LSU Athletics
NORMAN, Okla. – In a battle of the top two teams in the nation, the No. 2 LSU Gymnastics team (6-2-1, 3-2 SEC) posted a season high road score on Friday night inside Lloyd Noble Center, but ultimately fell to No. 1 Oklahoma (11-0-1, 6-0 SEC) by a final score of 198.125-197.925.
Sophomore Kailin Chio tallied two perfect scores on the night, scoring her first on vault, which was her first perfect score on the event this season, before she wrapped up another stellar night on with her second 10.00 on beam, her second on the event this season. She marked back-to-back meets with 10’s, as she earned her first career perfect score on floor in the Tigers last meet against Auburn.
Chio has scored four perfect 10’s through seven meets so far this season, moving her total to five in her career. Her dominant performance against the Sooners saw her claim four individual titles – two coming from vault and the beam with her 10.000 scores, a share of the floor title with her 9.925 alongside teammates Lexi Zeiss and Amari Drayton, and the all-around title with a 39.850.
Her all-around score is the highest in program history on the road while also marking the second straight week that Chio has posted a 39.800 or higher in the all-around
LSU started the night on bars as sophomore Lexi Zeiss scored a 9.850 to get things rolling. Senior Ashley Cowan matched her season-high and scored a 9.900 in the second spot ahead of a 9.900 from junior Madison Ulrich in spot three. Chio scored a 9.925 in the fourth spot before graduate student Courtney Blackson posted a 9.800 in the fifth spot. Graduate student Alexis Jeffrey posted a season-high 9.850 in her second appearance of the year to give the Tigers a 49.475 score for rotation one.
After the first rotation, Oklahoma led by a margin of 49.575-49.475.
The second rotation saw the Tigers move to vault, where Zeiss led off with a strong 9.850. Blackson scored a 9.775 in the second spot before sophomore Victoria Roberts scored a 9.850 in spot three. The fourth spot saw sophomore Kaliya Lincoln tie her career-high with a 9.950, followed by a 9.825 from junior Amari Drayton at spot five. Chio anchored the rotation for the Tigers and posted a perfect 10.000, the second on vault in her collegiate career. Her perfect 10 elevated the Tigers’ vault score to a 49.475.
At the halfway point, the Sooners held a 99.175-98.900 lead over the Tigers.
Rotation three took LSU to the floor as senior Emily Innes led off with a 9.850. Freshman Nina Ballou scored a 9.850 in spot two before junior Kylie Coen posted a 9.850 of her own in the third spot. Drayton scored a strong 9.925 in spot four ahead of a 9.925 from Chio in the fifth spot. The anchor spot saw Zeiss score a career-high 9.925 in her floor debut to take LSU’s floor score to 49.475.
Heading to the final rotation of the night, Oklahoma led by a score of 148.675-148.375.
The Tigers wrapped up the night on the beam with a lead-off 9.875 from Coen. Innes scored a season-high 9.900 in the second spot before Drayton posted a 9.850 in spot three. The fourth spot saw Lincoln match her season-high with a 9.925 before Chio went perfect yet again with a 10.000 in spot five for her second ten of the night, second on beam this season, and fifth perfect score of her college career. Ulrich anchored the rotation with a 9.825 in her beam debut to see the Tigers finish beam with a 49.550.
The Tigers wrapped up the night with a 197.925, the team’s third highest score of the season and highest on the road thus far but ultimately fell short of Oklahoma’s 198.125.
Chio’s event titles total jumped to 22 this season with four wins tonight and 45 in her career; the wins this evening moved her season totals to six on vault, seven on beam, three on floor and six in the all-around. Currently, she sits in 13th for the most individual titles in program history (45) and fifth for the most beam titles in a single season (7).
Drayton’s share of the floor title marked her second floor title this season and sixth event title of her career. Zeiss, who also scored a 9.925 alongside Chio and Drayon on floor, claimed a share of the floor title as well. The win marked her first event title of the season, first of her career on floor, and second of her collegiate career across all events.
The Tigers return to action for another top 3 matchup when No. 2 LSU hosts No. 3 Alabama for alumni night in the PMAC on Friday, February 27 at 8:30 p.m. CT. The meet will be broadcast live on the SEC Network.
**LSU PRESS RELEASE**
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