UGA Women’s Gymnastics: Georgia Travels to Lexington for SEC Showdown

02/21/2020

Meet Information
No. 11 Georgia (7-5, 1-3 SEC) at No. 12 Kentucky (6-3, 3-2 SEC)
Friday, February 21 | 7 p.m. CT | Memorial Coliseum
Watch: SEC Network +
Live Stream: https://gado.gs/4gs
Stats: https://gado.gs/4gt
Notes: https://gado.gs/4gx

ATHENS, Ga. —The No. 11 University of Georgia gymnastics team will travel to face the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats on Friday, February 21 in the team’s second Southeastern Conference road competition of the season. The meet is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. with action being streamed on the SEC Network +.

The GymDogs are coming off a dominate showing in the team’s Tri-Meet against Ball State and Eastern Michigan, while the Wildcats posted their season-best bars score in a loss to LSU on the road.

GYMDOGS COLLECT ALL EVENT TITLES IN TRI-MEET VICTORY
The University of Georgia gymnastics team earned a 197.075 to defeat Ball State (194.725) and Eastern Michigan (194.700) in the first Tri-Meet UGA has hosted at Stegeman Coliseum since 2001.

Sophomores Mikayla Magee and Rachael Lukacs shared the vault title, while sophomore Megan Roberts earned the bars crown. All three gymnasts hit scores of 9.900 for their routines. Sophomore Rachel Baumann earned the top score of the meet on beam with a stunning 9.950. Senior Sabrina Vega took home the floor title after scoring her fifth consecutive 9.950 for the event.

“I am really proud of this team tonight,” Georgia head coach Courtney Kupets Carter. “They have faced adversity, but came together and really pushed through to put up some great scores. I think the adversity has actually helped this team get closer. They’re not going to give up. They’re not going to make excuses. It’s about who can step up. They are aggressive every time. They go out there and eventually get better and better.”

BACK-to-BACK SEC SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK HONORS FOR SABRINA VEGA
Senior Sabrina Vega earned two consecutive Southeastern Conference Specialist of the Week honors after meets against Auburn and at Arkansas.

In Georgia’s tight road contest at Arkansas, the Carmel, New York native scored her fourth 9.950 of the season on floor. She also stuck a 9.925 on beam, matching her season-high marks on both apparatuses. Additionally, Vega’s performances earned her the event titles for beam and floor, her second and fourth crowns of her senior campaign on the respective events.

She was also given the honor the week prior after a stellar performance in Georgia’s 197.425-196.350 win over Auburn.

Vega took home the floor and beam event titles after solid routines. She was nearly perfect on floor, receiving a 10 from one judge, resulting in a 9.950 to match her season-best score. She moon-walked her way to her highest score of the season on beam with a 9.925.

With the final performance of the meet she helped the GymDogs finish the fourth rotation with a 49.600 on floor, marking the highest score of all events in head coach Courtney Kupets Carter‘s tenure.

UNDERCLASSMEN PERFORM
Nineteen out of 24 total routines in a given meet are performed by underclassmen. The Georgia lineup is made up predominately of freshmen and sophomores with junior Marissa Oakley and senior Sabrina Vega typically performing a combined five routines.

FORMER TEAMMATES COACH TOGETHER
Georgia gymnastics head coach Courtney Kupets Carter added her former teamate and All-American Katie Heenan Dodson to the staff this season as volunteer assistant coach.

Heenan Dodson was a GymDog from 2005-2008, winning four National Championships and earning All-America honors on all four events and in the all-around (13 total). She also scored a Perfect10 on vault and floor. Additionally, she took home four SEC Champion crowns as an individual and three team titles.

Like Kupets Carter, Heenan Dodson is also a Honda Award Winner.