The No. 9 Kentucky gymnastics team suffered a tough defeat at the hands of Southeastern Conference rival Georgia, with a final score of 196.575-197.225, on Friday at Stegeman Coliseum. This marks the second loss of the 2023 season for Kentucky and their first loss in the SEC.
The night began on the uneven bars, where seniors Kaitlin DeGuzman and Raena Worley held the top marks with scores of 9.850 and 9.875 respectively. Both sophomore Makenzie Wilson and Worley had a 9.825 each on vault, while fifth-year senior Arianna Patterson led Team 49 with a 9.875.
In the third rotation, junior Isabella Magnelli set a new season record with her impressive 9.900 performance on the floor. Worley also achieved a 9.900 on the event, with junior Hailey Davis scoring a 9.850.
The last event of the night was the balance beam, where Magnelli and Patterson each set new season highs and career bests. Patterson executed a beautiful 9.950 worthy routine, surpassing her previous best score of 9.925 on the event. Anchoring for the Wildcats, Magnelli followed Patterson’s lead and set her own top score, with a 9.985 in the last competition and a 9.925.
Kentucky and Georgia now hold a 1-13 all-time series record, with the only Wildcat victory coming last season where they came out on top of a quad meet with Central Michigan, Illinois, and UGA, 197.450.
The Wildcats will be back in Lexington on January 27th for their first home meet of 2023 in Memorial Coliseum. They will host the No. 11 Alabama team for a 7:30 p.m. EST meet. Single-meet tickets to all five Kentucky gymnastics home meets are now on sale through the UK Athletics Ticket Office. UK students may attend meets for free following the presentation of a valid UK Student ID upon entry.
