The University of Kentucky gymnastics team hits the road for the second consecutive weekend to face another solid Southeastern Conference foe, No. 4 Georgia Saturday, Jan. 24 at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Wildcats have raised their team score each meet this season and are looking for their first victory in school history over a strong UGA team that has won five national championships in 21 seasons under Coach Suzanne Yoculan.
?We are really excited to compete at UGA against one of the top gymnastics programs in the country,? said UK Coach ?Mo? Muhammad. ?We are eager to get back on the mats and improve on a solid score from last weekend.?
UK scored a season-high 195.200 in a loss at No. 9 Arkansas last weekend. The Wildcats have shown improvement in each meet this season with co-captains Aronda Primault and Michelle Gales leading the way. Primault is Kentucky?s top performer on vault (9.85), beam (9.617) and all-around (38.950). The senior from Canton, Ohio has claimed two all-around titles, two vault titles and a floor victory in just three meets. Gales is UK?s second leading all-around scorer (38.767) and has won two bars titles and one floor exercise title.
Georgia is coming off a 197.85 – 197.475 loss to UCLA. UGA finished third at the Super Six Championships last season and feature eight gymnasts who have claimed All-America honors in their careers.
Tough Schedule
All of Kentucky?s opponents to this point have been ranked in the Gym Info Top-25 rankings. Georgia was No. 4 when the latest rankings were released, but its 197.475 against UCLA Monday night is the second highest score in the country this season. Five of Kentucky?s remaining opponents are ranked in the latest Top-25 rankings including three (Alabama, Florida and Georgia) who are in the top five.
UK Gymnast of the Week
Senior co-captain Aronda Primault is the latest ?UK Gymnast of the Week?. Primault scored a season-high 39.200 in the all-around this past Friday against Arkansas despite battling a sore ankle. She has led the Wildcats in the all-around all three meets this season and has the team?s highest vault (9.85), uneven bars (9.767) and beam (9.617) averages.
Primault has been a standout performer for the Wildcats for the past four seasons, leading UK on vault, beam and all-around for the past two.
Cook Burns up the Mats
Kentucky freshman Krystle Cook has made an immediate impact with her solid all-around performances. ?Cookie,? as she is known by her teammates, is averaging a 38.333 in the all-around, ranks second on the team with her 9.833 vault average and has the highest individual beam score (9.825) this season.
The Austin, Texas native, has scored a 9.800 or better in five of her 12 routines this season and continues to look stronger and more confident each meet.
Vaulting to Higher Heights
Vault has consistently been Kentucky?s strongest event through the early 2004 season. UK has raised its vault score in each meet thus far, scoring a team 49.075 against Arkansas last weekend, which is the 13th highest score of any team in the country. Last season, Kentucky scored a 49.000 or better in eight of its 12 meets.
Senior Aronda Primault (9.85) and freshman Krystle Cook (9.833) are UK?s leaders on vault. Primault has held the highest average on the apparatus for the past two seasons at Kentucky.
