Aug. 10, 2012
LEXINGTON, Ky. — After one of the best seasons in school history that saw the University of Kentucky gymnastics team post three consecutive scores of 195.875 or higher for the first time in program history, head coach Tim Garrison has announced the 2013 competition schedule.
Garrison, who is entering his second season as the head coach of the Wildcats, has put together a challenging slate for the 2013 squad, including exciting Southeastern Conference dual meets and key non-conference road trips to California (quad meet with Cal-Berkeley, Auburn and Arizona) and Penn State.
“Announcing our schedule is a sign that our season is right around the corner and we are excited about that,” Garrison said. “We felt this program took a big step forward last year and this schedule is challenging enough to allow this team to continue that progress.”
In all, Kentucky will face 12 different teams in 2013, including nine that ending the 2012 season ranked in the top 25 in the GymInfo team rankings. The always tough SEC is a large part of the challenging schedule, headlined by two-time defending National Champion Alabama. Every SEC opponent UK will face in 2013 finished the 2012 season ranked in the top 20 in the GymInfo team rankings, including No. 1 Alabama, No. 2 Florida, No. 6 Arkansas, No. 9 LSU, No. 11 Georgia, No. 15 Auburn and No. 20 Missouri. Out of conference, UK will face Arizona, Ball State, Bowling Green, California and Penn State with Arizona and Penn State finishing last season in the top 25.
The schedule will begin with the annual Blue/White Scrimmage on Thursday, Dec. 6 at Memorial Coliseum. The event will feature an intra-squad scrimmage and serve as the final tune-up for the Wildcats before the 2013 season opener. Admission to the event is free and a time is yet to be determined.
The Wildcats will begin their regular-season schedule on Jan. 6 with a road trip to the University of California to compete in a four-team meet with host California, Auburn and Arizona. This is the first time since the 2006 season that the Wildcats have started their season away from home.
After the road trip to the West Coast, Kentucky will begin its SEC dual-meet season facing all seven SEC opponents in the next seven weeks from Jan. 11 to Feb. 22. The Wildcats will host Arkansas (Jan. 18), LSU (Feb. 1), Georgia (Feb. 8) and Missouri (Feb. 15) at Memorial Coliseum, while traveling to face Auburn (Jan. 11), Alabama (Jan. 25) and Florida (Feb. 22).
The Wildcats will begin a stretch of non-conference meets following their showdown with the Gators, including a dual meet at Ball State on March 3 and their final home meet of the season against Bowling Green State on March 8. UK will complete the regular season at Penn State on March 15.
“Memorial Coliseum is a perfect venue for college gymnastics and we have some great home meets scheduled this season,” Garrison said. “I really hope our fans come out to support our team and enjoy some great gymnastics.”
The 2013 SEC Championships will take place on March 23 at the Verizon Arena in North Little Rock, Ark., while the NCAA Championships are April 19-21 at the Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, Calif.
Kentucky finished the 2012 season ranked 25th nationally with a National Qualifying Score of 390.240. The NQS is calculated by adding a team’s Regional Qualifying Score and its team score from the regional competition together. The top-25 final ranking was the third-consecutive for Kentucky after finishing 25th in 2011 and 21st in 2010. The ranking made head coach Tim Garrison the first head coach in school history to lead his team to a top-25 final ranking in his first season, according to records kept since 1996.
UK made its 24th appearance in an NCAA Regional last season under Garrison, who became the first coach in school history to lead a team to a 196 team score in his first season. The Wildcats had several other accomplishments throughout the season, including entering the NCAA Regionals with the second-highest Regional Qualifying score in school history. The Wildcats ended the regular season with three consecutive team scores of 195.875 or higher, which was the best three-meet stretch in school history.
For more information on the Kentucky gymnastics team, follow “UKGymnastics” on Twitter and Facebook, or visit UKathletics.com.
