Alabama
Iowa State
No. 6 Alabama Gymnastics Closes Regular Season with a 197.100-196.600 Win over Iowa State
3/10/2017 10:09:00 PM | Gymnastics
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 6 ranked Alabama gymnastics team closed out its regular season with a 197.100-196.600 win over Iowa State Friday night in front of a Coleman Coliseum crowd of 10,063.
It was also Senior Night as the Crimson Tide honored gymnasts Katie Bailey, Amanda Jetter, Keely McNeer, Mary Lillian Sanders, Aja Sims and Mackenzie Valentin both before and after the last home meet of their respective careers.
Alabama got off to a hot start, posting a season-best 49.500 on the vault on the strength of a 9.95 from junior Nickie Guerrero and 9.9s from junior Kiana Winston and freshman Maddie Desch. Guerrero earned a 10.0 from one judge and a 9.9 from the second, the first of four 10s by a judge on the night. It was a career-best score for Desch while Winston, Guerrero and sophomore Abby Armbrecht (9.875) tied their career-best marks on vault.
"It's an honor, being a part of an amazing group of girls – there's nothing like it," Desch said. "It's exciting to put it all together."
Mistakes in the middle of the meet by Alabama opened the door for the Cyclones going into the last rotation. Alabama scored a 49.025 on the uneven bars, paced by 9.9s from sophomore Shea Mahoney and Bailey and a 9.875 from Jetter. Mahoney's score tied her career-best mark.
On the balance beam, the Tide posted a 48.925, saved by a career-best 9.975 from Winston, a 9.925 from Guerrero and a 9.9 from Sims. One judge posted a 10.0 for Winston on the beam while the other raised a 9.950, giving the junior her career-best score.
"I go out there for my team – I don't try to focus on what I want to get done, but what I want to do for them," Guerrero said of her balance beam performance. "I trusted myself and after so much momentum, it felt good to finally get that full stick."
The Tide overcame the shaky middle to the meet, finishing the meet on fire.
"Right after we finished beam, I brought the girls together and said, 'Okay, we've dug ourselves a hole, but we are an amazing floor team.'" UA head coach Dana Duckworth said. "'We need to go out there, and we need to stay focused, do your job, and have a lot of fun,' and you know, they had a lot of fun."
Sims closed the Tide's floor exercise rotation with a 9.975 while Desch came up with a 9.950. Both Sims and Desch earned a 10 from one of the two judges on the floor exercise. Bailey scored a 9.925 while Guerrero and Jetter both posted 9.9s.
"It was bittersweet," Sims said of her floor routines. "I just wanted to give it my all out there the best I could. Being in front of our amazing fans –the best in the whole nation – I just wanted to give it all to my team and bring it out there one last time."
Five scores of 9.9-or-better on the floor exercise pushed Alabama to a 49.650 team tally, tying the fifth-best floor exercise score in school history, and slammed the door on the Cyclones. Bailey and Desch both posted career-best marks on the floor exercise, while Sims tied her career best and Jetter scored a season high.
With the regular season at an end, Alabama moves onto the postseason, starting with the Southeastern Conference Championships on Saturday, March 18 in Jacksonville, Fla.
For all the latest information on Alabama gymnastics, follow BamaGymnastics on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and head coach Dana Duckworth on Twitter and Instagram at @UACoachDana.
Players Mentioned
