Hello, hello! I know you’re probably sick of me saying this, but—like virtually every SEC meet this season—this should be an exciting battle.
After the steep drop-off from No. 1 Florida and everyone else, the current SEC standings are tight—less than two tenths separate third-ranked LSU and fifth-ranked Kentucky. Interestingly, when you throw out each teams’ respective season high and low, their averages both become 196.5625… Conspiracy or coincidence? (It’s coincidence.) Very curious to see how things shake out once NQS kicks in.
All that’s to say these are two evenly-matched teams: LSU is ranked higher on vault and bars, Kentucky is ranked higher on beam and floor. The Tigers have home floor advantage, but the Wildcats earned their two highest team scores this season at away meets. Assuming Carol doesn’t pull any nonsense, it really should come down to who has the better performance on the day.
The meet will air Sunday, February 16 at 3:30 p.m. ET on SECN+ with live stats available here.
Looks like John and Bridget have a special guest commentator today. Not only do we NOT have to listen to Lyn Rollins, we get a tiny bonus Roethlisberger? Winning!
A rare @SEC Sunday tilt with @UKGymnastics visiting @LSUgym it’s going to be a good one alongside @bridgetsloan and….who’s that in the background??? Quinn!! Don’t miss it tonight on @ESPNU pic.twitter.com/MtDxxQeb7J
— John Roethlisberger (@jrflipfest) February 16, 2020
Living for D-D’s sparkly, gold makeup.
Rotation One: LSU vault, Kentucky bars
Rivers (LSU): Fabulous Yurchenko full, took an explicable foot slide. 9.850
Angeny (UK): A little shy on the first handstand. Blind change to straddled Jaeger with majorly flexed feet and soft knees. Short on the last handstand. Nice DLO with a hop back. 9.775
Rau (LSU): Yurchenko 1.5 with a big step forward. 9.750
Worley (UK): Great handstand position. Big Tkatchev with some leg form. Good bail. A little shy on the last handstand. Good FTDT with a minor foot shuffle. 9.775
Durante (LSU): BIG Yurchenko full with a huge hop and step. Tiny bit of pike in the air. 9.775
Nixon (UK): Gorgeous first handstand and Maloney. Nice position on the bail. A tad shy on the final handstand. Excellent FTDT and another seemingly unnecessary little step. 9.875
Harrold (LSU): Fabulous stuck Yurchenko 1.5. Her usual soft knees, but one of her good ones. 9.975 is… Generous.
Luksik (UK): Blind change to piked Jaeger, very tight. Short on the bail, but otherwise good handstand positions. Strong DLO with a single step… Sigh. 9.800
Johnson (LSU): Massive Yurchenko full, great position in the air. Negligible hop in place. 9.925
Warren (UK): Blind change to a HUGE straddled Jaeger. Lovely bail. A touch shy on the last handstand, but a definitive stick on her DLO. Excellent routine. 9.925
Edney (LSU): Huge height on her Yurchenko 1.5. Messy legs, but tons of amplitude. Hop on the landing. 9.875
Korth (UK): Blind change to pretty piked Jaeger. Good position on bail. Really tight form throughout. Stuck FTDT, fantastic. 9.925
AFTER ROTATION ONE: LSU 49.400, Kentucky 49.350
Very nice vault rotation for LSU. They’re always a little hit or miss on this event, but this was a hit. Glad to see Edney back in the lineup. The Wildcats were pretty good on bars, but gave away too many tenths on landings.
Rotation Two: LSU bars, Kentucky vault
Johnson (LSU): Sorry, my stream glitched out. DLO with a touch of leg sep, but a stick. 9.875
Angeny (UK): Tons of amplitude on her Yurchenko full, but not much control on the landing. 9.725
Dean (LSU): Tkatchev with flexed feet. Overarched handstand. DLO with messy legs and a hop. 9.875 is really high.
Nixon (UK): Really pretty, high Yurchenko full but several steps on the landing. Twisted a touch early off the table. 9.650 seems low compared to what we’ve seen tonight.
Rivers (LSU): Maloney with a slight pike. Bail a little messy. Big Tkatchev, but missed the final handstand. DLO with a hop back and step. 9.825
Patterson (UK): Half on pike half with a big hop. 9.800
Durante (LSU): Good first handstand. Blind change and straddled Jaeger both a little off center and a close regrasp. Overarches handstand. Pak is fine. Nice FTDT with a stick. Really, Bridget? You don’t know where the judges are going to take a deduction? ‘Kay… 9.925 is high.
Worley (UK): Didn’t get a great block, sits her Yurchenko 1.5. Too bad. 9.250
Shchennikova (LSU): Straddled Shaposh. Tkatchev with flexed feet caught close. Way close on the Pak, leg sep. Whippy DLO with a big hop. Y’all, I just can’t. 9.75 is still too high.
Korth (UK): Fabulous Yurchenko 1.5 with a small hop. 9.875
Harrold (LSU): Zuchold, fine. Blind change to straddled Jaeger, very nice. Double front with a small step forward. Really nice routine. 9.925
AFTER ROTATION TWO: LSU 98.825, Kentucky 98.175
Really rough rotation for Kentucky. Their amplitude and form are pretty good throughout the lineup, but once again, they just tenth themselves to death. LSU’s bars were fine, but not a 49.425. Those missed handstands and form breaks aren’t being deducted, and it’s going to catch up with the Tigers come postseason.
OH MY GOD, RAENA WORLEY HAS A HEDGEHOG NAMED EDGAR ALLAN POKE! Oh no, he died?! Why would you toy with our emotions like that, SECN?!
Rotation Three: LSU beam, Kentucky floor
Desiderio (LSU): Bhs loso, solid. Wobble on the full turn. Pretty switch half, a little shy on the switch half, beat. Front aerial with a leg up to Sissone. Hitch kick to gainer full, stuck. Sorry, 9.850 is way too high for a routine with a two tenth check plus other deductions.
Monfredi (UK): Front tuck through to double tuck, well done. Switch side, Popa, to wolf full, good. Damn, STUCK double pike to finish. Excellent start. 9.875
Dean (LSU): Side aerial to bhs with soft knees and feet. Split to straddle 1/4, a little off. Front aerial to split jump, very nice. Side aerial to full with the smallest hop. 9.825
Albores (UK): Bounces out of bounds on her double tuck. Front lay to front full, well-controlled. Switch half to Popa, good amplitude. Low chest on her double pike, but pulls out the landing. 9.650
Durante (LSU): Overrotates her full turn, but covers well. Bhs loso, solid. Front aerial to split, well done. Switch split to straddle quarter, small break. Side aerial with some feet to stuck full. 9.850
Poland (UK): I love Hailey Poland, but I will never be okay with Careless Whisper. Front tuck fhs front full, very nice. Fhs double full, great. Popa series, good amplitude. Wolf jump to Shushanova half. Great job. 9.825
Edney (LSU): Front aerial to split, beautiful. Bhs loso with a clever quarter turn cover. Great amplitude on her leaps. Best front toss in the NCAA. One and a half with a large step. 9.850… These judges do know there are other scores, right?
Warren (UK): Fhs with a huge double full, lovely. Popa series looked good. Fhs Rudi to loso, gorgeous. Fhs full lay with a small hop. 9.875
Johnson (LSU): Pretty full turn. Bhs loso with a foot up check. Switch split to switch half, good. Front aerial with a leg up and hip check. Stuck double full. I’m going to go out on a limb and say they give her a 9.850… 9.875, I was close!
Worley (UK): BIG tucked full-in landed stuck but staggered. Switch ring so pretty. FHS Full to a stuck lay. Double pike, small foot lift. Great routine! 9.900
Campbell (LSU): Bhs loso with form break and a leg up and hip check. Front aerial to Sissone, well done. Switch split to switch half, nice. Messy double full with a hop. 9.800, come on…
Korth (UK): Slightly crunched on her FTDT landing, but a stick. Switch full to Popa, really dynamic. Fhs Rudi loso, fantastic. Big double pike to close. Great job. 9.900
AFTER FOUR: LSU 148.075, KENTUCKY 147.550
You probably already know what I’m going to say about those beam scores. You simply cannot legitimately go 9.85-plus for routines that have LEG UP CHECKS plus other noticeable deductions. That aside, there should have been far more differentiation between those very different sets. Kentucky did a nice job of bouncing back after that tough vault rotation. They’ve got a lot of grit and power on floor, and did a great job of using those to their advantage.
If I start a GoFundMe to retrain LSU’s judges will the gymternet chip in? (I’m only partially kidding)
— TripleTwist (@TripleTwistGym) February 16, 2020
🐸🍵
Rotation Four: LSU floor, Kentucky beam
Warren (UK): Lovely side aerial to bhs. Switch split to straddle quarter with a foot sliding off the beam. Round-off one and a half landed deep and a hop back. Good lead-off. 9.775
Harrold (LSU): Fhs double twist, a little bouncy but toes it in. Very nice double pike. Switch split to switch half, nice amplitude. One and a half to front lay, good.
Haigis (UK): Bhs loso with a huge leg-up. Siwtch split to a beam Shushanova (can’t remember what that’s called, sorry), very cool! Cat leap to front aerial, hip check. One and a half with a small hop, very nice. So, it’s getting a 9.85, right? 9.675
Desiderio (LSU): BIG DLO with leg sep. Messy one and a half to front lay. Switch split to split half to straight full. Solid double tuck to close. 9.875
Poland (UK): Bhs bhs loso with a small hip check. One-armed fhs, nice. Switch split to straddle quarter. Awesome tucked gainer full, stuck. 9.875 is high, but whatever. 9.875
Dean (LSU): Double pike close to the corner but stays in. Messy one and a half, slides out of front lay. Bounces out of her double tuck but hides it well. 9.800
Korth (UK): One-armed bhs loso with messy legs and comes off. Switch split loso beat, excellent. Stuck double full. Strong finish after the fall. 9.150
Campbell (LSU): Round-off 2.5, twists early and lands a little janky. Very nice double pike, one of the best I’ve seen from her this season. Switch split to Popa, great positions. One and a half to front lay, some legs but nice control on the landing. 9.900
Worley (UK): Cat leap to straddle quarter, 180 but not quite horizontal. Love her shoulder roll. Front aerial bhs loso, legs a little loose, but rock solid. Kicks out of the full turn. Sticks her one and a half. Fantastic routine.
Edney (LSU): Nice tucked double Arabian, tiniest slide back, but she’s pumped! One and a half to front lay. Gogean to split full. I swear to Sveta, if Bridget says, “I don’t know where they’re going to find a deduction!” one more time about a routine that has obvious deductions, I will write a strongly-worded letter to the SEC network… Slips out of the double tuck and has to put her hand down. Too bad, so nice up to that point. 9.600… That is literally, mathematically impossible. And yet, the crowd is booing.
Angeny (UK): Bhs loso loso, soft legs but no wobbles. Front aerial with the slightest hip check, covered well. Switch split beat with a foot up. Sorry, dog got in my way and I missed her leaps. Side aerial to tucked full with a foot shuffle. 9.850
Johnson (LSU): Tucked full in, looked like she slid the left foot back a hair. One and a half to floaty front lay, gorgeous. Switch full to Popa, great positions. HUGE double pike with a little slide back. Fabulous routine. 9.975… ‘Kay.
AFTER ROTATION FOUR: LSU 197.500, Kentucky 196.625
There was initially a 9.200 and a 9.700 split for Edney. Really? No doubt, LSU deserved the win over Kentucky, but these judges weren’t even pretending to go by the rules and that’s unacceptable. Whatever, Billman out.
Article by Claire Billman
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Great coverage! Agreed…if another female commentator mentions, “I wish this team would do….”, I may become more frustrated. So unnecessary as a commentator.