Katie Stuart Named SEC Specialist of the Week

LEXINGTON, Ky. – After No. 9 Kentucky secured a top spot in this weekend’s Southeastern Conference Championship behind the best National Qualifying Score in school history, senior Katie Stuart was named the program’s second ever SEC Specialist of the Week for her vault routine in last Saturday’s tri-meet hosted by No. 18 Nebraska.
 
“I’m really happy for Katie to receive this award,” said head coach Tim Garrison. “She has been a major contributor in our vault lineup all year. As a senior, she’s competing a new 10.0 start value for the first full season. Such a well-deserved honor.”
 
Stuart earned a career-high 9.975 last Saturday, claiming her second outright vault win of the season and her eighth overall victory on the apparatus. The Parkland, Fla. native’s previous career high of 9.900 was matched on Jan. 25 at then-No. 3 Florida for the fifth time in her career.
 
Stuart’s mark of 9.975 ties the second-best individual vault score by a UK athlete, leading Kentucky to a program-best 49.400 total on the event. Stuart is the second Wildcat to be named SEC Specialist of the Week since the conference began handing out the award in 2013.
 
Propelled in part by Stuart’s historic performance, Kentucky fell 197.675-197.200 to the Cornhuskers and defeated No. 56 Illinois State (191.625). The Cats’ fifth 197-point outing of the season clinched a spot in the evening session of the SEC Championship for the second consecutive season behind the program’s first NQS score above the same threshold (197.085).
 
Kentucky will join No. 3 LSU, No. 4 Florida, and No. 8 Georgia in New Orleans on Saturday at approximately 8 p.m. ET, televised live on ESPN2. The competition’s afternoon session will begin at 4 p.m. on the SEC Network.
 
For the latest on the Kentucky gymnastics team, follow @UKGymnastics on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, as well as on the web at UKAthletics.com.