NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The third-ranked LSU gymnastics team heads into postseason competition full of confidence, and the Tigers will take the floor looking to hoist a trophy in the second session of the Southeastern Conference Championship on Saturday inside Verizon Arena.
After finishing the regular season at 13-2 overall and 6-1 against SEC opponents, LSU enters the SEC Championship riding the momentum of four-straight outstanding scores. The Tigers averaged a 197.869 in its last four meets that included a 197.825 against Auburn, a 197.900 at Florida, a 197.925 vs. Alabama and a 197.825 at Texas Woman’s.
“Our body of work with the gradual progression and maturity this team has shown throughout the season really will open the door to a new wave of confidence,” LSU head coach D-D Breaux said. “There’s no ‘I’ in this team. They are all about doing it together.
“They have confidence because they have won with consistency, so we just need to carry over that positive ‘I’ve got this’ mindset that has permeated throughout the season.”
The meet will air live on SEC Network, and six live streams will be available online at WatchESPN.com.
SEC Network+ Extra Live Streams: Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor | “All-Around”
As the No. 2 seed in the second session, LSU will begin the meet on bars and rotate to beam, floor and vault. Top-seeded and second-ranked Florida will open on vault, while No. 3 seed and fourth-ranked Alabama will start on beam and No. 4 seed and sixth-ranked Auburn will begin on floor.
It marks the third time this season LSU will compete with this rotation after the Tigers did it at the Metroplex Challenge on Jan. 30 and again just last week at Texas Woman’s on March 12.
Six Tigers are ranked in the Top 25 in at least one category, led by Ashleigh Gnat who is No. 1 nationally on vault and floor. Myia Hambrick is No. 7 in the all-around, No. 21 on bars and beam and No. 22 on floor. Sarah Finnegan is No. 8 on bars and No. 9 on beam. Sydney Ewing is No. 8 on vault, while Erin Macadaeg is No. 21 on beam and Randii Wyrick is No. 22 on floor.
LSU will also count on performances from Julianna Cannamela, McKenna Kelley, Lexie Priessman, Jessica Savona and Shae Zamardi as the Tigers compete for their second SEC team title and first since 1981.
As a team LSU is No. 1 nationally on vault, No. 2 on floor and No. 4 on bars and beam.
“We feel like our preparation is right on target for us to go out and have a great meet Saturday night,” Breaux said.
LSU will face stiff competition in Florida (8-2), Alabama (8-5) and Auburn (8-5) although the Tigers have beaten all three foes this season and all within the last month.
Florida is No. 2 on bars and beam, No. 3 on floor and No. 4 on vault. Alabama is No. 3 on beam, No. 5 on vault and bars and No. 8 on floor. Auburn is No. 6 on floor, No. 7 on vault, No. 8 on bars and No. 15 on beam.
A link to live stats of the SEC Championship is available at LSUsports.net.
Fans can follow along with the meet and connect with the team through LSU gymnastics’ social channels: www.Facebook.com/lsugym, @LSUgym on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat, and www.YouTube.com/lsugymnastics.