Da Boot Sports
3/23/2024
LSU Sports Communications
By: Alyssa Leal


   NEW ORLEANS – The No. 3 nationally ranked LSU Gymnastics team secured their fifth conference title on Saturday night in the Smoothie King Center after finishing on top with their score of 198.075 in the second session of the SEC Championships. 

LSU’s score on the day matched the programs highest at the championships to place them in first overall across all eight teams in both sessions of the competition.

“It means everything to be able to bring this home. This is a great group and I’m very proud of how they've gone about their business all year long,” said head coach Jay Clark. “The SEC is a gauntlet, and to come in here and be able to do it at home in front of our fans was pretty special. LSU is a special place.”

The Tigers started the competition on vault, where KJ Johnson got things started with her yurchenko full that scored a 9.875. Aleah Finnegan followed Johnson, earning a 9.850. In the third spot, Amari Drayton posted a 9.825. Savannah Schoenherr put up a solid routine in the fifth spot with her 9.850. Kiya Johnson recorded the Tigers first score over a 9.900 with her yurchenko double that earned a 9.925. Haleigh Bryant earned a 9.975 in the anchor spot to close out the 49.475 vault rotation. 

Bryant's vault routine helped to put the Tigers in the first overall spot through the first rotation and even with Alabama. 

LSU rotated to bars for the second rotation with Kiya Johnson leading off for the squad. Johnson scored a 9.825 while Ashley Cowan matched her career high in the second spot with a 9.950. Olivia Dunne competed in the third spot for her second appearance on bars this year, where she contributed a 9.800. Konnor McClain secured a 9.900 and Schoenherr followed with a 9.850. In the anchor spot, Bryant posted a 9.925. 

The LSU bars squad finished the second rotation with a 49.450, the second highest on the event by the Tigers at the conference championships. The Tigers were even with Kentucky by a score of 98.925 at the halfway point in the Smoothie King Center. Alabama followed in third with a 98.775 and Florida in fourth with a 98.575.

The Tigers kept the momentum going in the third rotation. In the beam leadoff position, Sierra Ballard scored a 9.800. Schoenherr made her beam debut in the second spot and earned a 9.850 for the Tigers. McClain earned the only perfect score of the championship meet with her second career 10 in the third spot. Kiya Johnson earned a 9.775 in the fourth position. Bryant posted a 9.950 in the fifth spot before Finnegan anchored with a 9.875. 

The Tigers finished beam with their second highest score in program history as they tallied a 49.475. Heading into their final rotation, the Tigers trailed Kentucky by .025. Through three rotations the top scores were as follows: 148.425 Kentucky, 148.400 LSU, 148.200 Alabama, and 147.850 Florida. 

McClain got things started on floor for the Tigers, continuing her stellar night with a 9.925 performance. Drayton followed in the second spot, where she earned a 9.850. KJ Johnson had one of her best routines of the year and scored a 9.975. The performance matched her season and career high on floor. Finnegan scored a 9.775 in the fourth spot while Bryant recorded her second 9.950 of the day to secure her all-around win. Kiya Johnson anchored the event with her 9.975.


The LSU floor squad closed out the meet with a score of 49.675, the highest recorded by the program at SEC’s, to take the lead and secure the win. Bryant finished the meet as the top all-around performer with her score of 39.800 on the night.

The Tigers took home titles on every event and had five gymnasts combine for five individual SEC champions in Haleigh Bryant, Ashley Cowan, Konnor McClain, KJ Johnson and Kiya Johnson. 

Cowan, McClain and KJ Johnson earned their first SEC title in their careers while Bryant and Kiya Johnson earned their second. The two earned individual titles in 2021 on floor and vault.

Bryant now owns two individual SEC titles on vault and earned her first in the all-around this year. Johnson earned her second title on floor.



The 2024 LSU Individual SEC Champions are as follows:
Name             Event         Score
Haleigh Bryant     VT, AA        9.975, 39.800
Ashley Cowan      UB                  9.950
Konnor McClain    BB                  10.000
Kiya Johnson        FX          9.975
KJ Johnson          FX           9.975

2024 SEC Championships Team Results:
1. LSU, 198.075
2. Alabama, 197.750
3. Kentucky, 197.600
4. Florida, 197.300
5. Missouri, 197.275
6. Arkansas, 197.050
7. Auburn, 196.775
8. Georgia, 196.075

Photos Below By: Jonathan Mailhes

​John 14:6 - "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior)

​*John 3;16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Da Boot Sports
3/15/2024
By: Terrill J. Weil


   BATON ROUGE, LA - In the final home meet of the 2024 season for the Tigers, LSU defeated North Carolina, 198.250 - 196.075 on Friday night/Senior Night in the Maravich Center in front of 13,283 electric LSU fans. It was the 3rd straight sellout and the 4th largest crowd in program history. 



   KJ Johnson lead off for the Tigers on the vault with a 9.875... Aleah Finnegan then landed a 9.875... Amari Drayton scored a 9.850... Next up, Savannah Schoenherr scored a 9.875 for the Tigers. The judges awarded Chase Brock with a 9.850... Haleigh Bryant, the anchor of the vault team, scored an event high, 9.925 for LSU. 


   LSU moved to the bars for the second rotation, with Alexis Jeffrey who scored a 9.850... Ashley Cowen then put up an impressive 9.950, followed with a Aleah Finnegan with a 9.875... Konnor McClain then added a 9.875... Savannah Schoenherr scored a fantastic 9.950... Haleigh Bryant finished off the rotation with a strong 9.975...


   The meet moved on to the third rotation with LSU leading North carolina, 99.025 - 97.550...


   Next up the Tigers moved to the beam. Sierra Ballard started things off with a 9.800.... Alexis Jeffrey scored a 9.675.... Konnor McClain then balanced her way to an impressive 9.975.... Kiya Johnson then followed with a lovely 9.925.... Haleigh Bryant was awarded a 9.950.... Aleah Fennegan anchored the team finishing with a 9.925....


   Next, It's floor time!!! LSU headed into the final rotation with a 148.600 - 146.850 lead.

   Konnor McClain started the floor with a fantastic 9.925.... Amari Drayton followed with a 9.900.... KJ Johnson then scored a 9.775.... Aleah Fennegan danced and flipped her way to a 9.950.... Olivia Dunne recorded a 9.850.... Kiya Johnson closed the meet out for the Tigers with an incredible 9.975.... 


   With the victory, LSU improves to 12-3 overall. Next up the Tigers will travel to New Orleans for the SEC Championship meet in the New Orleans Arena on March 23rd.  LSU will compete in Session II which will begin at 7:00pm. The Tigers are the #1 seed. 


   

Photos Below By: Terrill Weil

John 14:6 - "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior)

​*John 3;16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Da Boot Sports
3/8/2024
LSU Sports Communications
By: Alyssa Leal


      BATON ROUGE — The No. 3 LSU Gymnastics team (11-3, 5-3 SEC) finished on top of the Podium Challenge with their final score of 198.425 on Friday night in the Raising Cane’s River Center.

   The Tigers topped No. 14 Auburn (197.050), George Washington (195.100) and Texas Woman’s (194.725) for their second highest score on the season.

   “The thing that most pleases me about tonight is the completeness of the performance. This was our best performance this year regardless of score from top to bottom and the best we’ve seen all year long through all four events,” said head coach Jay Clark. “The team was loose, they were relaxed, and they handled business right. They didn’t let the score get to them and they didn’t let any distractions get to them.”

   It was a record night for LSU as the team marked their highest program NQS with a new school record 198.125. The team’s performance on the night achieved the first time LSU has surpassed the 198+ mark. 

   The Tigers also set a new program floor NQS after scoring a 49.675 in the meet to improve their NQS to 49.695, the highest floor NQS in LSU and NCAA history.

   Senior Haleigh Bryant continued to shine for the Tigers after finishing as the top performer in the meet and took home all five titles on the night. Bryant now owns the highest all-around score in the country through the tenth week of competition and set a new school record with her 39.925 in the all-around.

   Her score on the night is also the second best all-around score in SEC history and all-time fourth-best in NCAA history.

   Bryant recorded back-to-back perfect 10’s on vault and bars and finished the night strong with a 9.95 on beam and 9.975 on floor. Her perfect score on vault was her ninth in her career to complete a season slam, as she has now recorded a perfect score on every event in 2024. She is only the 10th gymnast in NCAA history to record that achievement. 

   The Tigers came out hot on vault with a season high score of 49.675 to match the program’s second highest score. KJ Johnson led off with a strong 9.925 followed by Aleah Finnegan, who scored a 9.900. Amari Drayton added another 9.900 before Savannah Schoenherr recorded a season high 9.950. Kiya Johnson scored a 9.875 and Bryant anchored the event with her ninth perfect score on vault and 15th in her career. LSU took the early lead in the River Center after the first rotation. 

   “We’ve been working a lot of muscle memory for landing; not landing stiff and I think that showed here tonight. Those are the vaults we see a lot in the gym and I was happy with those results,” said Clark.


   Bryant wasted no time picking up her 16th career perfect score, this time on bars. In the second rotation, Alexis Jeffrey led off with a 9.900. Ashley Cowan scored a 9.850 and Kiya Johnson and Olivia Dunne both had a 9.875. Schoenherr continued to have a strong night as she scored a 9.925 before Bryant anchored with her 10. 

   It was a 99.250 LSU lead at the halfway point in the River Center. Auburn followed in second with a 98.550, then George Washington with a 97.850 and Texas Woman’s in fourth with their 97.650.

   Sierra Ballard led off in her usual spot on beam, recording a 9.850. Jeffrey posted a strong routine in the second spot with her 9.900. KJ Johnson made her first appearance in the beam lineup this year and scored a 9.725. Kiya Johnson recorded a 9.900 and Bryant added a 9.950. Finnegan closed out the event with a 9.900. LSU scored a 49.500 on beam and rotated to floor for the final rotation on the night.

   Dunne matched her career high 9.900 in the leadoff spot on floor to set the tone. Amari Drayton shined on the floor as she posted a 9.925 in the second spot and KJ Johnson followed with a 9.950. Finnegan had a 9.825 in the fourth spot before Kiya Johnson and Bryant closed with two 9.975’s, respectively. 

   Bryant now owns 83 titles in her career with 29 on vault, 13 on bars, six on beam, nine on floor and 26 in the all-around. Her vault and all-around titles on the night moved her second in LSU history to tie Rheagan Courville for most career titles on vault and the all-around in school history

   The Tigers host UNC for senior night on Friday, March 15 at 7:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network Plus.

Photos Below By: Michael Bacigalupi

​John 14:6 - "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior)

​*John 3;16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Da Boot Sports
3/1/2024
By: Terrill J. Weil


   BATON ROUGE, LA - The 2nd ranked Tigers returned home on Friday night looking to bounce back from their disappointing loss at Florida last week.
   Bounce back they did, with a strong performance in front of a sellout crowd of 12,580 fans, beating Alabama, 
198.325 - 197.325. 

   With the win, LSU improves to 8-3 overall and 5-2 in the SEC.


​   KJ Johnson led the Tigers off on vault with a solid 9.875, followed by Aleah Finnegan scoring a 9.875 as well. Amari Drayton struggled on her landing to score a 9.725.... Chase Brock landed a 9.875.... Kiya Johnson was awarded a 9.875. Haleigh Bryant scored an amazing 9.950 to lead the ladies in purple & gold.


   LSU attacked the bars to begin the second rotation with Alexis Jeffrey scoring a 9.875..... Ashley Cowan then landed a super 9.925.... Kiya Johnson then scored an impressive 9.900, followed by Konnor McClain with a strong 9.900.... Tori Tatum landed an incredible 9.950.... Anchor Haleigh Bryant was scored with a 9.975, with most fans feeling like it was a perfect 10. 

   The Tigers led the Tide, 99.100 - 98.425 as the meet headed into the third rotation.


   Sierra Ballard led off the beam for the Tigers with a 9.825.... Alexis Jeffrey followed with a solid 9.990....Hunter McClain then posted a 9.875.... Kiya Johnson scored a very nice 9.875.... Haleigh Bryant scored a solid 9.925 with a lovely routine. Aleah Finnegan anchored the beam attack with a nice 9.875.....


   LSU headed to the floor for the fourth and final rotation with Konnor McClain dancing and flipping her way to a fantastic 9.925....  Amari Drayton also finished with a strong 9.925....  KJ Johnson excited the Assembly Center crowd with a 9.975....  Aleah Finnegan then hit the floor with a 9.950....  The fans erupted as Haleigh Bryant followed with a perfect 10 with her outstanding routine....  Sierra Ballard finished off the night with a fantastic 9.900....

   LSU took down the Tide, 198.325 - 197.325.....  

   Next Up, LSU will host the Podium Challenge in the Raising Cane's River Center on Friday, March 8th at 6:00pm CST. ... Auburn, George Washington and Texas will compete in the challenge. 

   
​

Photos Below By: Jonathan Mailhes

Photos Below By: Corey Perrillioux

​John 14:6 - "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior)

​*John 3;16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.