Alabama
Oklahoma
No. 6 Alabama Gymnastics Posts Sixth 197+ Score of the Season in 197.925-197.150 loss to No. 1 Oklahoma
3/16/2018 10:34:00 PM | Gymnastics
Freshman Lexi Graber posted a career-best 9.95 on vault while senior Nickie Guerrero scored a career-best 9.95 to close the meet on the floor exercise
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 6-ranked Alabama gymnastics team closed out the 2018 regular season with a 197.925-197.150 loss to top-ranked Oklahoma Friday night in front of a crowd of 9,068 in Coleman Coliseum.
In addition to being the Crimson Tide's regular-season finale, the meet was also Senior Night for Dana Duckworth's first freshman class as the Crimson Tide's head coach.
"What makes this senior class so special is they don't do it for themselves," UA head coach Dana Duckworth said. "They do it for each other. That is a sign of an amazing team. I could not be more proud of how the seniors handle tonight."
Alabama honored Mackenzie Brannan, Nickie Guerrero, Jennie Loeb and Kiana Winston throughout the night, including confetti and streamers showering down from the rafters after the meet.
"It was cool," Winston said. "It was, like, my turn to have the streamers and hug my seniors. We were all heart tonight and I just love my team so much." Â
Alabama finished the night with a red-hot floor exercise rotation, posting a season-best 49.575. Alabama started the event with a string of 9.9s from juniors Abby Armbrecht and Ari Guerra, sophomore Maddie Desch and freshman Lexi Graber. Winston followed with a 9.925, while Guerrero wrapped up Senior Night in convincing fashion, posting a career-best score of 9.950.
In the Tide's first event, Alabama came out strong and tied its season-high score on vault of 49.300. The Tide was led by a career-best 9.95 from Graber, as well as a 9.875 from Guerra. In the second rotation, the Tide tallied a 49.275 on the uneven bars highlighted by Winston's anchoring 9.925 and a pair of 9.85s from freshmen Kylie Dickson and Graber.
Alabama recovered from some early stumbles on the balance beam to finish with a 49.000 and before wrapping up the night with its stunning performance on the floor. The senior pair of Guerrero and Winston closed the beam with the Tide's highest scores on the apparatus with a 9.9 and 9.875, respectively.
"I think our beam rotation helped set us up for floor," Guerrero said. "Not that I love how beam turned out, but at this point, you have nothing to lose. Just realizing we were going to end on our favorite event, in our house, at our last, regular-season home meet made us want to lay it all out there."
Up next, Alabama transitions to the postseason, starting with the Southeastern Conference Championships on Saturday, March 24 in St. Louis, Mo.
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
