LSU gymnastics coach D-D Breaux always says “momentum is a dangerous drug” and the Tigers have begun to carry that momentum from meet to meet. 
After a loss to Kentucky on Feb. 8 with a season-low 196.025 team score, the Tigers have surged in the following five meets — including last Friday with a season-high 198.150. 
“I think it’s experience,” said senior all-arounder Sarah Finnegan. “Coming in, we kind of had a lack of experience in a lot of our lineups. You know, you can practice in the gym and do the numbers, but it is different when you’re out there competing — the atmosphere, the nerves, the energy.
“That’s something that we really had to learn this season and I’m so proud of the girls who have stepped up and took it up a notch. They’ve really learned from every single meet that we’ve been in, the good and the bad. They’ve use that to progress forward.”
Early in the season, Breaux urged media and fans alike to be patient with this team, as it would take a different coaching approach to reach the same level of consistency that is typically synonymous with LSU gymnastics. 
She said this season required a lot more teaching moments for the young Tigers. While Breaux is admittedly not a patient person, she adjusted her coaching and planning so that every little, minute detail in every routine would be polished for competition. 
“It’s kept the edge on all of [the coaching staff],” Breaux said. “When these kinds of seasons, these situations present themselves, I really think that the people around me have done the best job they’ve ever done because it’s been the hardest.”
And that coaching worked as the Tigers began to hit their stride after the Kentucky meet. The following five meets had scores of 197.250 (GymQuarters), 197.650 (Missouri), 197.125 (Arkansas), 197.900 (Georgia) and 198.150 (Oregon State). 
Senior all-arounder McKenna Kelley said the team always knew what they were capable it, it was just a matter of when they would reach that full potential.
“I think we’re peaking at the most perfect time,” Kelley said. “Looking into postseason, we are gaining momentum and running without limits.
“It’s so easy and so fun when you’re winning and that’s a good feeling to hold onto and to remember what that feels like and what it takes.”
At this point in the season, Finnegan explained, it’s more of a mental game for them. 
“The physical is there, the routines are there,” she said. “We know how to do our gymnastics and at this point it’s your mentality.”
LSU is looking to finish the regular season on a high note and they are using this final meet against Arizona to get in a good place mentally for the postseason. 
Kelley called this meet “one big intrasquad,” as the Tigers continue to get better and gain confidence before the Southeastern Conference championship meet.  
This meet isn’t about score for them, rather it is about bettering themselves. 
“I think we’re in a great position right now,” Finnegan said. “At the beginning of the season, we had a lot of lessons and we learned from and reflected on them. Right now we’re continuing to build our confidence. That’s what you want in postseason.”