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Olivia Sayer
Freshman JaFree Scott poses on the beam 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)
Despite tallying another season-best score, the Georgia gymnastics team fell to Alabama 197.525 to 197.325 Friday evening, in front of a sold-out crowd at Stegeman Coliseum.
“It was great to be back in Stegeman Coliseum after three weeks on the road,” head coach Courtney Kupets Carter said. “It’s fun to be in the crowd, the crowd was amazing tonight. To have all of Stegeman cheering for them, I know they had so much fun.”
Georgia started on vault, notching a score of 49.150. Senior Haley de Jong and junior Katie Finnegan led the rotation, with de Jong scoring a 9.800, and Finnegan following it up with a career-best 9.850. Graduate Josie Angeny earned a season-high 9.825, while senior Amanda Cashman and freshman Naya Howard added a 9.825 and 9.850, respectively.
Transitioning to bars, Howard and Finnegan both matched their career-bests, with each gymnast earning a 9.900. Freshman JaFree Scott earned a 9.825, while Angeny notched a 9.850. De Jong rounded out the rotation by adding 9.800. This added up to 49.275 marking the Bulldogs’ total on bars.
Georgia was strong on beam, with three gymnasts each either achieving or tying a personal best. To round out the rotation, Angeny, de Jong and senior Vanessa Deniz went back-to-back-to-back, with each tallying a score of 9.925. Howard added to the score with a 9.825, while Scott recorded a 9.800. In total, Georgia notched a season-high 49.400 on the beam.
Georgia’s impressive beam performance helped it close in on Alabama, with the Bulldogs only trailing the Crimson Tide by 0.375 before the final rotation. After the meet, Kupets Carter applauded the way the Bulldogs were able to fight back, despite facing some adversity during their beam rotation.
“It’s absolutely incredible to finish like that when you come off a mistake in the middle of the lineup that’s a little bit larger,” Kupets Carter said. “So for Angeny, who was up next, to go out and hit that routine in the moment we needed it, I think that set the rest of the lineup perfectly to just feel confident and comfortable with their routines.”
Georgia finished out strong on floor, recording a season-high 49.500. Sophomore Maeve Hahn opened the rotation with a 9.825, while graduate Sandra Elsadek and Howard both followed with career-highs of 9.925 and 9.900, respectively. Cashman matched Howard’s 9.900, making it the second straight meet Cashman earned this score with her routine. To end Georgia’s rotation, senior Soraya Hawthorne tied her season-best 9.950 for the fourth time this season and third consecutive meet.
Georgia travels to Auburn, Alabama next to take on the fifth-ranked Auburn Tigers Feb. 24 at 7:30 p.m.