Gymbacks Begin Postseason at SEC Championships
The Arkansas gymnastics team writes the first chapter of its 2023 postseason story this weekend as the Hogs gear up for SEC Championships in Duluth, Ga.
Arkansas has been seeded sixth of the eight conference teams, placing them in Saturday’s afternoon session against No. 5 Auburn, No. 7 Missouri, and No. 8 Georgia.
Teams are seeded according to national qualifying scores (NQS), and the Gymbacks carry a 197.050 heading into the weekend, which is the highest since 2021 and second-highest ever.
This will be the team’s third SEC Championships under head coach Jordyn Wieber, as the 2020 event was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns. Last year, the Hogs came in sixth, and finished in seventh in 2021. Arkansas’ highest-ever finish at SECs came in 2011, when the team placed fourth.
The Gymbacks will begin the competiton on bars, and rotate through beam, floor, and vault after that. Awards, including All-SEC and All-SEC Freshman Team honors, will be announced following the conclusion of the evening session, which is set for 7 p.m. CT.
The meet will be broadcast live on SEC Network, and individual apparatus streams will also be available through ESPN+.
Last Time Out
Arkansas had its final home meet of the regular season on March 10 and sent its seniors off well. While the No. 16 Gymbacks fell to the No. 19 Minnesota Golden Gophers 197.075-196.900, Arkansas’ veterans had a great night. Graduate student Kennedy Hambrick earned the beam title with a season-high 9.900, and fellow fifth year Norah Flatley took bars with a 9.925 and the all-around with a 39.575. Both marks matched season highs for Flatley. Flatley also earned podium finishes on beam (9.875) and floor (9.925), and senior Maddie Hickey earned a 9.900 on floor for a share of second place. The meet saw a crowd of 8,218 fans, the third-highest attended meet in program history. That figure brought the season home attendance total to 36,619, a new record. Arkansas recorded an average of 7,328 fans per meet over its five between Barnhill Arena and Bud Walton Arena, smashing its previous season average of 4,966, set in 2022.
Numbers to Know
Auburn (NQS and ranking | Top ind. NQS)
- Vault: 49.335 (10th) | Cassie Stevens, 9.905
- Bars: 49.390 (10th) | Suni Lee, 9.965
- Beam: 49.290 (T-15th) | Suni Lee, 9.915
- Floor: 49.455 (13th) | Derrian Gobourne, 9.940
- All-Around: 197.480 (12th) | Suni Lee, 39.655
Arkansas
- VT: 49.270 (16th) | Lauren Williams, 9.870
- UB: 49.340 (17th) | Norah Flatley, 9.905
- BB: 49.250 (17th) | Norah Flatley, 9.858
- FX: 49.385 (T-17th) | Lauren Williams, 9.920
- AA: 197.050 (16th) | N/A
Missouri
- VT: 49.180 (20th) | Jocelyn Moore, 9.925
- UB: 49.295 (19th) | Helen Hu, 9.900
- BB: 49.355 (12th) | Helen Hu, 9.935
- FX: 49.415 (14th) | Amari Celestine, 9.915
- AA: 197.040 (17th) | Sienna Schreiber, 39.405
Georgia
- VT: 49.190 (19th) | Naya Howard, 9.865
- UB: 49.350 (T-13th) | Haley DeJong, 9.900
- BB: 49.185 (T-23rd) | Vanessa Deniz, 9.895
- FX: 49.375 (T-19th) | Soraya Hawthorne, 9.945
- AA: 196.955 (19th) | Haley DeJong, 39.345
More Information
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