How a boost in bars, vault performances pushed GymDogs to victory over Kentucky

Every gymnastics team in the country has its share of strengths and weaknesses, and the ones who mask those flaws the best are usually the teams holding trophies at the end of the season.

In Feb. 21’s meet at Kentucky, the No. 11 Georgia gymnastics team showed what it can be when it performs well in its weaker areas. The GymDogs posted a season-high score in the vault and a near season-high score in the uneven bars to help post a 197.050 victory over the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats, who scored 196.825.

“A win on the road, an SEC meet and a 197, a lot of great things went into that,” GymDogs head coach Courtney Kupets Carter said following the meet.

Vault is an event that has been a thorn in UGA’s side for parts of the season. The GymDogs scored less than 49 in two of the first four events of the season, including a 48.675 in the season opener.

Since then, Georgia has scored 48.975 or higher in the last four competitions, including the season-high 49.375 score against Kentucky.

One aspect that’s helped UGA increase its vault scores recently is practicing team vaults together in practice. The team made this change three weeks ago, and it has led to increased confidence in practice, which is starting to roll over into the competitions.

“It’s really been helping this team find their groove as a vaulting lineup,” Kupets Carter said.

All five of UGA’s scorers in the vault exceeded their season averages in tonight’s meet, with sophomore Rachael Lukacs leading the way with a season-high 9.925. Freshman Soraya Hawthorne set a new career-high with a 9.9 while senior Sabrina Vega also tied her season-high with a 9.850.

For Vega, her score in the vault was satisfying, as it comes in an event she’s learning to love in her quest to be an all-around gymnast.

After the meet, Vega admitted that the vault is an event she wasn’t totally confident in. To improve that confidence, Vega has been working with assistant coach Jason Vonk, and in a short amount of time, is starting to like the vault more and more.

“A lot of gymnasts have that love-hate relationship with one event, and vault is one of them,” Vega said. “It’s one of those things where my passion was to compete all-around this year and I know I have to do it.”

Vega has improved her vault score by over one-tenth of a point since the Metroplex Challenge on Jan. 25, largely because her increased confidence towards the event.

“If you tell him (Vonk), ‘I don’t like vault,’ Jason, he’s like, ‘I’ll prove you wrong, you’re going to like vault in a couple of weeks,” she said.

Before the GymDogs hit the vault, they posted a 49.2 in the bars to get the meet started on a high note. Junior Marissa Oakley won the event with a season-high 9.925, and all six of the GymDog bar competitors either met or exceeded their season averages.

“I think the whole lineup, it was really good,” Oakley said. “We all built from each other, everyone had really strong routines, it was just such a great way to start off the meet.”

The GymDogs went on to post a 49.225 in the floor exercise and 49.250 on the balance beam to conclude the evening.

“Having a good start on bars and vault, moving into those two events, just built confidence and helped with just being able to do their gymnastics the way they know how without tightening up,” Kupets Carter said.

The overall performance resulted in UGA’s fourth score of at least 197 this season, which includes three in the last four meets.

“This away score, against an SEC team, is going to help keep our momentum next week when we’re against Florida,” Kupets Carter said. “It’s one of the top teams in the country and we’re ready to go after them.”

UGA will next host No. 2 Florida on Feb. 28 at Stegeman Coliseum, with the meet starting at 7 p.m.