All Friday's Disasters (and Successes or Whatever)

Friday's live feeds:
7E/4P Missouri @ Florida (free)
7E/4P Arkansas @ Kentucky (paid)
7:30E/4:30P Auburn @ Georgia (paid)
8:30E/5:30P LSU @ Alabama (free)
10E/7P Cal, UIC, UCD @ Washington (free)

It's a busy Friday of SEC action with lots of opportunities for movement at the top of the rankings. I will be interested to see if Rhonda has changed Florida's beam lineup after counting a fall at LSU (putting in Ashanee?) or if it remains the same. Georgia's first two meets have been marked by too many 9.6s (meaning that they've been getting 9.6s), and those will need to disappear, especially at home. I expect a big-scoring meet between LSU and Alabama, and it will be vital to watch how LSU's home scores compare to road scores.


I'll probably start with a second of Kentucky and Arkansas, then I will move to Auburn/Georgia, then check in on a bit of LSU/Alabama. It should be a fun day.

Florida is offering a free preview of their streaming service for this meet, but you have to create an account, which was already too much work for me to be worth it to watch 3/4 of a vault rotation before I switch to Georgia's meet. Lazy alert!

Macko in on vault for Florida tonight, no Sloan.

I haven't seen anything from Kentucky in a while, and we started vault with a proficient Yfull followed by a very pikey one with an uncontrolled landing.

2nd bars worker from Arkansas (Elswick) goes over on a handstand and has to improvise, then has crazy legs on a few skills including the bail hs. It won't be a high score. The first vault was encouraging for Kentucky, but the following ones have been far from competition level. We may be having a score issue on that bars routine for Arkansas.

3rd on bars for Arkansas (Glover?)  (I'm realizing how few of the new ones I recognize at this point) is much stronger. Low amplitude on the jaeger, but an overall solid routine. Love that I just saw a front handspring vault from Kentucky. Good form, just a step forward.

Salmon also puts up a perfectly fine bars routine, but amplitude and handstands still aren't quite there. Pretty good flight on a yfull from Kentucky, but she still piked and had a wonky landing, which it wouldn't seem like she needed based on the height.

Lewis falls on a Jaeger that was way too far from the bar, so Arkansas will be counting a 9.350. You can see why Cunningham in the anchor for Kentucky on vault with that line and landing position, but she tried to salute through what was an obvious step. The judges won't be fooled.

Question: where is Miss Katherine Grable? This meet will be trouble without her. Freier goes on bars and is a little erratic and floppy but she gets through it. Needs a little more control in that routine. Arkansas will be trailing after the first because of counting a fall. Kentucky has four vaults but needs six.

Georgia time? Georgia time. Anyone watching any of the other meets can keep everyone updated.

Florida alert: Ashanee got a 9.975 on vault. She usually doesn't get 10s because of legs.49.325 for Florida. They are on pace for that 197.225 they need to pass UCLA.

Georgia lineup:
Vault - Davis, Persinger, Cheek, Rogers, Hires, Jay
Bars - Cheek, Hires, Tanella, Rogers, Worley, Davis
Beam - Cheek, Tanella, Persinger, Rogers, Worley, Earls
Floor - Earls, Tanella, Hires, Persinger, Jay, Worley

No surprises there. the only change is Tanella's placement on beam, going earlier after her fall last week.

Our second-tier teams are in 9.800-watch right now. Through one rotation, Kentucky has two, Arkansas has one, and Missouri has zero.Ashanee starts on bars for FL with a 9.850.

Davis starts on vault for UGA - best one she's done so far, best landing position with a hop back. Still missing a little distance, which will keep her around 9.800. (9.775 - fine, fair)

Kluz for AU is clean on bars.

Persinger pikes a little and has a bigger hop back. Better distance than Davis but otherwise weaker.

Guy - AU - UB - clean in first standstand and straddle back, major leg sepration on the blind ful, but sticks the double tuck and has a nice tkatchev. Good efficient 2nd up.

Cheek - UGA - VT - very nice yfull with a stick. This is Georgia's clear strength this season and it shows. Will be in the 9.9s. (9.900) I thought it would go 9.925. I'm surprised a judge gave it 9.850.

Habicht looked a little far away in her jaeger but caught it. A few of these DLO dismount are lacking in amplitude, a couple hops in place.

Rogers - UGA - VT - Y1.5 with some bent knees and a hop to the side on landing, glad to see the difficulty, and it was a near stick.

Walker struggles in one handstand but keeps going, bigger DLO than the others but and uncertain landing with a large step forward.

Hires - UGA - VT - Doesn't get quite the block she should so missed some amplitude. Big tuck in the air and pike in landing but a controlled hop in place.Will be low and could/should be credited as tucked.

Atkinson's (minor) experience at the elite level shows in her amplitude. Good stuck tucked full and a very strong routine overall. They will love having this routine for the next four years. She was a serious recruiting get for Auburn.

Jay - UGA - VT- Y1.5, barely gets it around with a major step back. Some weakness in the vault lineup today. Lots of unexpected bent knees in the air.

Petrina Yokay - love the Bhardwaj in this routine, just a minor step on the double back landing, but she is the most explosive and engaging worker for Auburn with her speed. Her name seems like a sentence. Petrina, y'okay?

Georgia leads 49.150-49.125.  

Macko gets a 10 for Florida. I'd love to see the video of it at some point. She's had it coming for two seasons now, so it's hardly surprising. Florida is able to drop a fall from Sloan and go 49.600 on bars. I predicted we'd see a 49.700 at some point this season, so I'm feeling pretty good about that. 198 is unlikely, but breaking that 197.425 barrier looks well within reach.

This has been a very rough meet for Arkansas, trailing Kentucky by a significant margin at the halfway point. 

Vault has been the good event for Georgia this season, and they gave away way too many tenths. They will have to improve on the other events to make sure they stay out of 195 land.

Auburn shows a Yfull with low amplitude but a controlled landing. Cheek starts on bars for UGA with a very clean routine, comes in a little short on her DLO with a major step back. The tkatchev was very high but she caught it a bit close with some bent arms.

My internet is having some emotional problems, so bear with me and talk amongst yourselves.

Hires finishes her DLO with a minor hop back.

Yokay on vault shows a hs pike 1/2 with a major hop back. Good power but not controlled in the landing. Tanella had gotten a bit more methodical and less flingy on bars which is helping her score. She's starting to warrant 9.8s. (9.875). They think it was low. I would have gone 9.850, so let's not pretend it was a masterpiece. It was proficient.

Rogers on bars, Kevin knows the term Ricna out there for us (definite points for that), great elegance on the stalders from Rogers, hits handstands, barely hangs onto the stick on the tuck full. Very strong routine. That's more what a 9.9 looks like. (9.875) I would have gone 9.900 on that one, but these scores are valid.

Auburn is vaulting solidly with good power on their Yfulls. The landings aren't quite there yet. Most are incurring .1 with steps. Shayla hits bars well but not her best, one rushed hs. The DLO still doesn't get high enough, but it has improved and she lands well. (9.850) Probably fair.

Atkinson had a good yfull in the air but flew into Atlanta on the landing and will score low because of that. 

Davis has the best combination of amplitude and elegance and sticks her tuck full better than Rogers stuck hers. No fighting for it. That was the best routine they've had, and I would even potentially go 9.950 for that. (9.950 - even though the judges have been way apart on their scores, I think they're balancing out to do a good job)

We didn't see Jay's routine, but I'm surprised she hasn't come in for Hires yet. Georgia goes 49.400 on bars for by far their best bars performance yet. The landings were vastly improved. Georgia 98.550, Auburn 98.125.

Florida won't be going quite as high on beam, counting already a 9.750 from Stageberg. Kentucky is in line for a big win over Arkansas. No Grable today for Ark, and they are not a competitive team without her. Kentucky has a couple of strong routines on each event, and I think a ranking somewhere in that 15-20 range will be attainable for them.

Florida goes 49.175 on beam, led by a 9.900 from Sloan (good recovery). No King on beam this week.

Cheek takes a fall on beam, and Kluz starts floor for Auburn with a pike full in (good difficulty but a stumbly landing that will incur deductions).

Tanella hits her walkover + bhs connections well, solid sheep jump, one of the best she's done until the side somi, which was wobbly, takes a big hop on her gainer full salute which will be deducted and was not necessary. (9.750)

Similarly to Kluz, Garcia starts with difficulty (2.5) but takes a big stumble out of it that will hurt her score. If they gets these landings worked out, this will be an impressive rotation, but we will see some lower scores today. Control, control, control.

Persinger drops the leg slightly on her L turn but fine. Everything is minorly off but she's pulling it back well. A harsher judge will have seen deductions on each skill so far, though. Just a bit tentative. It's a good hit after a fall, though. Very nice 1.5 dismount. 

Kaddous comes in form Auburn on floor and goes OOB on a 1.5 punch front, with a major error (but not quite a fall) on the double pike dismount. She came in at the last minute to this lineup.

Rogers looks strong (a little back leg issue on split positions), until major wobbles on the walkover and full turn. Hits the bhs full + layout full dismount perfectly, but the two major wobbles will destroy hope for a good score. Hmm, didn't get credit for an acro series. She's had composition problems every week. That can't be allowed anymore. I think the judges are going to have a chatty chat about that.

Webster is incurring landing deductions on her tumbling, but she was a bit more comfortable in her pike full in mount.

Still talking about the Rogers routine. 9.275.

Shayla hits her routine quite well, good elegance as always, and also as always, the gainer full is the weakest part of the routine, but just a step this time.

Atkinson does another pike full in for Auburn and has some crazy legs but sticks it. Low tumbling a few times but a more confident routine and a hit.

Earls wobbles on her loso + loso, step on the double tuck dismount. It's a nice routine when a nice routine was vital. They'll have to count a poor score from Rogers, and they have to fix that routine.

Guy's DLO is massive, which is what needs to be said about this routine. A little stumble out of her middle pass. It's interesting how often powerful gymnasts hit a great, difficult first pass and then struggle with the easier combination pass. Still should be the best score for them.

This meet just got close. I'll keep you posted on the scores. 

Alabama time? Alabama time.

Arkansas finished with a 193.075, recording just three routines that hit the 9.800 mark (all 9.825s). Kentucky wins by several points with what should be a solid score for their RQS.195.500.

Sloan has come in on floor for Florida and scored a 9.775, which will have to count. The Gators are farther behind on beam and floor for the most part.

Apologies for missing the beginning of Alabama/LSU, but now we have Clark on vault. 9.825 from jacob.

Clark - Al - VT - Very good amplitude and a great landing, a little low chest which will bring down the score slightly. 9.900

Savona - LSU - UB - misses hirst hs, a little leg separation in the transition, tkatchev is fine but missing amplitude, DLO is solid. It's not her strong event, but it's a hit routine.

Sledge - Al - VT - Bounces out of her yfull to the fune of .100, but good form in the air and power. 9.850.

Hall - LSU - UB - misses first hs, Jaeger is close and caught with bent elbows, bail hs is OK, flings DLO a little with a major step back. Not a great routine. It's a hit but there's a lot to take. 9.700

Williams - Al - VT - good to see her in. She sticks her yfull, which is what she does, but the amplitude and distance can improve, which would take her into 9.950 territory. (9.925 - a smidge high for me, but sticks always make everything else look better. If there were a .05 step on this vault, no way it goes over 9.850)

Wyrick - LSU - UB - completely overbalances her first hs, goes over and has to come off the bars. A little talking to from Jay. Big leg break in the pirouette, She has the line but not the routine yet, major nounce out for DLO.

Guti - Al - VT - the distance is to die for, a step on the landing with a bounce, but otherwise very strong. She'll be sticking in good time.

Courville - LSU - UB - very nice Jaeger, woah, completely botches her toe shoot and is nowhere close to the bar. That's a very rare error. Did her foot get stuck so she couldn't release it. That's a shame. Counting a fall on bars now. She didn't redo the transition, so will she lose for composition? 9.100

Milliner- AL - VT - Minor hop in place on her otherwise excellent Y1.5. I'd probably go 9.900 for it, and that's what she gets.

Morrison - LSU - UB - A little rushed in her first hs, good piked Jaeger, big routine for 9.925 to save them.

Alabama finishes vault with a big 49.425, led by Williams and her 9.925. It's vital that she be in the lineup. I wonder if we will see that Y1.5 at any point.  LSU goes 48.400.

Florida is led on floor with a 9.900 from Dickerson. The Gators go 197.300, which is short of the highest score but will move them up just past UCLA in the rankings for the time being. Dickerson wins AA, VT, and FX. Caquatto wins bars obviously, and Sloan wins beam.They achieved this score without Hunter on floor, King on beam, and Johnson and Sloan on vault.

Georgia is working to drop a 9.500 from Hires on floor, and Auburn will be counting a 9.550 on beam. They were so close to getting a better score.If Georgia can get hits from Jay and Worley, they could work this into a respectable score.

Does Alabama take longer between rotations than other schools, or is it just having to look at these people that makes it take forever?

Dickson - LSU - VT - pikes on a yfull but also sticks. Good start.

Sledge - AL - UB - Nice Gienger, hits bail hs, why is she still leading off after all these years of being excellent? Usual strong DLO with a minor hop in place. Strong routine. 9.900

Hall - LSU - VT - Well that was quite a little fall there.

"Don't take picture with flash bulbs." Flash bulbs? What year is this? We just say flash.

Alexin - AL - UB - She rushes her routines a bit which makes it hard for her to show handstands. Pretty good but a hop on the dismount and worse by being compared to Sledge. 9.850.

Savona - LSU - VT - Excellent Yfull with a stick. That's what she crucially brings to this team. Great recovery from the Lloiminica Hall saga. 9.875

Jacob - AL - UB - hugely misses first hs and subsequent ones, gets better as the routine goes, sticks a very nice DLO. Must improve the beginning because the judges can just destroy that hs that was closer to horizontal than vertical. 9.775

Mathis - LSU - VT - A little lock-legged on her yhalf landing, but saves it with just a step back.

Clark - AL - UB - Good ray, she's also a little short on her hs positions but nothing dire. Good high DLO but a step back. Fine routine but nothing that will score impressively high. 9.775

Morrison - LSU - VT - Nice clean yfull with a hop back for .100, worse landing than Savona but better dynamics, so scores could be equivalent. 9.850

Update: Shayla 9.375ed on floor. Georgia goes 196.050 to Auburn's 195.700

Priess - AL - UB - wonderful tkatchev pak, better precision in her handstands than the last couple, that's certain. Her usual Priess work, really. 9.900

Courville- LSU - VT - wonderful height and distance, a hop back, and potentially some minor knee form in the air but it was hard to tell. It will be a good score for LSU, but not quite Alabama's number. 9.900

Demeo - AL - UB -again misses her first hs, hits jaeger, this is a competend routine but I don't see why it's anchoring other than having the most difficult dismount. Step back on DLO full. (9.900 - high)

Is Kayla Williams going to exhibition bars? Really? MLT made her a better bars worker, but I don't see this routine in the lineup. It can go, certainly, and she hit her dismount well, but it's still quite flat. 

After two: Alabama 98.775, LSU 97.750. Can Alabama beat Florida's score for the day?

That's it for me for the routine-by-routine talk, but I'll be checking in throughout the evening. Over in Oklahoma, the Sooners have been 49.275ing everyone to death in their first home meet and can potentially hit 197 with this performance depending on floor. 9.9s so far from Spears on vault and Kmieciak on bars (that's a big deal).

Putting together the other results, Oklahoma had a huge 49.425 on floor to record a 197.325 to just outpace Florida's score. Denver also continues a fine start with a 195.850. Alabama surprisingly has to count an error on floor with low scores from Gutierrez and Milliner, and yet Alabama still scores a 196.575, which would have been over 197 otherwise. LSU had a poor balance beam rotation to go with the poor floor score, and the Tigers score just a 195.525, which will hurt their average noticeably.