Alabama at Kentucky

Results

The Big Storyline: Alabama was a bit vulnerable in the absence of Lexi Graber and in the midst of a rough all around day from Shania Adams. But the Crimson Tide will still accept this road score. Kentucky will be happy to have finally hit a beam rotation en route to its own season high score.

Implications: Rankings-wise, both teams should remain about where they were last week. In terms of lineup notes, Alabama junior Shallon Olsen added beam for the first time this season; it’s unclear whether she’ll remain in the lineup, but she hit for a 9.850. 

Controversies: There were some interesting scoring gaps at this meet. Makarri Doggette’s beam score had a 9.400/9.600 split, and Kentucky freshman Bailey Bunn went 9.85/9.65 on vault. Speaking of vault, there were an unusual number of crashes—gymnasts who bailed out of harder versions and just plain weird falls. Lastly, Alabama sophomore Mati Waligora’s bar routine originally showed a 9.900 start value, but it was later raised to a 10. This was likely because her Jaeger to bail was not given proper connection value by one judge.