Missouri Preview: Conquering Columbia
MEET INFO…
WHO: No. 9 Arkansas at No. 14 Missouri
WHEN: Friday, March 4 at 7 p.m.
WHERE: Columbia, Missouri
VENUE: Hearnes Center
HOW TO…
STREAM: SEC Network +
LIVE RESULTS: Stats
FOLLOW: @RazorbackGym
PREPARE: Meet Notes (PDF)
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Building upon a tie for the best performance in program history might be a tough act to follow, but the Arkansas gymnastics team will be looking to do just that on Friday night. The No. 9 Razorbacks travel to Missouri on March 4 for their final SEC meet of the season against the No. 14 Tigers, with first vault scheduled for 7 p.m. in Columbia.
With a Regional Qualifying Score (RQS) of 196.460, still just behind No. 8 Auburn (196.720) for fourth place in the conference standings, Arkansas will have to continue to post scores around the 197 range to keep pace. If the Razorbacks can get performances like they did on Friday vs. No. 23 Kentucky, that won’t be a problem.
Some of the results from the historic night of Feb. 26 are impressive to say the least. In all, four Arkansas gymnasts set career highs and seven tied a career best on an apparatus. Amanda Wellick tied three event career highs and set a new one for all-around, with a performance of 39.600.
On uneven bars, Erin Freier’s 9.925 was a career high mark, while Braie Speed shattered her previous career high of 9.875 with a 9.925 as well.
“We fight for every score we get. and to finally break 197 while also tying a school record was a huge confidence booster,” the sophomore Speed said. “As a team, we just have to keep focusing on the details and competing with a sense of pride that no one can take away from us.”
Overall on bars, the Razorbacks finished with a 49.550, good enough for the team’s best score on the apparatus in Barnhill history, and second-highest score by an SEC team this season. Meanwhile, Arkansas posted a 49.325 on balance beam, which marks the team’s second-best score on the apparatus in Barnhill history.
Still, Columbia isn’t a place where Arkansas has had much success in the past. Although the Razorbacks are 10-5 against Missouri in program history, that includes a 4-1 record in Barnhill Arena and a 5-0 mark in neutral-site meets, but just a 1-4 tally in the Hearnes Center.
Considering how the team made history earlier this season in Tuscaloosa – defeating No. 4 Alabama in Coleman Coliseum for the first time in program history – Arkansas is hoping to flip the script and come away with yet another impressive performance on the road.
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