Friday Live Blog – March 1, 2019

Friday, March 1 Scores Stream
6:00 ET/3:00 PT – [10] Kentucky @ [16] Missouri LINK SECN
6:00 ET/3:00 PT – Michigan State @ Eastern Michigan LINK ESPN3
7:00 ET/4:00 PT – [19] BYU, Maryland @ George Washington LINK FREE
7:00 ET/4:00 PT – Western Michigan @ Kent State LINK FREE
7:00 ET/4:00 PT – Illinois State @ Northern Illinois LINK ESPN3
7:00 ET/4:00 PT – Bridgeport, So Connecticut @ Towson LINK FREE
7:00 ET/4:00 PT – Air Force @ Centenary LINK
7:00 ET/4:00 PT – 10th annual Nastia Liukin Go Pink Yourself Challenge LINK OC
7:30 ET/4:30 PT – [12] Auburn @ [8] Alabama LINK SECN
7:30 ET/4:30 PT – Iowa State @ Iowa LINK BTN+
FLO
7:30 ET/4:30 PT – Penn @ SEMO LINK FREE
7:30 ET/4:30 PT – UW-La Crosse @ Gustavus Adolphus LINK FREE
7:30 ET/4:30 PT – UW-Stout @ UW-Eau Claire
8:00 ET/5:00 PT – [3] Florida @ [20] Arkansas LINK NONE
8:00 ET/5:00 PT – [6] Denver @ Illinois LINK BTN+
FLO
9:00 ET/6:00 PT – [7] Georgia @ [4] LSU LINK ESPN2
9:00 ET/6:00 PT – [17] Washington, Utah State @ [13] Boise State LINK FREE
10:00 ET/7:00 PT – [14] Cal, UC Davis @ Sacramento State LINK FREE
10:00 ET/7:00 PT – Bowling Green, Alaska @ [15] Oregon State LINK FREE
10:00 ET/7:00 PT – San Jose State @ Seattle Pacific LINK FREE

Today, it’s the usual SEC-splosion with some seriously compelling contests. But be prepared, the Florida/Arkansas meet has no live stream at all for some reason, so there’s literally nothing to see here.

The performance of Bowling Green tonight also got a little more interesting after the events of today’s article.

I don’t typically watch the Nastia Cup live because there’s too much NCAA going on (I end up watching it about nine months later when preparing the freshman playlist and needing to know what these new people are all about), but I’m sure you all will keep me apprised if something remarkable happens.

The day begins with Kentucky and Missouri. Missouri has had an extra week to recover from the most recent performance, where injuries and limitations led to just five athletes vaulting, one of them with a fall. We’ll have to see whether the last two weeks have allowed that lineup to get back on its feet.

We’re on SEC score watch for Kentucky, which will be looking for at least a 196.700, which is the minimum score required to have a shot at passing Alabama this week. Getting that 196.700 would then put pressure on Alabama in the next meet to get a counting score in order to hang onto a top-4 conference place.


Kentucky @ Missouri begins


Rotation 1

Christensen – VT – MU – full – not bad, medium hop back, a clear pike in the air, solid distance and direction. 9.700

Stuart – UB – UK – tkatchiev hit, some ragged legs – very solid bail, good vertical and toes – a little tight on final hs – FTDLO dismount, hop back. Solid, her usual. 9.700 is pretty tight early.

Gotula – VT – MU – gets the hit this week, but a pretty large lunge back – good amplitude, open hip position. 9.725. Raised to 9.775 later.

Nixon – UB – UK – Shap to bail, nice amplitude, legs together, maybe a little short of vertical on bail – a short hs – giant full to double tuck, nearly sticks but then with an arm wave and a step back. 9.750

Tucker – VT – MU – comes in a little short on her full this time, didn’t get the amplitude we usually expect from her – good open position but comes in chest forward with a hop forward. 9.675

Kwan – UB – UK – shortish first hs – huge jaeger to overshoot, lots of amplitude – good final cast hs – giant full to double tuck, pinged a little, hop back – 9.800

Porter – VT – MU – really strong full, small hop back – good distance and only a little bit of pike at the end, just a little direction. 9.800

Dukes – UB – UK – good first hs – tkatchev, hit, good toes – pak, a little bit of legs apart – OOF, goes over on her final cast hs on high and falls – was going really well until then too. DLO, a bit whippy, holds the stick with a swim. 9.250

Bidwill – VT – MU – adds in her Y1.5 and it’s quite solid, small step forward and some legs apart deduction throughout the vault to take. 9.850.

Hyland – UB – UK – tight first hs – huge tkatchev but catches her heel on the bar on catch, which will hurt – bail, small ankle crossing – a couple short verticals in there – FTDT, solid with feet hop together – 9.725

Bower – VT – MU – handspring front pike with a lunge forward – some knees – it’s a 9.9 start. 9.625

Korth – UB – UK – shortish first hs – gorgeous piked jaeger – nice clean catch position on bail – a couple short hs in there as most of them have had – FTDLO dismount with hop back. 9.850. That’s the only score so far I think has been a little high/normal SECish. Otherwise pretty tight evaluation.

After 1: Kentucky 48.825, Missouri 48.800

Not an ideal first rotation for either team. Kentucky had the fall from Dukes and Hyland clipping the high bar on the release, in addition to the overall tighter evaluation, which is not TIGHT, it’s more accurate, but tighter than expected. Kentucky a little too short on handstands this week to get those high numbers.

Missouri had six vaults in there but one of them had a 9.9 start and still misses several of its big guns. Getting Bidwill in there with a strong 1.5 is a huge deal is shoring up that lineup.

Based on this scoring standard, we’re probably not going to see those big 196s today from this one, but there’s time.

Rotation 2

Kwan – VT – UK – comes up short on her full, pretty large lunge forward, chest down and some direction. 9.575

Tucker – UB – MU – hit piked jaeger, close but only a bit of form break – bail with legs apart correction – a couple short handstands – giant full to double tuck with only the smallest little hop. 9.800, kind of high compared to UK.

Dukes – VT – UK – really pretty full, great stick, chest up, nicely done. You take a little for height, a little for chest. 9.800.

Kelly – UB – MU – very short first hs – hits nice piked jaeger – snagle on bail hs, crooked – a bit better final cast hs – great amplitude on DLO with a hop back. 9.725

Davis – VT – UK – full – great amplitude as always – only a very small adjustment hop back on landing and then the typical deduction on the best knees. 9.700

Christensen – UB – MU – girna tfull to tkatchev, hit but fairly low – short hs after – bail, a leg break in the air but solid position on catch – good hs – giant full to double tuck, lower double tuck with a hop back 9.725

Hyland – VT – UK – great stick on her full, quite nicely done – good direction, chest a little higher than Dukes, good position in the air, just some lack of distance to take.

Judges meeting and then a 9.800. Low but I like it if this is the standard for EVERYONE.

Schugel – UB – MU – huge piked jaeger to overshoot, solid – nearly gets there on final cast – giant full to double tuck, stuck. Their cleanest so far. 9.850

Stuart – VT – UK – Y1.5 pretty solid, a stutter step to the side – a bit of knees, nice hit. 9.825

Porter – UB – MU – small loose back on first hs – jaeger, hit, a bit of elbows – bail, small leg break – shortish final hs – double front, hop back. Solid one, a couple little things in there, nothing major. 9.850

Korth – VT – UK – Y1.5 – lovely 1.5 in the air – medium-sized hop forward, cleaner in the air than Stuart’s. 9.875. That’s a more expected score. They’re willing to go there for Korth in the anchor positions.

Bidwill – UB – MU – arch in toe on and then falls on Shap. They have five hits to count.

After 2: Kentucky 97.850, Missouri 97.750

A solid vault rotation for Kentucky in the 2-5 spots. Pretty solid control on landing, got the two 1.5s, they’ll be happy with that. Really like the scoring lens on vault today, but we’ll have seen that rotation go a couple tenths higher at other meets, and it’s going to seem unfair as long as it’s different from most other meets we’re watching, which it is.

Bars scoring a little looser, more willing to go above 9.800 on those scores. Missouri gets through with five hits, a reasonable showing, but not hitting the 49 mark for another rotation.

Rotation 3

Nicholson – BB – MU – bhs bhs loso series, solidly hit, some tight hip position – beat to straddle 1/2, solid 180s – gainer full, stuck. Good one. 9.825

Poland – FX – UK – front tuck through to rudi, a little low on amplitude, hit under control – front 2/1, another controlled landing – strong straddle positions – 9.750

Bower – BB – MU – bhs loso series, hits it without a wobble but pretty slow and tentative on it, some leg form – cat leap to kickover front with a check into beat jump – switch to straddle 1/4, a little tight in straddle 1/4 position – gainer full, stuck. 9.825

Beam scores going higher now.

Warren – FX – UK – giant front 2/1, great form as always but a large bounce out – switch side to popa, camera work tried to zoom in there and ended up with a crotch closeup, one of the many reasons you don’t do closeups during leap combos – rudi, more good height, small slide back – front full to front tuck, nice – 9.825

Gottula – BB – MU – bhs bhs loso, very solid landing, good speed, just a little bit of knees but overall stronger extension – switch to straddle 1/4 with a check, kind of short in straddle – gainer full with a deep stick. 9.825

Hyland – FX – UK – double pike, super solid landing, flexed feet – “I think sometimes athletes learn their teammates floor routines.”  oh do you Bridget? – great extension and amplitude on leaps – 1.5 to front layout, pulls it out after overcooking her 1.5 a little and not getting full punch into layout. A little low but maintains layout position well. 9.850

Porter – BB – MU – switch to split to back tuck, good security and solid positions – aerial to bhs series, best extension in acro elements of the lineup so far – hitch kick to kickover front with a check – 1.5 with hop forward. Gave it away a little at the end. 9.775

Dukes – FX – UK – double pike, mostly controlled landing, little step forward – lovely switch ring position – front full to layout, keeps extended position – double tuck, good control and chest up. Nice routine. To me, that was the strongest of the lineup so far. 9.875

Kelly – BB – MU – sissone and full turn to begin – aerial to one-arm bhs, hit, a tad slow – straddle to sheep with a check, a little crooked on the sheep position, some leap deductions there – punch front 1/1 with a hop. 9.850

Korth – FX – UK – full-in, secure landing, chest well down – split leap full to popa, efficiently done – second pass…….front 1/2 to back lay to back tuck full? – an improvised pass but sure? – some position but not bad? – double pike, solid. 9.700. Haven’t done the score but would have missed some bonus there. But did very well to avert disaster by making sure she had an acro combo. Score would have been much lower otherwise.

Ward – BB – MU – bhs bhs loso series, super solid and extended, a highlight of the rotation – beat to straddle 1/4, good straddle, arm wave on landing – hitch kick to side aerial, very smooth – 1.5 and comes in suppppppper deep, holds the stick somehow but a major squat and lean. 9.725

Stuart – FX – UK – double pike, solid, chest up – 1.5 to layout, super low on layout landing with a deep squat to pull it to her feet, not dissimilar to what Ward did – switch ring into wolf hop full, kind of caught her foot trying to go into the wolf but should get connection credit – rudi, solid. 9.600

After 3: Missouri 146.850, Kentucky 146.850

So this is close. The mid-meet whiskey break has loosened up the scoring a little bit in that third rotation on beam. Almost like maybe they shouldn’t have that? Kentucky also had odd errors on floor, which has allowed Missouri to close the gap, Korth and Stuart both coming up with struggle scores.

Rotation 4

Angeny – BB – UK – bhs loso series, nice extension, a little arm wave lean coming out of it – switch to sheep, another smaller check – side aerial to tuck full, stuck. Some balance checks to take, but solid opener overall. 9.775

Bower – FX – MU – double pike, secure landing, whips her chest up – split leap full to wolf full, a bit of knees, a little short of position – 1.5 to layout, hit, a little low – double tuck, controlled step back. 9.850 is fairly high there.

Poland – BB – UK – bhs bhs loso, super clean series, nice amplitude, full turn with a check – one-arm fhs – switch to split with a small lean, tuck gainer full off the end, stuck. 9.775

Nicholson – FX – MU – front 2/1 is a little closer to around though will still get a deduction for under twisting that – 1.5 to layout second pass, hit, a bit loose back in the layout – switch side to popa – rudi final pass, best part, good height and twisting position. 9.850

Korth – BB – UK – one-arm bhs loso series, solid, some knee form – cat leap to switch to back tuck, secure, short back leg on switch leap – 2/1 with a bounce back, ended up a little ragged on that dismount, but a hit. 9.825 a little high for that dismount.

Turner – FX – MU – double pike, secure step back, some chest position – split leap full to wolf 1.5, will get credit for getting leaps around but deduction for not quite being up to position – 1.5 to front tuck, not a lot of height there in the combo but pulled the tuck around. With just two passes, that’s not going to be enough for UTL, I believe.

9.825. Apparently not. Did I miss something there? Or is all the credit I gave to the judges in the first two rotations revoked?

Stuart – BB – UK – switch to stag, well done – bhs loso, small check, little wobble – cat leap to side aerial to full, stuck. 9.850

Gottula – FX – MU – double pike, just a touch deep in the landing with a slide back – 1/2 to 2/1, good control on that one, kept the front foot down – switch side, pretty low to the floor – double tuck, well controlled, chest up, strong routine. 9.900

Scores suddenly kind of out of control now. You guys were doing so well.

Dukes – BB – UK – bhs loso series, controlled, excellent extension – aerial to super high split, lovely – switch to straddle 1/4, more strong positions – 1.5, short with a lunge back, really the only major thing there. 9.875

Tucker – FX – MU – full-in, very high, keeps front foot down on controlled step – chest up – 2/1 to loso, pretty, extended – double pike, just a little down, but a well performed routine. Best of the rotation so far. 9.900

Hyland – BB – Uk – switch to split, perfect – cat leap to aerial, smooth – bhs loso series, also secure, I’d say too slow to call the whole thing connected but she doesn’t need it – cat leap to side aerial to layout full – tries to sell the stick but has an arm wave and has to step back anyway. 9.875

Porter – FX – MU – nice high double tuck, smoothly landed, chest up – 1.5 to layout, good pop on 1.5, a bit of legs – split full to popa, popa position was nice – double tuck, just a little bounce coming in, but chest up, strong routine again. 9.900

FINAL: Missouri 196.250, Kentucky 196.000

Judges lost any credit I was going to give them with the end-of-meet performance there. You started out so sensibly, too! Both teams able to get into the 196 range in the end, but won’t be super celebrating those total scores. Kentucky’s RQS (NQS….) will barely change. Missouri will move up a little bit but not enough to challenge any of the teams ranked above. Still in some danger of getting passed this weekend.

Time for Auburn and Alabama!


Auburn @ Alabama begins


Rotation 1

Mahoney – VT – Bama – really clean full, good layout position, small slide back. Pretty. 9.775

Watson – UB – Aub – great first hs – Ray, pretty close catch, bent elbows – bail, a bit of a leg break in the air – short final cast hs – FTDT, hop back. We’ll see how harsh they are on that release. 9.825

Armbrecht – VT – Bama – hop back on full, great in the air, better distance and open position than Mahoney. 9.825

Krippner – UB – Aub – toe shap to bail, legs together on ail, a little break on the Shap – toe on, some elbows – FTDT, stuck. Nice. 9.875

This “the SEC scoring is tight this year, you guys” narrative is going to be fun. But it isn’t though.

Gaskins – VT – Bama – FAB stick on her full – great layout position in the air, drilled the vault – just some chest forward on landing and probably a distance deduction. 9.850

Gobourne – UB – Aub – 1/2 turn on hgih – tkatchev, hit, feet – pak is nice – 1/2 turn on low – closer on final cast hs but a little short – FTDT with hop back. 9.875

Olsen – VT – Bama – DTY, great distance, hop back this time, not too big, some legs to take as usual, but not too much. 9.875. Is a higher score for her. She’s done better for 9.800 at times this season.

Cerio – UB – Aub – short first hs – lovely piked jager – a very small hesitation on cast on high – crisp bail position – giant full to double tuck with lunge back

Graber – VT- Bama – 1.5, great height and open – small hop forward, a touch of knees – strong vault. 9.850

Milliet – UB – Aub – falls on her Ray. LE SIGH. finishes with a lovely blind full into a double tuck with a step.

Guerra – VT – Bama – sticks her Y1.5 – where has this vault been all our lives – some soft knees, and mostly shows control on her landing into the salute.

9.950

Day – UB – Aub – short first hs – toe 1/2 to fantastic jaeger, super high and pointed toes – into overshoot – double arabian, stuck. Really strong routine. 9.875. Was better than some of the other 9.875s.

After 1: Alabama 49.350, Auburn 49.300

So yeah, scores are not tight here today. But a strong rotation for both teams. If the final four in the lineup all keep vaulting like that, Alabama will be very pleased. Everyone for Auburn had some things, but they got through with five hits and are keeping things close.

Rotation 2

Phillips – VT – Aub – her usual big full with a large lunge back, some piking throughout

No it is not the first time she has competed on vault this season.

Dickson – UB – Bama – good first hs – a little short of vertical position on bail – really strong on her casts – toe on – tkatchev, great open but clipped the low bar on catch – FTDT, stuck. Great routine but that hitting the bar will cost her.

Or not. 9.875. I guess they didn’t see the bar clip, which is a flat tenth

Krippner – VT – Aub – full – medium hop back – mostly good layout position, just some little piking at the end

Giancroce – UB – Bama – short first hs – tkatchev, hit – another short hs – pak is nice, just the smallest leg break – good shoot to high – final hs much better – DLO, some whippy pike position, hop back. 9.800

Day – VT – Aub – comes up a little short on her 1.5 but saves it with two small steps back – a little bit of body position. Still gets 9.800

Childers – UB – Bama – toe on to toe shap to bail, small amounts of legs apart but solid – hitting cast hs – 1/2 into double tuck dismount with some crazy legs. 9.875

Glenn – VT – Aub – huge lunge forward on her 1.5 this time – little bit of leg break in the air – nearly lunged right into Raschilla. 9.725

Guerra – UB – Bama – prety jaeger, nicely done – bail, legs right together – tight final cast hs – DLO, lovely position and stuck. She’s having a good day. 9.950

Happy senior night! Great routine. Same routine she has done a dozen times for Alabama.

Gobourne – VT – Aub – that’s closer to the vault they needed on the 1.5, but still comes in short with a hop back. 9.900. High.

Mahoney – UB – Bama – tight first hs – bail, lovely leg position, very strong bail – pretty close to position on final cast hs – tkatchev, somewhat close catch with some elbows – great amplitude on FTDT and squeezes to hold the stick. 9.825

Watson – VT – Aub – 1.5, nicely done, small hop to the side and some bent knees – solid distance and direction. 9.925. You guys.

Gaskins – UB – Bama – good first hs – toe shap to pak, solid, small hesitation – 1/2 turn on low, a hair late – DLO, chest down with a hop. A couple loose knee things in this routine, nothing too major. 9.800

After 2: Alabama 98.675, Auburn 98.400

So not super subtle in the judging department at this one, but Alabama hasn’t received much SEC scoring at home this year, so this works. Some strong moments in there, especially from Guerra, but the last couple routine shad a few too many form issues to get the really huge bars number. Still easily on 197 pace.

Auburn didn’t have the landings on vault there and got away with some scores at the end that were too high on those last couple 1.5s. But a real lack of control on some early vaults kept the scores down and allowed Alabama to create a margin after 2 events.

Florida putting up a big number on bars.

Rotation 3

Klopfer – BB – Bama – slow but smooth wolf single – aerial with a large break, bend at the hips – redoes the combination – aerial to bhs, hit this time, a little knees – switch is nice – cat leap to side aerial to full, stuck. But will be a lower score because of that large break. 9.700

Smith – FX – Aub – double pike, little slide back – 1.5 to layout, controls enough to stay in, some knees – switch side to popa, great extension – double tuck, not so high, lands it but chest down. 9.725

Olsen – BB – Bama – bhs loso loso series, very solid, has improved that form – switch to wolf jump, solid – aerial, hit – bhs bhs double pike, hop back. Some knees in those bhs. So impressed by her improvements on beam as a college gymnast. She looks no-longer-pee-pants there 9.800

Cerio – FX – Aub – double pike, solid landing, gets her chest up – front full to front layout to wolf jump, love how she was able to punch up into that wolf even though it looked like she was coming up short on the layout – strong straddle position – rudi, lunge back, good routine. 9.825

Childers – BB – Bama – switch to sheep to beat, holds it without a check – bhs loso series and falls. Will have to count Klopfer score now. Danger zone for that much-needed 197. Kickover front to scale is excellent – 1.5 with a near stick to college salute

Watson – FX – Aub – double arabian, fantastic, good form and controlled landing, very strong – double tuck with a bounce back – 1.5 to layout, came up super short with a slide back and a step to save it. Shame because that should have been a great score with that awesome first pass. 9.675

Big 49.475 for Denver on bars starting at Illinois.

Armbrecht – BB – Bama – aerial to beat, very pretty – full turn, smooth – bhs loso series, hit – switch with a small check into straddle 1/4, so we’ll see how forgiving they are for series credit, I figure it will get it – 2/1, stuck. As long as they give that series, an excellent routine. 9.900

Gobourne – FX – Aub – full-in, open position, does very well to control her small hop back and keep it in bounds – switch ring is a bit tight – front full to front layout, landing caught her a little bit but controls that step – double pike, comes up short with a step and kind of tries to do a prowl-save to cover it which I’m obsessed with. 9.725

Gaskins – BB – Bama – back dive mount, rushes right through position but holds it – bhs loso, very secure – strong split 1/2 from side – switch to split, excellent extension and amplitude – side aerial and falls. ALABAMA! Gainer full, hop back. 9.150

Milliet – FX – Aub – front lay to a perfect rudi, chest up, control, lovely twist position – switch ring to switch 1/2 – double pike, short landing with a lunge forward, this third rotation has been a beast of burden for both teams – 1.5 to layout, a little arch in lay. 9.775

Giancroce – BB – Bama – aerial to beat jump, nice and smooth – bhs loso series, hit with a check – switch to straddle 1/4, solidly executed – sissone – gainer full. Hugely important hit.

OOOOOF. Florida goes sub 49 on vault.

Day – FX – Aub – I love her floor routines – solid landing on her double arabian – double tuck, a little chest down but also hit – swolf hop full to split, short of 180 there – front full to layout, a little low but hit. 9.900

After 3: Auburn 147.350, Alabama 147.200

So it’s 48.525 for Alabama on beam. No 197 today. Now they’re fighting to get this into countable range with a good floor. Auburn also had issues on floor in those landings to go sub 49. Not a strong showing from either team.

After 2: Florida 98.375, Arkansas 98.175

Florida with a lead, but that sub-49 on vault takes away the chance for a super huge score. Lots of 9.7s there, only Boren hitting for a big score.

Meanwhile, Denver is at 98.725 after two events, and Illinois is having an absolute nightmare on bars.

Rotation 4

Watson – BB – Aub – bhs loso with a bit of a lean check – cat leap to side aerial, large leg-up wobble, good save – switch with another small check into straddle 1/4 – 1.5, near stick with a little step. 9.775 is higgggggghhhh.

Desch  – FX – Bama – double pike with a bounce back, just does keep it in bounds but uncontrolled – 1.5 to 1/2 to split to front tuck, solidly done – split leap full to split jump full – double tuck, stuck landing, just some flexed feet in the air

Well, the flag didn’t go up because she didn’t go OOB.

9.900. LOL.

Gobourne – BB – Aub – bhs loso series, step back – switch to straddle 1/4, pretty short in straddle position – hitch kick to side aerial to full, step. Hit. Kicks her own foot on takeoff and still completes the full. 9.775.

Olsen – FX – Bama – double double, hit it very well, just a little step on landing – front tuck through to double tuck, stuck – split leap full to split jump full, solidly done – double pike, nailed landing. Super excellent control on passes. And if they went 9.900 for Desch with a giant bounce back… 9.875

Riddle – BB – Aub – bhs loso series, a little tight in position but hit – switch to straddle 1/2, secure, noit quite extended enough in positions – cat leap to side aerial to tuck full with a hop, a little off to the side.

Mahoney – FX – Bama – double tuck, nice position in the air, just a little slide – front full to front lay, a little ragged in position, kind of low – split leap full to popa, nicely reached positions – double pike, chest up, another little slide. Strong. 9.850

Krippner – BB – Aub – cat leap to aerial to bhs, smoothly done if a little slow, hit positions – aerial, tried to save it by pretending to take it to scale, ultimately had to grab her calves to gain control but did super well not to come off or grab the beam – awesome leaps – 1.5 dismount, tries to step salute and trips over her own feet with a major lunge to the side.

Well, that was just the weirdest beam routine.

Gaskins – FX – Bama – super low landing on DLO, chest well down with a lunge forward – front tuck through to double tuck, secure – a little tight in split position here – double pike, stuck, chest down. DLO will take away the score. 9.800

The beam judges are like, what even was that Krippner routine. 9.350 for Krippner.

Milliet – BB – Aub – front tuck mount, awesome – bhs loso series, crisp, very strong – split to sheep, lovely, a real sheep jump – cat leap to gainer full, stuck with chest down. Excellent routine. 9.925

Armbrecht – FX – Bama – DLO, pretty in the air, comes in a bit chest down – switch side to popa, lovely as always – 1.5 to front layout, dance out, a little horizontal on that pass – rudi to double stag, a little forward but hit well. 9.925

Sylvia – BB – Aub – full turn, nice style – aerial to rulfova, just a taddddd off line but hit – a little slow in combination but they’ll be forgiving because it’s a difficult combo – stag hop to switch 1/2, pretty short on switch 1/2 position – gainer full….SUPER deep squat and a hop back. That was weird.

Meet decided on a gainer full squat? ONE JUDGE STILL WENT 9.800.

Guerra – FX – Bama – they’re setting up for a 10 here so let’s see – DLO, very well controlled, some chest down – switch side 1/2 to popa, a little indistinct in twisting position – 1.5 to layout, perfect, crisp body position – double pike, a little slide. Strong routine.

Finishes 9.950.


NO TIME. LSU and Georgia starting!


Rotation 1

Finnegan – VT – LSU – nailed her full as usual, just didn’t quite hold the stick for long enough with a step-salute back as her momentum took her back. Otherwise perfect. 9.900. Correct.

Roberts – UB – UGA – toe on to toe shap to bail, nice vertical positions there – short final cast hs – DLO, stuck. Strong start. 9.775. A little low.

Harrold – VT – LSU – 1.5 with a pace forward, pretty much her usual, a little out of control on landing, and the knees to take. 9.825

Schild – Ub – UGA – toe on to Ray, nice open – solid cast hs after – pak, hit, a little leg break – a little rushed on 1/2 turn on low – short final cast hs – DLO, a little pike, step back. 9.850

Kelley – VT – LSU – handspring pike 1/2, solid, comes in a little short this time with a hop forward, will get the chest down deduction but not too much. 9.875. A bit high.

Snead – UB – UGA – lovely first hs – tkatchev, hit – bail, strong vertical position as always – well short on final cast hs – DLO, has to pike it down quite a bit, chest down with a hop. OK.

Cannamela – VT – LSU – full, hit, small hop back – not so much dynamics so will get deducted for distance, a bit of piking. 9.850

Al-Hameed – Ub – UGA – giant full to her giant tkatchev – bail, crisp vertical position – better on final cast hs but went crazy on the giant full – gets off line and has to stop in a total dead hang, casts out at horizontal to finish with a double tuck, hop.

Edwards – VT – LSU – hits 1.5 – comes up short with two small steps back and has some knees to deduct for. 9.875 way too high.

Meanwhile, it looks like the Auburn Alabama final was Alabama 196.700, Auburn 196.350. Scores died.

Dickson – UB – UGA – Ray, comes in super close with a large elbow break and a near Mikulak face smash – but works out of it somehow – DLO 1/1, very strong with only a small slide, but the Ray catch will destroy her score. Amazing how she continued. 9.650

Edney – VT – LSU – doesn’t have the landing on her 1.5 today with a large bound forward into the next state. 9.825. I mean, how do you go higher than 9.750 there?

Oakley – UB – UGA – higgins to lovely piked jaeger – YIKES – overdoes her cast handstand and has to go over the other way and improvise – continues with lovely individual skills – FTDT, stuck. 9.500.

OH GEORGIA.

After 1: LSU 49.325, Georgia 48.600

It’s a miracle that Georgia got out of that rotation with a 48.600 despite three gymnasts having huge errors on their routines. LSU hit vault well enough for 49.325, though the scores were pretty loose on those last couple vaults. They’ll need to develop more control on the later-lineup vaults to get a truly competitive score.

Heads up that Denver is on track to score another 8 billion this week.

Rotation 2

Magee – VT – UGA – full – hits her full, a little chest down, hop back, will get deducted for dynamics. 9.775 is high for me there.

Durante – UB – LSU – a bit tight on first hs – 1/2 turn with some arch back into jaeger, hit – pak, a bit of legs – final cast hs is closer – FTDT, stuck with chest down. Nice start. 9.900

Danna is wearing a neutral white. No aggressive LSU colors like I was hoping for.

Ward – VT – UGA – Tsuk full – bounce back – some clear piking throughout.

Ferrer – UB – LSU – short first hs – 1/2 turn to jaeger with feet – bail, pretty close to vertical there – better final cast hs – DLO, stuck. Her best of the year. I feel like those taped ankles really make it look like she has boulders at the end of her ankles. 9.850

Vega – VT – UGA – hits her full – shoots off exactly horizontally and it doesn’t even matter – small hop – some knees – an amplitude deduction, great distance as always

Harrold – UB – LSU – good Zuchold – cast a bit short – 1/2 turn to jaeger, well caught – double front, pace forward. One of her good ones. 9.875

Dickson – VT – UGA – Omelianchik and hands down. She’s having a bit of a day so far.

Edney – UB – LSU – Hindorff and falls. Weird. What is happening today? Finishes DLO with a step back.

FINAL: Florida 197.225, Arkansas 196.350

Score won’t be noteworthy for Florida but will be for Arkansas.

Lukacs – VT – UGA – one of her best DTYs this year – chest up more, small hop back, a little bit of legs – not a ton of distance – 9.900

Priessman – UB – LSU – tkatchev to pak, so quick and hit, one of her good paks tofay too – 1/2 turn on low, good – nice cast on high – DLO, a bit whippy, stuck. Exceptional routine.

Denver goes 197.775, the high score of the night.

Snead – VT – UGA – Y1..5 – not her most controlled landing with a hop forward. Otherwise pretty.

10.000 for Priessman. It was probably her best bars routine for LSU. And it’s not even senior night. So we’re done complaining about both the lack of 10s in the SECs and the scoring for LSU, right? OK good phew.

Finnegan – UB – LSU – small arch in first hs – Ray – toe on to bail, nailed vertical position – snother small arch ion final cast hs – DLO, hop back. Not her strongest but clean and good. 9.825.

After 2: LSU 98.775, Georgia 97.850

LSU on a solid pace after two events. Aside from the weird Edney fall, hit a strong bars rotation, though Finnegan had more little errors than usual in her set. Georgia goes 49.250 on vault, getting the scores for the last couple routines. The fall from Dickson was strange, but they too had five usable scores from the rest.

Rotation 3

Desiderio – BB – LSU – aerial to split, smoothly connected – bhs loso series, secure and hit – full turn, a little hesitant but fine – switch to switch 1/2 to beat, a little tight in that switch 1/2, combination and position – gainer full, stuck. 9.900.

Perez-Lugones – FX – UGA – double pike, large bounce back and OOB – 1.5 to layout, clean – switch side to popa, a bit crooked on switch side, popa looked good – double tuck, stuck. 9.650

Dean – BB – LSU – side aerial to bhs, hit securely, knee form deduction – switch to split 1/4, not bad on the position this week – aerial with a huge break, bend at the hips, several steps – grabs the beam to save it – side aerial to full, stuck. But major deduction there.

Still gets 9.600, which makes no sense because she had a mandatory .3 for grabbing the beam IN ADDITION to everything else.

Baumann – FX – UGA – double pike, bounce back, a touch of knees as well – double tuck, much stronger, good control – switch ring to switch side – lovely L – 1.5 to layout, controlled, just some knees – 9.900

I’M LIVING IN A CUCKOO CLOCK

Durante – BB – LSU – aerial to beat jump, pretty style – loso series, good control to save it with just a little check, legs very wide apart and kept it together – split leap positions are nice – side aerial to full with a hop in place. Hit. 9.875

Snead – FX – UGA – double pike, nice position in the air – slide back – rudi to shushunova, hit comfortably – switch to cat leap – whip through to double tuck, very secure landing, just chest down. 9.875

Edney – BB – LSU – aerial to split, hit – bhs loso series, super solid – split to straddle 1/4 with a balance check and some position deductions there – kickover front with a check and an arm wave, super high as always – 1.5, stuck. 9.900 I CANNOT

Lukacs – FX – UGA – sticks DLO, awesome straight position in the air – wolf and straddle jumps pretty high, solid – whip to 1/5 to front layout, also stuck, just a little body position in the layout. Straddles connected, hit positions – double pike, controlled step back. Her best of the season. 9.875

Campbell – BB – LSU – loso series, quite clean – aerial to sissone, great height, slow combination but fine – switch to switch 1/2, also hit well – 2/1, basically stuck. Really, really strong work.

9.975. Heavens. That’s a SARAH FINNEGAN WE’RE GIVING YOU A 10 kind of score.

A casual 49.575 for Boise State on bars with a 9.975 for Courtney McGregor.

Magee – FX – UGA – pike full in – hits with a slide back – switch side to popa, overturns the switch side a bit – 1.5 to layout, really has to whip over an arched layout – double pike, really low, chest down with a lunge forward. 9.775 extremely high for that –

Finnegan – BB – LSU – wolf turn single – bhs loso with a little lean that she covers with a butt shelf – excellent switch to switch 1/2 as always – side somi, hit smoothly – side aerial to full, holds the stick on her toes.

I mean, it’s not one of her 10s, but we’ll see if they decided beforehand or not.

“Sarah Finessegan.” Kathy, we’re going to have to talk about that one.

10.000. They decided beforehand.

Vega – FX – UGA – full in, one of her solid ones – controls landing very well not to go OOB because she was so close to the edge – 1.5 to layout, nice in the air, hop forward – gets her split 1.5 around – double pike, secure. Good. 9.900

LSU goes 49.650 for a fine beam rotation. Cool cool.

After 3: LSU 148.425, Georgia 147.175

The theme of this meet is “LSU hasn’t been super overscored at home so far this year, so we’ll do four meets worth of overscoring in this one meet.”

Dickson out of the meet after being pulled from floor.

Rotation 4

Snead – BB – UGA – bhs loso bhs with a balance check this week – cat leap to switch to straddle, super low back leg on switch – front tuck, very solid – 2/1, holds the stick despite being a little under. A hit. 9.875.

Harrold – VT – LSU – front 2/1, hit, a little out of control on the slide forward – double pike, a little adjustment on landing there as well – switch ring to switch 1/2 look solid – 1.5 to layout, a bit of knees, controls the step out on this one. 9.825

Also keep an eye on Boise State, where EVERY ROUTINE IS A 9.9!

Lukacs – BB – UGA _ bhs loso series, secure landing, some knees – oof, wolf hop to switch side are both quite low of position and I would say not connected – gainer full, stuck. 9.675

Desiderio – FX – LSU – DLO with a bounce back out, a little piking at the end as well – front tuck through to double tuck, secure but chest well down – switch ring to split leap are fine – double pike, deep mush in the knees on landing. A struggle routine. 9.725 is kind of high for that.

Magee – BB – UGA – straddle to straddle 1/2, pretty straddle position on that opening one – bhs loso series with a balance lean and a fairly major arm wave – switch to switch side with a little hesitation in between – full turn, small lean – side aerial to layout full, off line and a couple steps. Some major things to take there – 9.725 will count.

Campnbell – FX – LSU – 2.5 opener, fairly out of control on landing with a lunge. double tuck, does well to hold a controlled landing despite coming in short – awesome amplitude on switch 1/2 and popa, that’s how it should look – 1.5 to layout, a little lower on the layout but nice overall. 9.850

Oakley – BB – UGA – opens with her wolf – bhs loso series, lovely height and extension, wonderful – aerial, solid – split to split ring, hits positions pretty well, small lean – gainer full, stuck. Great one. 9.925

Edney – FX – LSU – double arabian, much better this week with just a little hop – 1.5 to layout, good amplitude – switch ring to split leap full, second split leap a little short for me – double tuck, nailed. Her best in a while.

9.925. The judges are like, “PHEW WE CAN SET UP FOR FINNEGAN AGAIN”

Baumann – BB – UGA – side aerial to loso series, large break with a leg-up correction, leg going up to hip height – wolf hop to switch side, another larger check, leg up again – 2/1, deep landing with a crossover step. Another struggle routine. Georgia getting through but major errors on several routines. 9.625

Finnegan – FX – LSU – 1.5 through to 2.5, a little too steppy on landing this time but close to control – double tuck, perfect in the air and landing position as always, just a little bounce – switch ring and switch 1/2 perfect obviously – double pike, stuck, excellent. She is a perfect swan, but you can’t really go higher than 9.900 for that, though I expect them to go higher.

9.950.

Vega – BB – UGA – switch to split ring, excellent – aerial to split just a small adjustment in between but covers it – bhs loso series, hit – side aerial to full, stuck. Good final routine. Bars and beam were problems today for Georgia. 9.950. End of meet.

Kelley – FX – LSU – DLO, secure, chest down – front lay to front full, short with a step back – split leap full to tuck jump 1.5, short of split position – double tuck, solid final pass. Sort of impossible to go over 9.850 for that.

They find a way. 9.925. That kind of night.

LSU 197.900, Georgia 196.325

LSU gets the number it has been looking for at home all season. For Georgia, not a very usable road score there.

Meanwhile Boise State is about to get a huge home number in its first post-Remme meet, and Washington should also break 196.

Cal went 49.225 on floor to start.

Bowling Green just got 46.400 on bars. Oregon State 49.075 on vault.

Sabrina Gill peels off on bars for Oregon State. They’ll be counting 9.525 and will go 48.900 on bars.

Boise State and Washington both come out of their meet with excellent scores, Boise State going 197.125, Washington 196.700. Utah State finishes with 195.025.

94 thoughts on “Friday Live Blog – March 1, 2019”

  1. Tough for these teams if other judges pretend not to have seen the email …
    Kind of reminds me: I’m a teacher in a university. We mark all exams & assignments out of 20. Come exam time, we all get together and compare the papers we’ve marked, and there’s this one guy who’s WAY too nice – gives 20 out of 20 willy-nilly. Not to papers which are *bad* but to ones that the rest of us would give 17 or 18 to (I pointed out to him that a student he’d given 20 to had got a date wrong by an entire century and he was like ‘oh ok 19 then’). I’m not morally against giving a perfect score but I tend to see *some* way the assignment or exam could be improved (like an elite judge) whereas he tends to turn a blind eye (like an NCAA judge).
    Anyway after seeing this in action last semester, and seeing that no-one is telling him his scores are out of range (I can’t really because he’s senior to me, although I’ve been here longer) I feel like I need to increase my scores because otherwise my students are the ones suffering and coming out with lower grades when my best ones deserve to do just as well as his best (I know, I’ve moderated their papers).
    Anyway basically I get it why scores trend high – the scores are compared nationally, so if other judges are going crazy and you insist on judging sanely, you’re really just punishing the team you’re judging – and they’re the ones you probably feel an affiliation to because you judge around where you live.

    1. So basically you’re saying we need moderation in college gym? I’m down

  2. I feel like there’s been some interesting score splits in this UK/Missouri meet???

  3. Lol at the commentator for Auburn/Alabama implying that scoring has been tight across the entire SEC this year. It’s been tight for some teams, but certainly not for all.

  4. What a lovely vault rotation for Bama! I’m really hoping they can keep the momentum going.

  5. Well, that wasn’t a great rotation for either team.

    On another note, I’m a big fan of Auburn choreography.

    1. Me too! They do quite a good job with their gymnasts who are not natural dancers!

  6. “typically judges reward those high level skills” unless it’s Shallon, #justiceforShallon

    1. Totally! I have been defending some of the judging for Shallon but I’m done, that was outright robbery on both floor and beam. No way that routine should have scored lower than Desch.

    2. Her beam has improved by light-years since she came to NCAA. That deserves recognition.

    3. I know there have been a number of athletes for top 10 schools that have been getting lower scores than other athletes from top 10 schools this year, but Shallon’s have been the ones that have annoyed me most. She’s put out some really great routines and has deserved better than she’s gotten in a lot of cases.

  7. Okay, I get having Sweet Home Alabama floor music, but for Emily Gaskins?

    1. I agree. It is a waste of someone who is capable of doing something elegant a la Abby Armbrecht. Instead she is stuck with that dreck.

  8. Is Graber dealing with an injury? I feel like her absence from beam and floor is pretty notable. I can see leaving her off bars but she’s usually one of Alabama’s top FX and BB scores.

  9. Shallon Olsen is criminally underscored, ESPECIALLY following that Desch routine. #JUSTICEFORSHALLON

  10. I can’t even with these judges under-rewarding Shallon, particularly following that score for Desch. Hopping on the #justiceforshallon train, bottle in hand.

  11. I love missing an entire rotation because of an overtime basketball game and the app won’t get its shit together and show the LSU meet as a live meet.

  12. That Georgia bars rotation – i don’t think that’s bad luck, that’s just karma!

    1. It’s the #DannaJinx she may give the appearance of being neutral, per Spencer, but she’s wearing purple underwear with a photo of a stake through a Bulldog on the bottom.

      🙂

  13. If my math is correct, it looks like Denver is going to go into third place after tonight’s score. Is anyone else seeing the same?

    1. I think they’re in 4th for now (RQS of 197.31 is still behind Florida), but LSU might pass them again depending on how the rest of their meet goes (and Utah could pass them later this weekend).

      1. Oh, got it, thanks! I mistook one of their 196s for a 197, so I miscalculated. That makes a lot more sense.

  14. Is McKenna Kelley not redshirting? Saw her mentioned as a senior on the ESPN broadcast but thought she was only a junior Bc she redshirted?

    1. She’s listed as a senior on LSU’s roster on their website, so I assume she elected not to redshirt.

  15. NASTIA pink update:

    Future Alabama gymnast (2020) Makarri Doggette of Buckeye Gymnastics WINS the Pink Cup with a 38.975.
    V – 9.850
    Bars – 9.750
    Beam – 9.800
    F – 9.575

    2. Jillian Hoffman – SCEGA Gymnastics
    3. Kiya Johnson – Texas Dreams Gymnastics
    I think Kiya is an LSU commit for 2020 (not sure) but I have no idea where Jillian is going.

    1. Per Spencer’s Things Are Happening this afternoon, Jillian is going to Utah next year.

    2. Hoffman is going to Utah in the fall. She also had a massive 9.9 on floor, and that’s with JO scoring.

    1. Yeah a 9.9 and 9.975 for those routines is a bit much. And I love FInney, but that was not her best beam routine and was not a 10. Feels as if the judges are just like “Eh whatever, Georgia can’t win. Score ’em high!”

    2. lsu definitely getting a ton of help tonight but i don’t know if i’d say its the absolute WORST overscoring of the season. that ou/florida meet was a little worse in my opinion

      1. Pretty damn close! The over scoring for LSU is almost criminal tonight. High scores for major errors. I guess that they have predetermined the top four. Up until tonight I thought one thru three were pre selected but this is a joke. I’ve decided that SEC. stands for “some extra credit “. Or maybe it should be SUPER extra credit. Truly makes me ill

      2. Let’s hold off on comments like these until after the UCLA Oklahoma meet 🙄

    3. tbh florida oklahoma and ucla have been so consistently overscored that its about time that lsu got some charitable scoring – think lexie was an actual 10 tho have no issues with it. The worst meet i think for overscoring has to be oklahoma florida … until maybe ucla v oklahoma this wknd.

      1. I wonder if they will give 11’s at the Oklahoma/UCLA meet. Wouldn’t surprise me after tonight’s scoring debacle

  16. I never thought LSU could beat UCLA for “most overscored meet” but they take the prize today. Something needs to be done with scores.

    1. Hahaha, yeah, I’m a huge LSU fan and this is a little much and we know it. But, they have been consistently underscored this season – maybe there was another email asking the judges to “even it out” 🤷🏻‍♂️

      1. I don’t think they’ve been underscored, they’re a weaker team than last year and are still #4. Today is just an egregious overscore.

      2. @Anon responding to other anon I would agree that they haven’t been “underscored” per se (with the exception of Sarah Finnegan), but until tonight they haven’t been over scored. When you’re #4 and #1-#3 have been significantly over scored all season, not being over scored has a significant impact.

  17. LSU judges deciding to remind everyone of the SEC’s proud legacy of crack scoring tonight

  18. Here comes the LSU slander……… Goad you finally get a meet to complain about.

    1. hahaha i know right. yes, lsu getting a ton of overscoring but there wasn’t this much outrage when ou/ucla/florida got the same benefit of the doubt

      1. What??? There’s outrage about the top 3 teams all of the time… literally every week on these threads. Sorry LSU fan, but this meet takes the cake for crazy scoring.

      2. I disagree. There was plenty of outrage on this site in all of the meets when Oklahoma, Florida, and UCLA have gotten crack scoring. Personally, this meet bothers me a whole lot less than meets when the top 3 have been over scored because LSU hasn’t been given a whole season of crack scoring (though I’m a little salty that Georgia is also benefitting since they’ve gotten charitable scoring in several meets this year), but to say that there wasn’t a lot of outrage when the top 3 have been overscored is just inaccurate. If you go back through the live blogs on this site, there have been plenty of complaints every time Oklahoma, UCLA, and Florida have been over scored.

      3. There is near-constant outrage about UCLA‘s scoring, followed by frequent outrage about Florida and a little about Oklahoma. People bring it up to complain about it on days they’re not even competing (justifiably I think, but it’s still a huge amount).
        Four or five posts about LSU (most prefaced with „finally!“) is nothing in comparison.

  19. I don’t want to hear another complaint about SEC scoring or LSU getting screwed.

    1. You are using this one meet to dictate the entire season of scoring?

  20. The beam and vault scoring at LSU is crack tonight. Moving past that Dean was gorgeous on beam and the second half of UGAs floor ex delivered. Georgia looked mentally somewhere else on bars for those without ESPN News. They’re now saying Dickson might have broken her nose when she landed her Ray to her chest on the bar. LSU had slightly generous bar scoring but killed their discounts. UGA was also Schulz on vault with girls poking when they didn’t need to, Vega having bent arm block and a stiff leg landing/hop from Ahead- they pulled Dickson after her second fall of the night. Two more thoughts- I’m fine with the Finnegan 10 regardless of that minor save because she was at least a tenth better than the 9.9s. And Rachel Bauman’s desperate everything!

  21. You literally said the only thing about Raegan’s routine was a slow connection. She hit EVERYTHING else, so what is the issue?

    When it is 198.500 to 198.475 on sunday be sure to keep that same energy.

    And also… where is the shade for Denver’s 197.775…. I’m sure that was earned.

    1. Denver may be lucky that most of us can’t watch their meets so we just accept their scores and don’t know any better because we haven’t seen it.

  22. LSU judges are just taunting their counterparts who will be at the UCLA/OU meet to see if they dare to go cracky-er. 🙂

  23. Ok- compared to the rest of tonight’s scoring Finnegan should have had a 10.5… but seeing Finnegan and Vega hits back to back make me forgive a lot. But so help me if they hand Kelly the same score as Finnegan!!!

  24. Every year all anyone does is complain about scores. It’s such a broken record. So much whining. It’s always like this. Figure out something else to talk about.

    1. I disagree with this notion. Scores are what determines who wins and who loses. This year, as has been the case in previous years, not all teams and athletes are being scored according to the same standard. Saying “figure out something else to talk about” sounds like saying “please stop caring who wins and who loses.” I would understand saying “figure out something else to talk about” when people want to do a deep dive into some athlete’s hairstyle or something like that. But this is a sport, and who gets how many points matters. Realistically, some athletes probably miss out on All-American honors because of the unequal scoring. And it might even be the case that the team rankings are affected by the unequal scoring. Telling people to stop talking about it/caring about it sounds like telling people to stop taking this sport seriously. It is possible to appreciate the lovely performances the gymnasts put out every week while also acknowledging that there is a problem with how routines across the country are being evaluated and scored.

      Additionally, the discussions about scoring aren’t just empty talk. It is becoming increasingly apparent that people are taking note. Week after week, the commentators mention how people are getting frustrated with the scoring. As many people know, there was even an email sent out to the judges about scoring issues. Clearly, the issues that fans are bringing up are being noticed. Maybe nothing will change this season, but I have hope that if fans continue to point out the problems, things may eventually change. It’s worth it to keep talking about the problems if it may eventually improve the sport that we enjoy.

  25. I am neither an LSU fan nor an OU, UCLA, or FLA fan. Compared to the rest of the country, the scoring at LSU tonight was not egregious. Priessman’s 10.0 was deserved, while Finnegan’s 10.0 on BB may not have been her best routine, she’s had a million 10.0 BB routines that didn’t score that. I love Natalie Wojcik and thought she should’v e had a 10.0 on vault week 1, but where’s the outrage over her scary lock-legged 10.0? Since she deserved her 10.0 it’s ok to not be mad about that? Getting off-topic but all in all LSU deserved their score tonight.
    I hope Rachel Dickson is okay.

    1. Your comment only makes sense if the “rest of the country “ is comprised of Oklahoma UCLA and Florida. So many teams have been harmed in the rankings because of the over scoring of the big 3 and now adding LSU. Also individual athletes. Their ranking drops because “Carol” wasn’t There. I think one of the most underrated athletes this year is Kari Lee. She is lovely to watch and has th e difficult tricks. I watched the Utah UCLA meet las week and her beam routine was beautiful and scored really low. I believe that the best team won but they were definitely being scored from a different play boot. Yes they good but the meet was closer than the scoring indicated. Utah scores were for the most part reasonable where UCLA was scored noticeably higher than they should have been Hoping thing straighten out soon

      1. Just no. Utah was, if anything, scored more generously than UCLA in that meet. For every Ross vault getting .05 higher than it should’ve there was a Skinner beam, also getting .05 (or more!) in star bonus. It’s absurd to claim they were being scored from a different playbook and it’s so exhausting listening to Utah fans whining about scoring every time they lose.
        Kari Lee does get underscored and her beam routine was a particular slight – that was really unfair.

      2. Oh my hell. One Utah comment and the fans are coming out of the woodwork. I’m a total Cal fan and happened to watch the stream. Major overscored ohashi on beam and floor. Ross vault Frazier floor. (Uncontrolled landings). And there were others. Utah was under Scored on vault and floor. Kari was hammered overall. UCLA should have won. All I said was it was closer than the score indicated. Did Utah get a couple of gifts yes. Just not as many

  26. Speaking of BGSU, I don’t follow this team closely but scores indicate they have already had 5 falls on beam, 3 falls on bars, and 2 on FX (that rotation is still in progress). Guessing this is not a normal outing for them… I cringe to imagine what that flight home will be like.

    1. Coming right after the article about all the abuse at Bowling Green, I would like to believe it is an athlete protest.

      1. Um no….the athletes on the team are behind the coaches (you can look at Jovanna East’s IG post among others) ….those quoted in the article were well aware of the 3 strikes policy when they signed on to be part of the BG team ….gymnasts quoted or referred to in the article had issues with discipline infractions and breaking team rules and Coach Turner runs a tight ship and if you, the college athlete , refuses to abide by the rules.. like showing up at practice on time and not hungover .. and you get disciplined, that is not abuse. Too many of those complaining want their parents to “fix” their mistakes and not be accountable.

        One of the gymnasts who had 3 strikes and was not asked back filed a lawsuit against the school and lost ….and then went to the press screaming abuse. Sorry you couldn’t behave, you didn’t want to train,and therefore didn’t make line ups …. but let’s scream abuse because that’ll get a reaction.

        BG tends to have a large roster and Coach Turner tends to bring some athletes on who ordinarily would not make a D1 team but they get a chance to be part of a team , and they train , condition, practice, do team activities just like every other team member but a lot of these more fringe skill level athletes rarely or never compete ….and a lot of them will do it for a year or two and then move on…nothing sinister, it just gets old to continue to train and never compete….unlike JO , where you sign up for the meet and compete, no ,attention your scores…so a lot of the attrition has been much of this.

        The team has been very upset because they knew the article attacking their coaches and team was coming out….and coupled with the trip to Oregon, they were out of sorts going into the meet yesterday. They are a great group of young ladies who just want to compete , do well and be coached by their current coaches.

    2. Aww that’s so rough. Maybe that article had folks feeling on edge?

  27. I was at the LSU meet – Lexie’s 10 was great. I was surprised st deans beam score and Campbell’s floor but overall most of the other scores were deserved. I didn’t think they’d given finnegan a 10 because she had to fight for that landing (combine with the slight balance check on the series), but they did – no different though when ohashi gets a 10 on floor and has steps and uncontrolled landings. So the scoring was a little walk – surely not as bad as Fl OU or so,e of the other super high scores we’ll see at OU UCLA. As others have pointed out, if some teams are going to get over scored then you want your team to get over scored to to keep up – it would be better if the scoring was more realistic overall, but it isn’t, and as an lsu fan, I am glad we Finally got some home crack scoring to even things out. And on a personal note, am really glad that Lexie (and Sarah) got a 10

  28. Anyone else wondering if there is volunteer coaching drama in the SEC?

    Suzanne missed the LSU meet and Danna was there… Bryan Raschilla was back at Bama after being let go.

    1. I don’t think Suzanne attends away meets for Georgia anymore…she has said she will slowly back away from her role as CKC got her feet underneath her and I believe she said in an interview that she wouldn’t be attending away meets this year.

    2. Suzanne is probably busy bullying local gyms on behalf of CKC. She doesn’t have time to travel.

  29. I imagine Suzanne is on vacation. She gave an interview preseason where she mentioned that she not only didn’t pull Kupets’ strings but had missed meets last year because her new family tradition was spring trips. I’ve seen her post trips before and was seriously jealous… Also she was definitely at Florida and a couple of other away meets.

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