The nation’s top two teams met in Norman, Oklahoma, for a Friday late-night showdown that ended with No. 2 LSU gymnastics falling just short of No. 1 Oklahoma in a 197.925-198.125 loss.
A rematch that had been weeks in the making still saw one of LSU’s most consistent performances as it battled the reigning national champions throughout the competition.
It was an electric start for the Sooners on vault, but the Tigers quickly matched the energy with Lexi Zeiss in the leadoff spot.
Zeiss has quickly harnessed her leadoff role appearances on both the vault and bars events, showing consistency each week. It was the same story tonight as the sophomore also produced matching 9.850s on both events for the Tigers.
Mid-rotation momentum carried the Tigers through the lineup with scores in the 9.900s, keeping them closely trailing Oklahoma.
After junior Konnor McClain suffered forearm discomfort from a slight mishap in warmups, fifth-year senior Alexis Jeffery took her place as the anchor of the bar lineup.
A redeeming 9.850 following her lower score against Auburn helped to keep the Tigers within a 0.150 deficit behind the Sooners following the end of the first event.
The momentous yet calm bar rotation was similar to the story on the floor exercise. Though the Tigers filled the event with exciting routines, the scoreboard was relatively consistent for the team’s No. 1 floor ranking.
Once again, leading off was Emily Innes, who found a strong 9.850 that was matched by Nina Ballou. Big scores followed from the floor lineup; however, the heavy hitters came from the second half of the lineup.
Kailin Chio saw her first perfect score on floor last week against Auburn to help set a season high score on floor for the Tigers. Tonight, the momentum continued as the sophomore earned a 9.925, which was matched by Amari Drayton.
Zeiss closed out the rotation with her season debut on floor, and her first career anchor performance after replacing Kaliya Lincoln, who was taken out of the lineup for precautionarily Achilles tightness.
Nevertheless, Zeiss found another 9.925 for the rotation to round out her night, keeping the Tigers just 0.300 behind the Sooners following the floor exercise.
Even with solid performances on bars and floor, the biggest events of the night for LSU were the vault and beam rotations.
Despite being ranked No. 2 and No. 5 on each event, respectively, the Tigers had their work cut out for them to try to overcome the team ranked No. 1 on each of these events.
Zeiss’ strong start set the tone for the LSU lineup to build a powerful rotation around. Keeping in the 9.800’s for a majority of the rotation, the difference makers in this second rotation were the vaults seen from Lincoln and Chio.
Matching her season high with a 9.950 was Lincoln in the fourth spot of the event lineup, and after sticking yet another vault, Chio finally found a perfect 10 to cap off the first half of the meet.
Chio’s 10 marked her third perfect score of the season and her second career 10 on vault. Though keeping the Tigers in the fight for the win, a composite of 49.475 on both vault and floor set the tone for an exciting beam rotation that would close out the meet.
The first three beam performances saw consistent scores for the Tigers, but the wheels started to turn for LSU following a 9.925 from Lincoln.
Chio mounted the beam, looking to cut Oklahoma’s lead, appearing once again in the Tigers’ fifth spot of the lineup. With a breathtaking performance in front of the rival crowd, Chio found a second perfect 10 of the night, marking her second 10 on the balance beam this season.
Giving the Tigers one last push, Denver transfer Madison Ulrich found herself anchoring the beam rotation with a 9.825 to close out the night.
While the competition may not have ended with the Tigers on top, the consistent performance gives the team a positive mindset to take back to Baton Rouge.
Not looking for a win but rather personal growth, LSU made strides on its road to nationals, earning two perfect scores in an exciting matchup.
Next up for the Tigers is a battle with No. 3 Alabama back in the PMAC at 8:30 p.m. on Friday.
