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No. 8 Gym Dogs travel To Missouri

Feb 21, 2013 by Georgia Sports Communications

ATHENS——-The eighth-ranked Georgia gymnastics team returns to action Friday night when it travels to Missouri for a 7:30 p.m. ET meet. The Gym Dogs are looking to rebound from a 197.300-196.175 loss to top-ranked Florida last week, while the Tigers were edged on the road at Kentucky, 194.250-194.125. Georgia will be on the road for three of the next four meets to close the regular season, beginning Friday night in Columbia.

Georgia-Missouri History
This is only the eighth meeting between Georgia and Missouri, including just the second dual meet. The two teams first faced off on Jan. 15, 1985 in Athens, with Georgia coming away with a 185.900-174.500 dual meet win. The Gym Dogs are 6-1 all-time against Missouri.

The last meeting came in the 2010 NCAA Regional at the Hearnes Center. Fifth-ranked Georgia was the top-seed in the six-team field, but Missouri – seeded third – placed first with a 196.500. Georgia and Oregon State tied for second with a 196.275, and the Beavers won the tiebreaker to advance to the NCAA Championships.

Noteworthy
• Georgia has posted the highest score on vault and bars in all seven dual meets this season.
• The Gym Dogs scored season-highs on vault (49.550) and bars (49.450) last week against Florida for a running total of 99.00 after two rotations, which matches the score Georgia had through two rotations against Michigan on March 14, 2009. The last time UGA had a higher score through two rotations was at the 2008 NCAA Regional at Penn State, when the Gym Dogs posted a 99.075.
• A Georgia gymnast turned in the highest score on all four events last week vs. Florida.
• Georgia has only had two all-arounders in eight meets this season. Cat Hires was in the lineup on all four events in the season-opener against Oklahoma, then Brittany Rogers competed in the all-around Feb. 16 at Kentucky.
• Chelsea Davis has placed first on bars in all eight meets, including a 9.95 last week against Florida. She has scored a 9.9 or higher in each of the last six meets.
• Dating back to last season, a Georgia gymnast has placed first on bars in 14 of the last 15 meets. The only exception was the SEC Championship last year when Kat Ding tied for second.

Rankings
Georgia moved up one spot to No. 8 in this week’s top 25 with a 196.369 average. The Gym Dogs are No. 2 on bars with a 49.303 average, No. 3 on vault (49.334), No. 15 on floor (48.95) and No. 16 on beam (48.781).

Individually, Chelsea Davis retained her No. 1 ranking on bars for the third straight week. After winning her eighth bars title against Florida with a 9.95, Davis improved her season average to a 9.912. Freshman Brittany Rogers is tied for fourth with a 9.875.

Four Gym Dogs are ranked in the top-20 on vault. Noel Couch is tied for third with her career-high 9.925 on Saturday, while freshman Brandie Jay is ranked 14th with a 9.894. Jay posted a 9.975 against the Gators, which is the highest score by any Georgia gymnast this season. Lindsey Cheek and Rogers are ranked 19th and 20th respectively, with a 9.884. Christa Tanella is tied for 22nd on floor with a 9.869.

Up Next
Georgia will be on the road for the second straight week when in travels to LSU Friday, March 1. The two teams met in Dallas at the Metroplex Challenge, and LSU placed second with a 197.100, while Georgia was fourth with a 196.775. The Tigers are currently ranked sixth.

Tagged: uga gymnastics, gymdogs, ga bulldogs, georgia gymnastics, brittany rogers, brandie jay, chelsea davis, lindsey cheek, noel couch, shayla worley, danna durante