The No. 5 LSU Gymnastics team will face No. 10 Kentucky in yet another top-10 matchup at home in the PMAC on March 4 at 7:15 p.m.
This meet will mark the end of the Tigers’ conference play with only one more meet afterwards against Utah on March 11 in the PMAC to close out the regular season.
In a season that has been marked by COVID-19 related complications and injuries of star gymnasts, the Tigers are looking to overcome these obstacles heading into these last two meets and the postseason.
Injury Update
Kai Rivers, a junior from Detroit, Michigan and one of the team’s leaders, suffered a shoulder injury during the Alabama meet that has left her on the sidelines, and it does not seem like she will be competing in many, or any, events on Friday. LSU Head Coach Jay Clark said at most, she will do the balance beam. At this point, it seems very up in the air, and she has not been practicing in the gym.
“That’s a big blow,” said Clark when asked about Rivers.
Since Rivers has been out, Elena Arenas has stepped up to help fill the role.
In better news, Alyona Shchennikova is back on bars again, and Clark is hopeful to get her back on the floor. Her injured knee seems to be tolerating these events.
After being pulled from the floor at Texas Woman’s, Haleigh Bryant is expected to be back on most of the events against Kentucky. Kiya Johnson will be on all four events this week.
Haleigh Bryant Wins SEC Honors
Sophomore Haleigh Bryant was named the SEC Specialist of the Week after her pair of wins on bars and vault at the Texas Woman’s meet. She scored a 9.95 on vault and a 9.925 on bars. She finished third overall on beam with a 9.875.
This is the fourth honor of 2022 for an LSU gymnast. KJ Johnson, Christina Desiderio, and Kiya Johnson were all previously honored for their outstanding performances earlier in the season.
Tigers Move Up a Spot
The Tigers moved up in the NQS rankings this week by overtaking Auburn for the No. 5 spot. The Tigers still have two meets to improve their scores, and they are still in contention for a No. 1 seed going into the postseason.
Right now, the Tigers are still counting their first meet against Centenary, which was a last minute replacement for their scheduled opening against West Virginia that had to be canceled due to COVID-19. This means they are still counting a 196.950 for a home score.
“We’re counting a lower score than a lot of the teams in the top 10,” said Clark.
If LSU scores well this Friday, their NQS could benefit and go up significantly but being a one seed does not offer much of an advantage. Being a one seed does not allow the choosing of what rotation to start on in the postseason.
“It’s the most convoluted garbage I’ve ever heard of, but it makes me crazy that achievement is not rewarded the way it is in other sports for our sport,” said Clark.
To close out the regular season, the LSU Tigers will host Utah on March 11. Utah is ranked fourth in the nation, making this a big meet. Even though the wins from individual meets do not matter as much as the scores, it will give fans a good idea of where the Tigers are going into the postseason.
SEC Championships
The SEC Championships are also right around the corner and will happen March 19 in Birmingham, Alabama. Even though the Florida Gators are likely to win the SEC regular season, the SEC Championships will put all of the teams on more equal footing.
The entire SEC is strong this year with many of the teams in contention for the National Title. In recent rankings, there are five SEC teams in the top 10 with Missouri close at No. 11.
“In this league, because everybody is good, if you’re not three to five tenths better than the team that’s home that day, you’re not coming home with a win,” said Clark.
