BATON ROUGE — The No. 5 LSU Tigers gymnastics team will hold their final regular season home meet on Friday, March 7 when they host Washington for a 7 p.m. dual meet at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
Tickets for the event are available online at www.LSUsports.net., over the phone at 225-578-2184 or in person at the LSU Ticket Office. The cost is $5 for adults and $3 for children ages 3-12.
The meet is a student-priority event. It’s also “Club Night,” where gymnastics club members get in free. The first 200 fans will receive a LSU gymnastics rally towel. Additionally, the first 300 fans will receive a free Geaux Zone t-shirt. Before the second rotation, there will be a LSU student handstand contest where $200 dollars in Tiger cash will be awarded. Following the meet, there will be an autograph session with the gymnasts.
LSU enters the meet with a 10-3 record, after beating Michigan State and Centenary in back-to-back meets last weekend. Against Michigan State, LSU scored the second-highest score in team history with a 197.775. Junior Ashleigh Clare-Kearney posted perfect 10.0 scores on the vault and floor for the Tigers, and tied for the third-highest all-around score in school history with a 39.800.
Washington is 1-9 on the season, losing last weekend to Arizona, 196.300-194.525, in Tuscon, Ariz. Battling injuries all season, the Huskies are unranked in this week’s national rankings. They are led by Ashley Houghting, a junior from Welland, Ontario, who is currently tied for No. 20 in the nation on the vault with an RQS of 9.875.
“I know Washington had a pretty good season last year,” said LSU head coach D-D Breaux. “They are struggling a little bit this year with some injuries. I’m hoping they are healthy and strong enough to have a good competition. It’s important that we show that we can turn out a strong score each week. We need to put together another good home score to establish ourselves as a top-six team.”
The meet will be the last regular season home meet for LSU’s lone senior, Kristi Esposito. For her career, she has been named an All-American four times ? three times on the beam and once in the all-around. She is also a three time Academic All-American.
“She is on top of her gymnastics,” added Breaux. “She has really given us a lot of maturity in the lineup. Our team has been successful because of the outstanding leadership she brings to the team. She’s been an outstanding competitor. It’s been an absolute pleasure having the opportunity to work with her.”
Clare-Kearney is currently No. 2 in the national all-around rankings with an RQS of
39.520. 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. Additionally, the junior from Manchester, Conn. is tied with teammate Esposito and three others at No. 11 on the beam with an average of 9.860.
Earlier this week, Clare-Kearney was named the SEC Gymnast of the Week and the LSU Female Athlete of the Week for her performances against Michigan State and Centenary. It was the second time she won the award this season.
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.
LSU leads the all-time series with Washington, 4-2-0. The Tigers are 1-0-0 against Washington in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. LSU last defeated Washington in the 2003 NCAA West Regional Championships NCAA Central Regional Championships in Seattle, Wash. The Tigers defeated the Huskies 195.700-195.675 in that meeting.
Following the Tigers last home meet, LSU will return to action on the road, participating in a tri-meet in Raleigh, N.C. against North Carolina and North Carolina State. The action will begin at 6 p.m. (CT).