“That was certainly the outcome everybody hoped for around here. We didn’t make it easy in spots, but then we came back and put a little pressure on the meet,” LSU Gymnastics Head Coach Jay Clark said Friday night.
After a strong 49.600 start on vault for the Tigers, the Oklahoma Sooners had it all tied up going into the third rotation with 49.425 performances on both their vault and uneven bars rotations. All-around gymnast Kailin Chio delivers a 9.950 and 9.900 on vault and uneven bars respectively to keep the Tigers moving.
“She’s just got something there that when she’s dialed in, she’s a killer. She’s just a killer. It’s highly unusual to see that level of consistency from a freshman on all four events,” Coach Clark said about Chio’s specialness.
With high scoring routines from Chio and Sierra Ballard throughout the competition, the Tigers pulled it all together on floor, their last rotation of the night. With three 9.950 routines from Chio, Amari Drayton and Haleigh Bryant, LSU Gymnastics was able to edge out Oklahoma 198.050 to 197.675 in a top two matchup.
LSU is now ranked No. 1 in the SEC, but Coach Clark wants the team to stay focused on executing in the same fashion, at every meet.
“This meet is not gonna determine a championship,” Clark said. “It certainly is a boost for our confidence…But we gotta be able to go do it on the road, we haven’t done that. We’re not gonna be complete if we can’t start doing it no matter whose environment we’re in.”
With 13,386 fans in attendance, the PMAC is certainly a tough place for the opposing team to compete, but the Tigers have experienced their own struggles with competing away from home.
They will compete without fifth-year senior and all-around gymnast Chase Brock next week at Kentucky, after she was carried off in tears during warm-ups.
“I don’t think it’s good. I’ve been doing this a long time, that didn’t look good,” Coach Clark said.
“It was a very emotional thing for us because Chase is very special and she’s loved by her teammates and her coaches. She had finally got herself in a great spot and was doing great things this year.” Coach Clark said.
The Coach felt that the Tigers “honored her with their actions, not their emotions” Friday night.
The LSU Tigers will face another road test as they prepare to meet the Kentucky Wildcats next Friday, Feb. 21, in a top 10 matchup.
