Alabama gymnastics traveled to Ann Arbor, Michigan on Friday to compete in their first meet of the season. Despite several impressive routines and individual high scores, the Crimson Tide ladies ultimately lost to the Wolverines in the final event.
Preseason ranked fourth in the nation, the Alabama gymnastics team looked for a signature win against the seventh-ranked Michigan Wolverines on Friday night in Ann Arbor. The Tide’s gymnastics program is historically successful, with nine SEC championships and six national championships to their name.
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Alabama Gymnastics at Michigan: January 5, 2018
Friday, the ladies of Alabama gymnastics took their talents to the bars, vault, floor and beam, respectively. Sophomore Wynter Childers led off in all four events. Childers was the only member of the Crimson Tide to compete in the entire rotation for the all-around title.
With solid scores in each category, Childers finished second in the individual all-around competition portion of the meet.
Bama started solidly on the uneven parallel bars, despite a transition fall from sophomore Shea Mahoney. Freshman Kylie Dickson, a veritable giant in the gymnastics world at 5 feet 8 inches tall, nailed her routine with a 9.900 score. Senior ‘anchor’ Kiana Winston provided a strong finish with a meet-high 9.925 to earn an individual first place on bars.
The vault saw high marks for all six competitors, ranging from 9.650 to a meet-high 9.900 by senior Nickie Guerrero. Floor routines saw a drop in overall scores; however, Guerrero delivered a sassy, fun performance that earned her a 9.750.
Though the Alabama gymnastics team includes several ladies that are considered ‘beam specialists’, the Tide could not make up for the sluggish floor scores. Kiana Winston scored another 9.900, but not enough to put the Tide over the top:
Final Score #FridaysAreForGymnastics #RollTide pic.twitter.com/dw9QK3b9jY
— Alabama Gymnastics (@BamaGymnastics) January 6, 2018
It’s just her fourth season as head coach, but Dana Duckworth is still struggling to find her footing. There is no doubt it would be daunting to follow in the footsteps of storied Alabama gymnastics coach Sarah Patterson. Originally from Michigan herself, Duckworth hoped to lead her team to victory in front of hometown friends and family. Unfortunately, the Tide couldn’t fly as high as they hoped, and lost to the Wolverines by three-tenths of a point.
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