Alabama
Bowling Green
Alabama Gymnastics Posts Season-Best 196.175, Finishes Second in Quad Meet
1/11/2019 11:07:00 PM | Gymnastics
The Crimson Tide goes to 5-1-0 on the season after improving on its week-one score by nearly a point and a half
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama gymnastics team posted a 196.175 in its second quad meet of the season in front of 10,361 fans in Coleman Coliseum Friday night, finishing a tenth of a point behind Denver and a tenth and a half ahead of Michigan. Bowling Green State rounded out the meet with a 189.675.
"I told the ladies when we pulled together at the end, 'there is so much to be proud of. You represented this University with such pride and dignity,'" UA head coach Dana Duckworth said. "Our fans put out a lot of energy. It was really fun to compete tonight with over 10,000 fans cheering us on."
Alabama closed the meet strong with 49.275 on the floor exercise, paced by a 9.875 from senior Abby Armbrecht and a pair of 9.9s from sophomore Lexi Graber and freshman Shallon Olsen.
"I really enjoyed performing in front of the whole crowd," Olsen said. "We've been working so hard in the gym and to finally go and show that to everyone was really a great feeling."
The Crimson Tide started the night with a 49.175 on the vault, led by 9.875s from Olsen and Graber. Freshman Emily Gaskins and senior Ariana Guerra scored matching 9.85s on the uneven bar, pushing the Tide to a 49.050 team score.
Armbrecht came up after a fall, and proceeded to lead the way on the balance beam, where the Tide made the most improvement from a week ago, tallying a 48.675.
"I think I can speak for everyone when I say we're really proud of this team," Graber said. "We made so many improvements and we didn't let a fall change our performance. We came back really strong when facing adversity."
Graber and Olsen shared top honors on the floor exercise, while Graber tallied a season-best 39.300 in the all-around.
After opening the season with back-to-back quad meets at home, Alabama travels to Athens, Ga., to take on the Georgia Bulldogs next Friday in the Tide's first dual meet of the season.
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
