Haleigh Bryant felt a sense of relief when her feet hit the ground during her final pass on the floor Friday night.
The last time the two teams went head-to-head in the PMAC, floor anchor Haleigh Bryant failed to stick her final flip, causing LSU to fall in a devastatingly close match during the 2020 season.
However, this wasn’t the case for the purple and gold on Friday night. The LSU gymnastics team won the meet with a season high 198.100-197.975, moving their record to 3-3 in the conference and No. 8 in national rankings.
“We needed that,” said head coach Jay Clark. “We’ve been improving week after week and the one thing that was missing was the win. It was special to get a win like that.”
LSU’s triumph over Florida was the last outcome anyone expected. After being crushed in Auburn last weekend, the Tigers were clearly the underdogs when they returned to the PMAC to face No. 2 Florida.
The team hasn’t beaten the Gators during the regular season since 2018. The victory marks their ninth-highest overall score in program history.
Sophomore Aleah Finnegan earned her third perfect score in three straight weeks, giving her a career-high in every event except for bars.
“We knew it when we signed [Finnegan],” Clark said after the meet. “We knew her pedigree. We knew her sister and her family. If I could clone some more Finnegans, I would.”
Starting the night with their strongest event, LSU gym’s Elena Arenas led vault with a season-high 9.875. Finnegan followed the junior with a strong 9.950 while KJ Johnson scored a 9.850 in the fifth spot. Bryant anchored the event with a 9.975 to secure the lead.
LSU moved onto bars for the second rotation. The team scored one of their highest scores in the event this season at 49.500. Four out of six of the Tigers finished their routines with a score of 9.900 or above. In her debut season, Tori Tatum earned a 9.900 while Arenas followed suit with a career-high of the same score. Bryant matched her career-high 9.950 in the anchor spot. The junior has averaged above 9.900 this entire season.
The purple and gold kept the lead by two-tenths of a point as both teams switched to the beam and floor. The Tigers kept the lead in the second half as Arenas hopped onto the beam. She finished her routine with her third-highest score this season.
Senior Kai Rivers earned her second straight 9.900 in the third spot of the lineup. KJ Johnson recorded a career-high 9.875 during her fourth appearance on the event. Finnegan finished on a high note with a perfect score to record a season-high 49.550.
Florida finished their night with a season-best 49.625 on the balance beam. Trinity Thomas recorded the 25th perfect 10 of her career, putting her in the third spot for gymnast with the most perfect scores in their collegiate careers. She put up a 39.850 score to win the all-around. This is the second consecutive meet that she has turned in the nation’s all-around high. She is currently the top all-around performer in the nation.
“There were some phenomenal routines tonight and also had a few uncharacteristic things here and there,” said Florida head coach Jenny Rowland. “It will help us continue to not be complacent and really continue to take those steps forward to be the best this team is capable of being.”
Thomas took the title on bars and shared the title on beam and floor with Finnegan and Johnson respectively. Bryant topped the vault event to earn her 18th title this season.
During the final rotation on floor, Alyona Shchennikova recorded yet another career high 9.925 while Arenas scored a 9.825 in her first appearance on floor this season. KJ Johnson also matched her career high with a 9.95. In usual fashion, Bryant anchored the last event with a 9.925 to close out the night.
“They did such a great job,” said Clark. “Our message all week was to just put pressure on them and see what happens. Now, we get ready to go again next week at Alabama.”
With LSU dethroning Florida from their undefeated spot this season, the heights of LSU’s potential this season are never ending. The LSU gymnastics team will return to the floor on Friday, Feb. 24 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Fans can catch live action on SEC Network Plus at 7 p.m.
