LEXINGTON, Ky.?The No. 19 Kentucky gymnastics squad travels to Duluth, Ga., Saturday to compete in the 25th annual Southeastern Conference Championships. Meet time is scheduled for 6 p.m. in the Gwinnett Center and live stats will be available on ukathletics.com.

The Wildcats will be facing a tournament field all comprised of nationally ranked teams. Each of the six SEC squads (Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Georgia and LSU) is ranked in the nation?s top-25 heading into the meet. UK is 12-9 on the season entering the meet and is looking to build its case for postseason aspirations.

Kentucky is coming off of a tri-meet win in Denver, Colo., last week as the Wildcats upset two higher-ranked foes with a 195.375 mark on the four events. Senior Michelle Gales took second in the all-around with a score of 39.125 to lead the Cats. UK is 6-6 on the road this season entering the meet.

The meet will mark a homecoming of sorts for five Kentucky Gymnasts, who are Georgia natives. Freshman Kristen O?Shields is a native of Cartersville, Ga., seniors Gales, Kara Prestigiacomo and Krista Prestigiacomo all call Atlanta home, and junior Bethany Strauch is from Lawrenceville, Ga.

Last season, the Wildcats finished in seventh place at the SEC Championships with a 193.850 score. UK?s best finish in the conference championships came in 1996 when it claimed fourth place. The Wildcats were led by NCAA All-American and national champion Jenny Hansen, who claimed the league titles on beam and floor, and tied for third on the vault. Kentucky recorded a team score of 195.250 in the meet.

– UK –