BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — LSU coach D-D Breaux had only one message for her squad after it failed to capture the national championship in the NCAA Super Six Finals.
But it wasn’t one of condemnation.
“I told them to hold their heads up high because they fought like Tigers,” Breaux said. “They have represented themselves, their university and their families to the very best of their abilities, and that’s all I could ask for.”
The Tigers’ season-long mission of winning a national title came to a crushing end Saturday, and the championship trophy they dreamed of hoisting above their heads was instead placed in the hands of others.
In Saturday’s championship meet, the No. 3 Tigers (26-9) scored a 197.600 to finish third behind national champions No. 1 Florida and No. 2 Oklahoma, both of which posted a 198.175 to share the title for the first time in NCAA history.
Despite the painful loss, Breaux said she was certain her squad left everything it had in the BJCC Arena, and junior all-arounder Rheagan Courville agreed with her coach’s assessment.
“I left my heart and soul on that floor tonight, and everything I could have possibly done for this team, I did, and I know everybody did the same thing,” Courville said. “When we compete with as much heart and passion as we did, it’s noticeable.”
Everyone in the arena certainly took notice of the squad’s swift jump out of the gate to start the championship meet. LSU began its night on the uneven bars and tallied a 49.400, which put the squad narrowly behind the Gators after the first rotation.
Senior all-arounder Kaleigh Dickson once again battled through her nagging foot injury and jumpstarted the Tigers with a career-high tying 9.900. But it was senior Sarie Morrison who led the way, delivering a 9.925 in an emotionally driven bars performance that was her last as an LSU gymnast.
“Tonight when [Sarie] finished her bars routine, she took her grips off, and she cried,” Breaux said. “That’s heart and soul.”
The Tigers then went to the balance beam for the second rotation. Courville and junior all-arounder Jessie Jordan, who posted an atypical 9.750 in the semifinal round Friday, delivered a pair of 9.900s for the squad, and freshman Sydney Ewing chipped in a 9.875.
As a team, LSU recorded a 49.325 on beam and had a meet-leading 98.725 heading into its first bye of the night.
But powerhouses Florida, Oklahoma and Alabama took advantage of the Tigers’ idle period. Each eclipsed the 99-point barrier halfway through the championship competition to separate LSU from its grip on the lead.
After the bye, the Tigers hit the floor exercise and registered their best performance of the night. After a 9.875 from freshman Ashleigh Gnat, sophomore Jessica Savona, who will compete in Sunday’s NCAA Individual Event Finals along with Courville, Gnat and Ewing, kicked the squad into gear with a 9.900.
Next up was Courville, who delivered another dominant floor routine for the Tigers and received a solid, yet perhaps low, 9.950. Junior Lloimincia Hall then anchored LSU with another 9.950, and the squad finished with a 49.550.
After three events, the Tigers once again trailed only Florida for the meet lead heading to their final event of the season.
LSU ended the competition on vault, where the squad has been ranked No. 1 for most of the season. But despite a series of stuck landings that judges typically reward, the Tigers received only two 9.900 scores, delivered by Courville and Gnat. The squad finished vault with a marginal 49.325.
After vault, LSU’s night was over. But the meet still had one rotation remaining, and Breaux said not being able to compete in the end hurt her team’s chances. 
“We weren’t on the floor in the last rotation, and the scores always tend to go up in end,” Breaux said.
LSU watched as Florida, Oklahoma and Alabama battled for the national championship in the final rotation of the night. The Crimson Tide, who had the good fortune of hosting the NCAA Super Six Finals, looked poised to take the crown. But two falls on balance beam cost Alabama a shot at the national title, and the Gators and Sooners were able to storm through for a share of the championship.
“You’re talking about a Florida team that won it last year, so they know how to win,” Breaux said. “And Oklahoma has finished second for three or four years, and they had the attitude that it wasn’t going to be taken away from them this year. So my compliments to them.” 
But Alabama’s mishaps on beam enabled the Tigers to finish third. In a season that’s been filled with broken records, the LSU gymnastics squad’s third-place finish in the 2014 campaign was the highest an LSU team has ever had. Jordan said it helped soothe the sting of not claiming the championship trophy.
“Of course we were let down because we were going after that championship, and we worked and fought so hard for it all season,” Jordan said. “But this is the highest that LSU has placed in school history, and that’s something to be proud of.”  
Breaux has said from the beginning of the season that this was the best squad she has had in her 37 years of coaching, and what they accomplished this season will only benefit the program moving forward. 
“They really redefined what the next benchmark is for this team, and they did it with style and panache,” Breaux said. “There aren’t a whole lot of teams that can finish as high as we finished, and I think it will help them understand what the process has to be to come back next year and be in the conservation.”