No. 10 Alabama Gymnastics Set to Compete in Evening Session of 2023 SEC Championships
3/17/2023 8:37:00 AM | Gymnastics
The evening session features four teams ranked in the nation’s top 10
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 10 Alabama gymnastics team will compete in the 2023 SEC Championships on Saturday in Gas South Arena in Duluth, Ga. The meet will be broadcast live on SEC Network at 7 p.m. CT.
The SEC Championship meet is divided into two sessions, with the top four teams competing in the evening session while the other four squads square off in the afternoon session. All eight of the competing teams are ranked in the nation's top 20, with four teams inside the top 10 in the Crimson Tide's session. Along with the Tide, the night session also includes No. 3 Florida, No. 6 LSU and No. 8 Kentucky, while No. 12 Auburn, No. 16 Arkansas, No. 17 Missouri and No. 18 Georgia will compete in the afternoon session at 2:30 p.m. CT.
Alabama won the SEC Championship title in 2021 and finished runner-up to the Florida Gators in 2022. The Tide's roster features three individual SEC champions, with Luisa Blanco (all-around, vault, uneven bars and balance beam), Makarri Doggette (uneven bars) and Shania Adams (uneven bars) all winning event titles at the 2021 contest.
The Crimson Tide (7-5, 4-4) will start out the competition on the balance beam, rotating to the floor exercise and the vault before closing out the night on the uneven bars. Top-seeded Florida will start on the vault, LSU on the uneven bars and Kentucky on the floor exercise.
Head Coach Ashley Johnston said
"I'm really looking forward to the SEC Championships this weekend. The opportunity to compete for a championship against some of the top teams in the country is what this team has been preparing for all season. The team came into practice Monday with their game faces on, and everyone is ready to go and dialed in. The evening session features four of the top 10 teams in the country competing on the floor at the same time, and we're excited and fired up to put all of our hard work together and have a great night this Saturday."
The SEC Championship
- Alabama is the only team in conference history who has never finished outside of the top four at the SEC Championships
- The Tide has finished in the top two at the conference championship 31 times, including each of the past two seasons
- The Crimson Tide and the Gators are the two most recent SEC Champions, with Alabama winning the title in 2021 and Florida taking home the win in 2022
- Every team in the SEC is ranked in the nation's top 20, with four in the top 10
Last Time Out
- The No. 8 Alabama gymnastics team closed out the regular season by defeating No. 31 Boise State 197.125-194.775 last Friday night in Coleman Coliseum
- The Tide won every event and swept all five individual titles in the contest
- Alabama's score of 197.125 marked the Tide's sixth score of 197-or-higher in its last seven meets
- The Tide opened the meet with a 49.400 on the vault to take the lead and never let up, extending its lead on every event to secure the win
- Lilly Hudson won her second consecutive all-around title with a 39.475, while also taking home the vault title with a season-high 9.950
- Makarri Doggette scored a 9.900 on the uneven bars to win her fifth individual title of the season on the event
- Gabby Gladieux earned 9.900 on the balance beam to win her first event title of the season, with her 9.900 giving her a season-high of 9.9-or-higher on the vault, balance beam and floor exercise
- Shania Adams scored a career-best 9.925 on the floor exercise to win her first event title of the season
- The Crimson Tide posted six scores of 9.900-or-higher in the meet, with Jordyn Paradise (9.900) and Hudson (9.950) on the vault, Doggette (9.900) on the uneven bars, Gladieux (9.900) on the balance beam, and Gladieux (9.900) and Adams (9.925) on the floor exercise
Up Next
- After the SEC Championships, Alabama will be placed in one of four regionals and will compete in the NCAA Regional Championships on March 30-April 2
- The NCAA Selection Show will be held on Monday, March 20, at 11 a.m. CT
For all the latest information on Alabama gymnastics, follow BamaGymnastics on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
– UA –
Players Mentioned
