LSU’s only practice inside the PMAC was Monday.
Following its second place finish at the Super Six last season, the best finish in school history, the Tigers’ unofficially opened their season Monday in “Gym 101” — an exhibition meet with one judge to grade the Tigers’ meet routines. LSU finished with a team score of 197.400.
“This was a huge, huge step in the right direction,” said D-D Breaux, who is entering her 40th season as LSU’s coach. “We could not have asked for a better preparation for a season opener in January.”
In the exhibition, LSU competed seven gymnasts on each event, including two freshman: Ruby Harrold and Kennedi Edney.
“Kennedi Edney did a fabulous job and Ruby on bars,” Breaux said. “Like I said, we’re just getting [Harrold] back in her groove. She’s going to be a real contributor as we move down into the deeper part of the season. … Right now, we’re just trying to get her ready on bars.”
LSU, officially, opens its season Jan. 6 at 6 p.m. against No. 9 Georgia, then will travel to Tuscaloosa the following week to face No. 3 Alabama at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 13.
“Georgia and Alabama, yeah, it’s an incredible one-two punch,” Breaux said. “But it’s a real opportunity for us to be able to get these kids ready and get them focused in that competition group.”
Monday’s results, lineup notes
VAULT
| Place | Gymnast | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1T | Myia Hambrick | LSU | 9.950 |
| 1T | Ashleigh Gnat | LSU | 9.950 |
| 3 | Kennedi Edney | LSU | 9.900 |
| 4T | Sarah Finnegan | LSU | 9.850 |
| 4T | Sydney Ewing | LSU | 9.850 |
| 6 | Lexie Priessman | LSU | 9.750 |
| 7 | Julianna Cannamela | LSU | 9.700 |
LSU kicked off Monday’s exhibition with a team score of 49.500, including Edney’s 9.90 routine.
The Tigers’ vault lineup is anchored by junior Myia Hambrick and senior Ashleigh Gnat, whose double Yurchenko reeled in 10 individual titles last season. Gnat finished as the top-ranked vaulter in the NCAA last season, including two perfect scores on the event.
Sophomore McKenna Kelley and Harrold were missing from LSU’s exhibition vault lineup Monday. (More on why below).
BARS
| Place | Gymnast | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1T | Myia Hambrick | LSU | 9.900 |
| 1T | Lexie Priessman | LSU | 9.900 |
| 3T | Kennedi Edney | LSU | 9.850 |
| 3T | Ruby Harrold | LSU | 9.850 |
| 5 | Shae Zamardi | LSU | 9.800 |
| 6T | Ashleigh Gnat | LSU | 9.750 |
| 6T | Sarah Finnegan | LSU | 9.750 |
LSU’s bars lineup may look a little different this season compared to last season, beginning with its leadoff gymnast: Shae Zamardi. Zamardi, a senior, was a part-time anchor for the Tigers last season because of the difficulty in a handful of her release skills.
Zamardi’s routine, though, has become easier, Breaux said. The Vancouver Island, Canada, native tweaked her elbow during one of the releases, causing the Tigers to lighten her routine.
“She’s got a wear injury, wear and tear on her body,” Breaux said. “We took one of her release moves out. So when we took it out, it made her routine a little bit easier, so we thought we’d open up with her. Since she was last last season, we thought we’d make a big statement.”
As an entire event, LSU’s bars will more challenging this season because of an increase in skill level, the coach added.
“We’re doing a lot of bigger release moves,” she said. “[Associate head coach] Jay [Clark] has done a great job in the skill selection.”
BEAM
| Place | Gymnast | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1T | Myia Hambrick | LSU | 9.900 |
| 1T | Ashleigh Gnat | LSU | 9.900 |
| 1T | Sarah Finnegan | LSU | 9.900 |
| 4 | Lexie Priessman | LSU | 9.850 |
| 5T | Sydney Ewing | LSU | 9.800 |
| 5T | Julianna Cannamela | LSU | 9.800 |
| 7 | Kennedi Edney | LSU | 9.650 |
LSU will compete its fewest new faces on beam this season. Monday, the Tigers competed two seniors, one junior and three sophomores and one freshman.
Once the season begins, Breaux expects junior Erin Macadaeg to be the Tigers’ leadoff beam worker. Macadaeg was sidelined Monday with a left ankle injury and was in a walking boot during the exhibition.
“She’s a great start score for us on beam,” the coach said. (More on Macadaeg’s injury below).
Bugs’ beam.
“She’s amazing,” Jay Clark says.#LSU pic.twitter.com/opg6ofIV7K
— Christian Boutwell (@CBoutwell_) December 13, 2016
FLOOR
| Place | Gymnast | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1T | Ashleigh Gnat | LSU | 9.900 |
| 1T | Sarah Finnegan | LSU | 9.900 |
| 3 | McKenna Kelley | LSU | 9.850 |
| 4T | Lexie Priessman | LSU | 9.800 |
| 4T | Sydney Ewing | LSU | 9.800 |
| 6 | Shae Zamardi | LSU | 9.750 |
| 7 | Myia Hambrick | LSU | 8.900 |
McKenna Kelley’s floor routine is much harder these days.
“Oh, it’s a lot harder,” Breaux said. “It’s a tough routine. It’s hard.”
The sophomore power gymnast has added a bevy of much more difficult skills to her floor routine, increasing the start value of her routine’s score.
Here’s McKenna Kelley’s new floor, which D-D Breaux said has new, more difficult skills than it did last season. #LSU pic.twitter.com/cwnOLxNhR4
— Christian Boutwell (@CBoutwell_) December 13, 2016
Unlike last season, LSU will expect a consistent floor routine from Priessman, who performed on bars a handful of times last season because of a shoulder injury. Priessman also made an appearance on vault and beam once last season.
Like Kelley, Finnegan’s floor routine has increased in difficulty too, Breaux said.
“Sarah Finnegan as well,” she said. “We added difficulty to Sarah’s floor routine, we’ve got to get her in a little bit better shape. She has to be in floor routine shape. She really hasn’t done the numbers that the other kids have done.”
Injuries
- Ruby Harrold: illness
- Breaux expects Harrold, a 2016 Summer Olympian, to perform in more than bars this season, she said. Earlier this week, Breaux said she expected Harrold’s illness to prevent her from other events in LSU’s exhibition. Breaux complimented Harrold’s vault — a one-and-a-half Yurchenko — and her floor routine after the exhibition.
- Ashlyn Kirby: elbow
- Kirby, a true freshman, injured her elbow in March, forcing her to miss National Championship competition her senior year of high school. In October, Breaux said she hopes Kirby can begin competing near midseason, especially on beam — an event that doesn’t require much elbow usage.
- “We’ve got to get her fit,” Breaux said. “She’s got to get herself in better shape … It’s going to take some time to get her back. Beam, I think that’s an event that I may be able to get her ready first.”
- Lexie Priessman: shoulder
-
- “That’s a big bullet back in our gun,” Clark said … Priessman, although unofficially, performed in all four events Monday for the first time at LSU.
- Erin Macadaeg: left ankle
- Macadaeg was working on beam last week in practice, Breaux said. During the exhibition, Macadaeg was in a walking boot, which prevented her from competition.
- Breaux: “She was doing beam routines Monday. So, I’m not concerned, it’s just such a small bone. If we’re going to have her in the season, we had to shut her down now. She makes a difference on that beam. She’s a great start score for us on beam. She embraces that spot going first. I’m not concerned, I believe we’ll have her back.”
- McKenna Kelley: shoulder
- Kelley’s floor routine has increased in difficulty, Breaux said. But, the powerful gymnast is recovering from a lingering shoulder injury, hindering her from performing her retooled vault routine — a piked-front with a half twist — in the exhibition. She installed the vault during the offseason. Breaux said earlier this week the vault may be performed once Kelley’s shoulder fully heals.
