No. 11 Kentucky Welcomes Arkansas to Resume SEC Play on Friday
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The No. 11 Kentucky gymnastics program will continue Southeastern Conference play on Friday when UK hosts Arkansas inside Memorial Coliseum. The meet is set to begin at 7 p.m. and can be watched live on SEC Network+ and the WatchESPN app.
The Wildcats are coming off a tie for first place in the Kentucky quad meet. UK posted a score of 196.625 while tying Illinois for first place. The Cats defeated Washington (196.450) and Northern Illinois (193.800) in the win.
The meet will be Youth Day at Memorial Coliseum. Ages 6-18 will get into the meet on for $1 and Junior Wildcat Club members will get in free and are able to bring one additional guest. Kids will also be able to pick up a Kentucky gymnastics coloring book.
SCOUTING ARKANSAS
Arkansas is currently ranked No. 28 in the latest Road to Nationals RQS with a score of 195.535. The Razorbacks are coming off a 185.275, but only competed four girls on the floor. Arkansas has a pair of wins over No. 5 Alabama and No. 17 auburn this season, and set its season-high score of 196.375 in the win over the Tigers. Jessica Yamzon has won two individual all-around titles and ranks ninth in the SEC in all-around score at 38.985.
LOOKING AHEAD: MISSOURI
Kentucky will close the regular season with a dual meet at No. 15 Missouri next Friday. Missouri currently has an RQS of 196.145, and scored a season-best score of 196.750 last weekend against Florida.
NATIONAL RANKING
Kentucky comes in tied at No. 11 in the latest Road to Nationals poll. UK’s regional qualifying score is 196.535, tied with Michigan. Qualification for regional competition is based on a team’s and an all-around competitor’s six best regular-season-meet scores, of which three must be away. To obtain the regional qualifying score (RQS), the high score is eliminated and the remaining five scores are averaged.
ROTATION RANKINGS
The Wildcats rotational rankings are impressive as well. UK sits at No. 9 on beam with an RQS of 49.245 and an average score of 49.164. On the vault, UK is No. 11 with an RQS of 49.170 and average of 49.042. On the floor, Kentucky is No. 13 with a 49.165 RQS and 49.097 average and No. 15 on bars with an RQS of 49.075 and 48.950 average.
PUTTING UP NUMBERS ON BEAM
Sophomore Alex Hyland is currently third in the nation in average beam score with an average of 9.9. Her RQS of 9.905 is currently tied at No. 7 in the nation. Hyland put up 9.9 last weekend in the Kentucky quad meet, and has not posted below a 9.9 since Jan. 20, when she put up a 9.875.
ALL-AROUND RANKINGS
Two Wildcats sit in the top-five of the all-around rankings in the Southeastern Conference. Freshman Mollie Korth sits in fourth with an RQS of 39.365 and an average of 39.208 while sophomore Sidney Dukes follows closely behind at 39.315. Nationally, Korth sits at No. 11 and Dukes sits at No. 15.
For complete news and updates on the Kentucky Gymnastics program, go to UKathletics.com. Season tickets can be found on UKathletics.com/Tickets. News and updates on the team can also be found on Twitter at @UKGymnastics and at @UKCoachGarrison and Facebook at Facebook.com/UKGymnastics.
