NEW ORLEANS — With only two floor routines left of the meet, the LSU Tigers trailed the Florida Gators.
The image of LSU winning its third-straight SEC championship was fading away. Until Sarah Finnegan walked out onto the mat to begin her floor routine.
Finnegan stepped onto the floor and executed her routine. She received the sixth 10 of her career while clinching the third straight SEC championship for her Tigers with her 10.
That pushed the Tigers to a score of 197.900 to clinch first place. The Florida Gators came in second with a score of 197.750, followed by the Alabama Crimson Tide with a 197.350.
With all of the excitement surrounding this long awaited event, the Tigers came into New Orleans with the same mindset that they had had all year —just keep doing what they do.
This was the first time that the SEC gymnastics championship was hosted in New Orleans, and it made a big difference for the Tigers.
“It felt like a home meet,” senior all-arounder Lexie Priessman said. “We kept thinking we were in the PMAC because it was so loud. We looked into the crowd and saw so many familiar faces, it was crazy.” 
LSU started out strong on vault with the effort from senior all-arounder Sarah Finnegan, junior Ruby Harrold, and senior McKenna Kelley, who all scored a 9.900. Junior Kennedi Edney helped out her team as she scored a 9.850.
The Tigers momentum kept rolling as they moved onto the uneven bars. Finnegan received a score of 9.950, while Priessman was not far behind as she got a 9.925. The Tigers improved their overall score after the bars to a 98.850.
As beam approached quickly, the Tigers were a few points behind the Gators and could not seem to catch up. On the balance beam, Finnegan received a 9.950 while sophomore Christina Desiderio scored a 9.900. Sophomores Sami Durante and Reagan Campbell helped to keep the Tigers in the running as they scored 9.875.
As it came down to the last rotation, the Tigers needed to be just about perfect in order to top the gators and get the SEC championship title. Harrold showed to be unphased by the pressure as she scored a 9.875.
Priessman continued to up the Tigers score as she received a 9.900. With Finnegan, Edney and Kelley left to compete for the chance to win the title, the Tigers stayed calm and collected.
Edney scored a 9.925 before Finnegan’s 10 clinched the meet. Kelley didn’t even need to compete, but scored a 9.90 in the anchor spot. 
The Tigers will take a week off before they start to prepare as they host the 2019 NCAA Regionals in the PMAC on April 4-6.