a 9.905. The junior from Manchester, Conn. is also tied with teammate Kristi Esposito and three others at No. 11 on the beam with an average of 9.860.
Susan Jackson fell in the all-around rankings to No. 13 with a 39.305. After posting back-to-back 9.975 scores on the floor, the sophomore from Spring, Texas found herself tied for No.11 on the floor with an RQS of 9.885. Additionally, she is tied for No. 16 on the vault with a 9.875.
Also, freshman Nicole Lyons made her debut in the national polls this week, tying for No. 19 on the beam with a 9.845.
The Tigers will hold their final regular season home competition on Friday, March 7 when they host Washington in a dual meet at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. The action will begin at 7 p.m. (CT).
Rank Team Name Team RQS
1 Georgia 197.215
2 Utah 197.030
3 Florida 196.915
4 Michigan 196.640
5 LSU 196.495
6 Alabama 196.420
7 Oregon State 196.355
8 UCLA 196.255
9 Stanford 196.165
10 Oklahoma 196.095
11 Auburn 195.820
12 Arkansas 195.725
13 Denver 195.630
14 Michigan State 195.255
15 Missouri 195.205
16 Nebraska 195.175
17 North Carolina State 195.150
18 Arizona 195.100
19 Iowa 194.880
20 Arizona State 194.815
21 Penn State 194.715
22 Boise State 194.600
23 Southern Utah 194.465
24 Kent State 194.320
25 Minnesota 194.315