No. 18 @RazorbackGym Ready for 2015 SEC Championship

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DULUTH, Ga. – The No. 18-ranked University of Arkansas women’s gymnastics team begins postseason competition this Saturday, as they will compete in the 2015 Southeastern Conference Championship in Duluth, Georgia. The Razorbacks will be in the Championship’s afternoon session, which will take place at 1 p.m. CT at the Gwinnett Center Arena.

Arkansas, who is the sixth seed in the eight-team field, will compete against No. 9 Georgia, No. 25 Kentucky and Missouri in the afternoon session. The Razorbacks will compete in an uneven bars, balance beam, floor exercise and vault rotation on Saturday.

No. 2 Florida, No. 3 LSU, No. 5 Alabama and No. 8 Auburn will take part in the evening session. For tickets to the SEC Gymnastics Championship, click the link here.

Both sessions of the SEC Gymnastics Championship will be webcast live on the SEC Network+ via the WatchESPN App and ESPN3.com.

Last Time Out
Arkansas ended the regular season by posting a 195.900 at home against No. 8 UCLA. Freshman Paige Zaziski had a career night, as she tied the program record on the uneven bars with a 9.950, while also establishing the freshman record in the event. Zaziski also captured a pair of event titles (UB, AA) and set three career-best (UB, FX, AA) on the night.

Regional Qualifying Score
The fourth Regional Qualifying Score of the 2015 season came out this week, and the Razorbacks dropped two spots to No. 18 with a 196.275. The RQS is used to determine which 36 teams will qualify for the 2015 NCAA Regional. The top 18 teams will be assigned to specific locations throughout the nation, while the remaining 18 will compete within their respective region.

SEC Championship
The Razorbacks will be competing in its 13th SEC Championship in program history. Arkansas is 17-57 all-time at the conference championship and has posted an average score of 195.046. The team posted its best finish in 2011 by placing fourth and scored a program-best at the SEC Championship the following year, scoring a 196.400. Last season, the Razorbacks placed seventh in the eight team field by scoring a 194.900.

SEC Regular Season
Arkansas went 2-5 in conference play during the regular season. Of the two victories, one came against defending SEC Champion, Alabama, as the Razorbacks defeated the Crimson Tide, 196.375-196.125, in the 2015 home opener. Arkansas was able to capitalize on three Alabama falls on the beam by using a program-best performance on the floor exercise to capture the come-from-behind victory.

Competing In The Afternoon
For the third-straight season, Arkansas will compete in the Afternoon Session of the SEC Champion-ship. The Razorbacks earned the sixth seed in the Championship, by boasting a 196.275 RQS. Seeding for the SEC Championship is determined by the RQS.

SEC Championship Past
Though the program started just 13 years ago, Arkansas has had a couple of SEC Champions come through the program. Back in 2009, Casey Jo Magee won the program’s first-ever SEC Championship, as she won the balance beam. Three years later, Jaime Pisani joined Magee as she also captured a victory on the beam during the 2012 season.

Event Rankings
Arkansas ranks inside the top-20 of the RQS in three events. The Razorbacks are currently tied for 13th on the floor (49.240), 15th on the vault (49.260) and 19th on the uneven bars (49.095). The balance beam team is ranked 40th nationally with a 48.695.

A Top-25 Gymnast
Sophomore Amanda Wellick currently ranks inside the top-25 in the RQS in three events. She is tied for 11h in the vault with an RQS of 9.920. She is also 13th in the all-around with a 39.400 and tied for 22nd in the floor exercise with a 9.900.

Record-Tying Performance
Freshman Paige Zaziski tied to program record for best score on the uneven bars last Friday against UCLA by scoring a 9.950. She is now tied with Emily Peacock and Jaime Pisani atop of the school’s uneven bars scores. The score not only tied the program’s best ever score in the event, but it set the freshman record on the uneven bars.

A Record-Breaking SEC Freshman of the Week
Paige Zaziski captured her third SEC Freshman of the Week honor this week, becoming the first gymnast in Arkansas history to win three SEC Freshman of the Week honors. This week’s honor snaps a tie with former All-American, and current assistant coach, Jaime Pisani, who won a pair of rookie honors back in 2009.

Zaziski Sets Three Career Best
Last Friday, freshman Paige Zaziski recorded three career-best scores against No. 8 UCLA. The fresh-man posted a 9.950 on the uneven bars, a 9.825 on the floor exercise and a 39.450 in the all-around. The scores in the UB and AA allowed her to win a pair of event titles on the night. She now has seven event titles this season.

Wellick Dominance
Sophomore Amanda Wellick has been racking up the event titles in a rapid pace this season, as she has won 14 event titles through 10 meets this season. The Wheaton, Illinois, native has captured five vault and all-around titles and four floor exercise crowns.

She’s Also Vaulting Hard
Wellick is on a remarkable streak over the past six meets, as she has scored a 9.900-or-higher on the vault. Last week, the sophomore posted a 9.900 at No. 10 Georgia. Wellick has averaged 9.910 on the vault and has won five event titles.

A Strong Vault Duo
Sophomore Amanda Wellick and freshman Paige Zaziski have sparked the Arkansas vault rotation to a No. 13 ranking in the nation. Welllick, who performs from the anchor spot is currently tied for 11th in the nation with an average score of 9.920, while Zaziski is ranked 43rd with a 9.885. The pair have post-ed a 9.850-plus score in 18 of their combined 20 routines this season, and have twice scored a 9.9 or better in the same meet.

For more information on the Arkansas women’s gymnastics team, follow @RazorbackGym on Twitter.