Kentucky Gymnastics falls in second round of NCAA Regionals
Kentucky Gymnastics suffered a tough loss to No. 7 Auburn and No. 2 Florida over the weekend, ending their NCAA Regionals run.
After advancing to the second round of regional competition with a win over Auburn on Friday, Kentucky failed to place in either of the top two spots on the second day of competition on Saturday. Auburn and Florida advance to the 2022 NCAA Gymnastics tournament as a result, which is set for April 14.
Kentucky defeated Auburn, Georgia, and Southern Utah to come out on top on the first round of regional competition. UK’s first-round score was the highest in program history at 197.750. This led to the ‘Cats being seeded No. 2 behind Florida for the second day of competition in the Auburn Regional.
Despite the end result, Kentucky had an overall strong performance in the second round, making it close competition until the end.
Kentucky rounded out their first rotation on vault, ending with a 49.375 on the first event. The ‘Cats then moved onto bars, an event UK has performed strongly at all season. This competition was no different, and Kentucky ended with their second score of the night over 49.000.
The ‘Cats then moved onto beam, where they achieved the difficult feat of no falls from any gymnast in the rotation. This was the second competition in a row where Kentucky had no falls on the beam.
UK again ended with a score over 49.000, this time with a 49.300. No ‘Cat scored below a 9.800 on this event, propelling them into their final event on floor with force.
The floor has continually been the place where Kentucky has shined all season, and the Auburn Regional was no different.
The ‘Cats were led by standout Raena Worley on floor, with a nearly perfect score of 9.975. Worley was closely followed by Hailey Davis who received a score of 9.950. Worley previously defeated Auburn’s Suni Lee, an Olympic gold medalist, for the All-Around title in the first round of competition.
The floor was Kentucky’s highest-scoring event at this meet, finishing with a 49.575 to end the meet with a final score of 197.500. Despite their high score, the ‘Cats fell to Auburn and Florida, eliminating them from further NCAA competition.
This does not mean the end of the season for all of the Wildcats though, as some of the high-scoring competitors will be invited to compete in the individual finals in Texas. The Women’s NCAA Gymnastics Championships will kick off later this month in Fort Worth.
Discuss This Article
Comments have moved.
Join the conversation and talk about this article and all things Kentucky Sports in the new KSR Message Board.
KSBoard