The No. 6 LSU gymnastics team captured every individual title Friday night in its 195.875-195.25 victory at No. 16 Kentucky.
Sophomore all-around Randi Lau won vault with a 9.9, while a 9.85 from junior all-around Sarie Morrison was good for the uneven bars title. Sophomore all-around Lloimincia Hall’s 9.875 gave her the top score on the floor exercise, and sophomore all-around Rheagan Courville dominated beam with a 9.95.
Courville tied for the all-around title with a 39.225, and her near-perfect score on beam came with the Tigers (6-2, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) trying to hold on to their lead in the final rotation.
“Kentucky did a super job,” said LSU coach D-D Breaux. “We could have easily given that away on the last event. … Rheagan showed up when we needed Rheagan to be there the most, and I’ve got to give her some real applause for that.”
Lau’s career high-tying 9.9 on vault came on her second appearance of the season and matched her vault score from LSU’s second-place finish at the Metroplex Challenge two weeks ago. Lau’s vault title was her first of the season and the third of her career.
Junior all-around Kaleigh Dickson was poised to capture her first career all-around title heading into the final rotation, but she suffered a heavy deduction after slipping on the beam and using her hands to catch herself. Dickson ended up with a 9.625, marring an otherwise strong performance featuring a 9.875 on vault and a 9.825 on both floor and uneven bars.
“I feel like I’m more confident than I was last season,” Dickson said. “I had my team cheering me on, and I just wanted to do it all for my team. That aspect of it really helped me stay in it and hit my routines.”
LSU will return to action at Missouri on Friday for its fourth-straight road meet. While Breaux said the team is ready to come home and compete in front of its fans, Dickson maintained that playing in hostile environments will only benefit the squad.
“Everybody has to do away meets, so we’re just getting them out of the way right now,” Dickson said. “That’ll help us when we have to travel for NCAAs and the SEC tournament. So it’s just getting us prepared, and this will make us a better team and a stronger team.”
