Kentucky Gymnastics defeat Arkansas in close matchup
Kentucky Gymnastics continued its winning streak against SEC teams with a win at Arkansas on Friday night.
In what turned out to be a close contest, No. 10 Kentucky defeated No. 14 Arkansas 196.700 to 195.675 in a challenging night for both teams. Arkansas, led by former gold medalist Olympian Jordyn Wieber, proved to be tough competition for the ‘Cats in their home arena, but her effort wasn’t enough to topple UK.
Kentucky’s win at Arkansas marks its first road win of the season.
The Wildcats began their competition on the bars, resulting in their highest score of the evening of a 49.325. Kentucky had four of the five highest scores of the evening on bars, with four competitors scoring a 9.875 or above, lead by Raena Worley with a 9.900.
Next, the Wildcats took on the vault, with three gymnasts scoring above a 9.8 on that event. Worley continued her vault streak of scoring a 9.900 or greater, taking a 9.925 on the vault against the Razorbacks, the highest vault score of the event.
Floor was up next for the ‘Cats, an event they typically shine in. Surprisingly, this was the lowest scoring event of the night for Kentucky. Despite a low scoring floor exercise, UK continued to lead throughout the night, finishing with a strong performance on beam.
Coach Tim Garrison’s ‘Cats were prepared for the final pressure of evening and had a stellar showing on beam, one of their best events of the night. Wildcat graduate student Josie Angeny had the highest score of any individual competitor at the meet, scoring a 9.950 on the beam to help the ‘Cats cinch the win.
All Wildcats scored a 9.800 or above on the beam, a crucial event for winning out the evening. Kentucky’s final score of 196.700 is the first of the last three meets to finish below a 197. Worley, a junior, continued her streak of All-Around titles, marking her fifth in a row at Arkansas.
No. 10 Kentucky will next take on Florida at Memorial Coliseum on Friday at 6 p.m. on SEC Network.
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