Helen Hu scores a 9.975 on beam as highest scoring Tiger
Georgia. (Maddie Steuber / The Maneater)
After a win at the Zou to the Lou, Missouri gymnastics welcomed Georgia for an SEC dual meet.
The meet was a neck-and-neck battle, but the Tigers took the win with a season-high 197.425, edging out Georgia’s 197.350. Senior Amari Celestine highlighted the meet with a 9.900 on vault, 9.925 on bars and a 9.950 on floor. Her younger brother Artyon Celestine choreographed her floor routine and attended the meet, standing right next to the floor exercise.
“It was like I was out here really doing it for him,” Celestine said. “I know I go out and I say, I’ve dedicated my season to my family, but having him here by my side tonight was really meaningful for me.”
The meet came down to the final rotation, with Georgia on beam and Missouri on floor. The Tigers held a narrow 147.875-147.800. Both teams were excellent in each event, finishing with matching scores of 49.550.
Missouri finished the floor rotation with three scores of 9.9 or higher. Junior Elise Tisler led the Tigers off with a season-high 9.925. Freshman Kaia Tanskanen made her floor debut in style with a 9.900. Georgia did not back down. Junior Naya Howard led with a 9.900. Sophomore Anya Turner displayed a wobble-free routine with a stuck dismount that scored a near-perfect 9.975. Junior Ja’free Scott followed with another strong 9.875 routine. 2020 Olympic alternate Kara Eaker continued the GymDogs’ strong beam rotation with a 9.925. Heading into the last routine, the meet was tied, with Missouri sophomore Kennedy Griffin left to perform. She capped the meet with a 9.925 to secure the win.
Missouri gymnastics finished with a score above 49 on all four rotations.
“For all pretty good, you know, I think we need to stick a little bit. It was a season-high. For some reason, it didn’t feel like a season-high,” head coach Shannon Welker said. “But hey, look, you just have to be consistent, right?”
The Tigers began the meet with a 49.175 score on vault. Two separate gymnasts finished with a score above 9.8.
Griffin led the Tigers off with a solid Yurchenko full for a 9.850. Sophomore Hannah Horton stuck her Yurchenko 1.5 for a team-high 9.925. Celestine anchored the rotation scoring a 9.900 for a vault total of 49.175
9.650 on the vault. (Maddie Steuber / The Maneater)
In rotation two, the Tigers moved to bars, finishing with a total of 49.425. Junior Addison Lawrence earned a career-high of 9.900 after sticking her double tuck dismount. Horton and freshman Olivia Kelly followed Lawrence’s routine with scores of 9.850. Celestine brought the crowd to their feet with a team-high 9.925, her fifth straight 9.9 on the event. Graduate Mara Titarsolej closed with a 9.900 routine to help the Tigers earn a bar total of 49.425.
Missouri held a slight lead of 98.600-98.575 heading into the third rotation on beam. Four of the six Tigers scored above 9.8 to finish the rotation at 49.325.
Junior Amy Wier led the Tigers off by bagging her second straight 9.875. Lawrence matched Wier’s score with a 9.875 of her own. Graduate Helen Hu anchored the rotation with a near-perfect 9.975. The score was met with boos from the crowd who were clamoring for a perfect 10. Hu previously reached perfection on beam in the dual meet against Oklahoma.
This marked Missouri’s third SEC win of the season, previously beating Alabama and Kentucky. This season-high score moved the Tigers to No. 8 in the national rankings. The team will look for another win on the road against Florida at 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 28.
Edited by Dylan Heinrich | dheinrich@themaneater.com
Copy edited by Natalie Kientzy | nkientzy@themaneater.com
Edited by Annie Goodykoontz | agoodykoontz@themaneater.com
