LSU fans are no strangers to controversial calls — from LSU football’s seven overtime loss to Texas A&M this past November or Devin White’s “targeting” penalty against Mississippi State.
LSU gymnastics is no different. The Tigers fell to the Florida Gators 197.425-197.475 Friday night, but it came down to a single routine that even the SEC Network commentators were baffled at.
Senior all-arounder McKenna Kelley anchored for the Tiger during their final rotation on floor, needing a 9.925 to tie and a 9.95 to win. Kelley, who has a career average of 9.869 on the floor, was given a 9.875 for a routine that had little difference from her 9.90 in the season opener against Cal.
By an untrained eye, her performance could have been anywhere from a 10.0 performance — which the PMAC definitely wanted — to the 9.875 she was given.
Unlike the first two meets of the season, LSU came out like the Tigers fans are used to seeing. The Tigers started and finished strong against an Southeastern Conference rival, but the subjective nature of the sport left them just short of a win.
While the scoring of the sport is subjective, there are things that all judges must look out for when watching routines.
The basic elements that make up a a floor routine’s start value will almost always be there — the tumbles, leaps and turns — and are requirements for a 10.0 start value.
Most things judges watch out for are what person untrained in gymnastics will not even notice one way or another. Those deductions are hard for others to notice.
The most obvious mistake in Kelley’s routine is on her first tumbling pass, where her chest was a little bit low on the landing despite it being stuck.
Chest position doesn’t usually warrant a large deduction, depending on the judges.
One her second pass, a small slide on her back leg could warrant a .05 deduction.
The dance elements of a floor routine are complicated.
A 180-degree angle is required during the splits — ”legs fully extended and at minimum parallel with the floor, toes pointed and continuing the line made by the leg” according to thebalancebeamsituation.com — which Kelley seems to accomplish.
Kelley then twists into another skill.
Kelley’s landings on the jumps are solid and distinct, so I wouldn’t assume deductions came from there.
Kelley’s third tumbling pass is probably the best of the three, with good height, legs together in the air and a stuck landing.
According to thebalancebeamsituation.com, “NCAA gymnastics has retained the controlled step back on tumbling passes, which gymnasts are permitted to do without deduction.”
Kelley maintains some form of a controlled landing on all of her passes with a step back for dramatic effect.
One judge gave Kelley a 9.90, while the other gave a 9.85. They’re obviously more knowledgeable than I am, and even a 9.90 wouldn’t have won LSU the meet, but I struggle to find many differences in this routine than her 9.90 against Cal.
