Alabama
North Carolina
No. 9 Alabama Gymnastics Wins Tri-Meet with Season-Best 197.875
2/4/2022 11:02:00 PM | Gymnastics
The Crimson Tide’s total was its best of the season and matched the 197.875 UA used to win the 2021 SEC Championship as the highest under head coach Dana Duckworth
TUSCALOOSA, Ala.  — On a frigid night in Tuscaloosa, the No. 9-ranked Alabama gymnastics team turned up the heat in Coleman Coliseum, producing a season-best 197.875 to take down both No. 25 North Carolina (195.325) and No. 17 Western Michigan (194.875) on Friday.
The Crimson Tide's score matched the highest total of the Dana Duckworth era, after the Crimson Tide won last season's Southeastern Conference Championship with another 197.875.
The Crimson Tide started off the night strong, posting a season-high 49.500 on the vault, with four gymnasts scoring a 9.900-or-better led by Shania Adams' career-best 9.950. The momentum continued into the uneven bars, where Luisa Blanco and Makarri Doggette closed out the rotation with back-to-back 9.950s.
Blanco paced the Tide to a 49.475 on the balance beam with a 9.950 in the anchor spot. Alabama closed out the meet and the Broncos and Tarheels with a 49.425 floor exercise rotation that featured three gymnasts, Doggette, Lilly Hudson and Lexi Graber, scoring 9.900s.
The Crimson Tide swept the all-around and every event title, with Blanco pacing the field on the balance beam (9.950) and the all-around (39.675) and tying Doggette (9.950) for the title on the uneven bars. Adams won the vault (9.950), and Doggette, Graber and Hudson tied for the title on floor exercise with matching 9.900s.
Head Coach Dana Duckworth Said
"We talk all the time about it takes one spark to start a fire and Shallon Olsen was that spark tonight. She may have done the best collegiate vault I've ever seen her do in Coleman Coliseum in her senior year and led us off with a stunning routine, and she did it last week as well. So, I kind of like her in that spot. It was amazing just to see Jordyn Paradise step in and then Shania, Mati and Luisa hit their vaults and get that 49.5 that we know we're capable of. Then to just continue to carry that momentum throughout the meet was great. We focused on if there was a mistake, do not dwell on it, the next second is more important. The more we do that, the more resilience is being built. Overall, they did exactly what we wanted to do tonight, which was hit four-for-four events as a team. Was it perfect? No. Is there still more to improve? Yes, but what a great step in our confidence in moving forward, especially into next week."
Inside the Scoresheet
- Luisa Blanco's 39.675 tied the fifth best all-around total of her career and was her third highest regular-season tally
- Shania Adams and Mati Waligora scored back-to-back career-highs on the vault, with a 9.950 and a 9.900, respectively
- The Crimson Tide's 49.500 on vault was its highest score since the 2021 SEC Championships
- Luisa Blanco and Makarri Doggette scored back-to-back 9.950s on the uneven bars, beating and tying their season-high marks, respectively
- Adams posted a career-high 9.900 on the balance beam
- In her first appearance on the floor exercise this season, Doggette scored a 9.900, the third-best mark of her collegiate career
- The Tide posted a 49.425 on the floor, its second-best floor exercise total this season
- The meet was the first tri-meet of the Dana Duckworth era and the first regular-season gymnastics tri-meet to be broadcast on the SEC Network
Up Next
- Alabama remains at home for its next meet, facing archrival Georgia on Friday, Feb. 11 at 6:30 p.m. CT, airing on the SEC Network
- It will be the Crimson Tide's second-consecutive home meet and third of 2022 as well as marking the Tide's sixth meet overall this season
- Alabama's meet against Georgia will also be the Tide's annual Power of Pink meet, raising awareness in the fight against breast cancer
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Players Mentioned
