Link to Article on The Red & Black
Olivia Sayer
Graduate Josie Angeny smiles after beam landing at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Georgia, on Friday, Feb. 17, 2023. The University of Georgia gymnastics team falls to the University of Alabama with the final score: Georgia – 197.325 Alabama – 197.525 (Photo/Laney Martin: @laneymartinphotography)
The University of Georgia Gymnastics team placed fourth in the first session of the Southeastern Conference Championship in Gas South Arena on March 18th.
Tallying a total score of 196.600, Georgia finished behind its session competitors, Arkansas (196.825), Missouri (197.000) and Auburn (197.100). The University of Florida took home the title of SEC Champion with a score of 198.425.
“The team had a great mentality in warmups and a good mindset coming into competition,” head coach Courtney Kupets Carter said. “For the most part, they really executed what we had asked them to. Just had a few small mistakes on the floor that really took our team total down.”
On floor, Georgia tallied a score of 49.025. Although seniors Soraya Hawthorne and Haley de Jong each earned a 9.900, a few execution errors created an early deficit for the Bulldogs.
Moving onto vault, four Georgia gymnasts earned a score in the 9.8’s, with senior Amanda Cashman and freshman Naya Howard each earning a 9.850. Hawthorne scored a 9.825, while de Jong added a 9.800. Junior Katie Finnegan earned a 9.775, which brought Georgia’s total on the event to 49.100.
On bars, Georgia earned a 49.250, with de Jong anchoring the rotation with a 9.900. Finnegan, Cashman, graduate Josie Angeny and freshman JaFree Scott earned a 9.875, 9.800, 9.850 and 9.825, respectively.
Ending on beam, the Bulldogs tallied a 49.225, which tied them with session-champion Auburn for the second-highest beam score in the session. Senior Vanessa Deniz scored a 9.900, while Scott earned a 9.875. Howard posted a score of 9.850, while de Jong and Angeny matched each other with a 9.800.
The Bulldogs will next partake in the NCAA Regionals. Kupets Carter discussed how the SEC Championship helped prepare the Bulldogs for their next stop in the postseason.
“This was fantastic preparation for regionals,” Kupets Carter said. “Starting on floor with all that energy is difficult and ending on balance beam under the circumstances, they had quality balance beam, really thought about the details and that is what is going to be really important in a post season meet like regionals in two weeks.”
Georgia earned a spot in the NCAA Denver Regional, which will be held in Magness Arena starting on Mar. 30 through April 2. Georgia will compete in the first session of the second round, which takes place on Apr. 1. Other teams participating in the session include second-seed LSU, third-seed Oregon State and Nebraska.
The top two teams from each second-round session will advance to the Regional Final on April 2. The top two finishers from the final will advance to the NCAA Championship in Fort Worth, Texas. Georgia last advanced to the NCAA Championship in 2019 after tallying a score of 198.050 in the Athens Regional.