Friday, April 5
Gainesville, FL
7:00 p.m.
University of Georgia
197.425
at
197.925
Florida
Smith Earns All-Around Title, Georgia’s Season Ends at NCAA Regionals
April 05, 2024 | Gymnastics
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Georgia gymnastics team's Lily Smith earned the all-around title in the second round of the NCAA Gainesville Regional, but the GymDogs came just short of advancing, scoring 197.425 on Friday evening inside Exectech Arena at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
Georgia was in second following the second rotation, but Missouri closed out the final two events to overtake second place by just .100. Smith, the SEC Freshman of the Year, finished with an all-around score of 39.675 to share the title with Michigan State's Nikki Smith and capture her fifth all-around title of the year.
Despite the third-place finish, Georgia's 197.425 marked the program's best score in the NCAA Regional round since winning the finals in 2019. Friday night's final score was also just the fourth time since 2020 and third this season the team has finished a meet with an all-around score of at least 197.425 or higher.
"We had a great meet and unfortunately came up short by a slim margin," head coach Courtney Kupets Carter said. "I can't ask for much more. We have a young team and they performed to our standard tonight. I'm disappointed to see the season come to an end but the future is bright for Georgia Gymnastics."
The team opened on beam, where they posted their season-best score of 49.450. Three GymDogs tallied three scores of 9.900 or better, with Naya Howard leading the rotation with a season-best 9.900. She was joined by Anya Turner, also with a 9.900, and Smith's 9.950, which also tied her career-best in the event.
Georgia then moved onto floor, where Smith anchored the lineup and earned a team-best 9.925. Sydney Fitzgerald opened the event with a 9.850, with Amanda Cashman earning the same score. The GymDogs tallied a total of 49.300 and held second place heading into the third rotation.
The Bulldogs then posted a season-high 49.300 on vault, tying the highest the program has scored in the competition since posting a 49.375 at Auburn on Feb. 24, 2023. Georgia finished the event strong, with Howard, Jaydah Battle and Wahl earning scores of 9.900, 9.875 and 9.900 respectively. Howard's 9.900 marked her highest score this season.
In the GymDogs' final event of the season, Smith anchored the bars lineup and shared the event title with Florida's Anya Pilgrim for their scores of 9.975. Howard earned her third 9.900 of the night from the second spot, while Ja' Free Scott and Kate Finnegan each notched a 9.850.
In addition to her SEC Freshman of the Year honors, Smith also was named a Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association Regular Season All-American. The Limerick, Pa. native earned a spot on the second team on bars after finishing the year ranked 10th in the nation for her National Qualifying Score of 9.950. Smith and Turner also earned spots on the All-SEC Freshman and All-SEC teams, where with sophomore Scott joining them as well.
FOLLOW THE GYMDOGS
For all the latest on Georgia gymnastics, follow the team on Twitter (@UGAGymnastics), Instagram (@ugagymnastics), Facebook (Georgia Gymnastics), and keep checking in to georgiadogs.com.
FINAL RESULTS
GEORGIA: 197.425 (VT- 49.300, UB- 49.375, BB- 49.450, FX- 49.300)
FLORIDA: 197.925 (VT- 49.575, UB- 49.300, BB- 49.575, FX- 49.475)
MISSOURI: 197.525 (VT- 49.375, UB- 49.475, BB- 49.375, FX- 49.300)
IOWA STATE: 196.575 (VT- 49.050, UB- 48.975 BB- 49.350, FX- 49.200)
BEAM-
Naya Howard: 9.900
Zora Morgan: 9.800
Jaydah Battle: 9.875
Anya Turner: 9.900
Lily Smith: 9.950
Ja' Free Scott: 9.825
FLOOR-
Sidney Fitzgerald: 9.850
Ashlyn Laclair: 9.750
Amanda Cashman: 9.850
Ady Wahl: 9.800
Holly Snyder: 9.875
Lily Smith: 9.925
VAULT-
Ashlyn La Clair: 9.800
Lily Smith: 9.825
Ja' Free Scott: 9.750
Naya Howard: 9.900
Jaydah Battle: 9.875
Ady Wahl: 9.900
BARS-
Katie Finnegan: 9.850
Naya Howard: 9.900
Ady Wahl: 9.800
Holly Snyder: 9.700
Ja' Free Scott: 9.850
Lily Smith: 9.950
Georgia was in second following the second rotation, but Missouri closed out the final two events to overtake second place by just .100. Smith, the SEC Freshman of the Year, finished with an all-around score of 39.675 to share the title with Michigan State's Nikki Smith and capture her fifth all-around title of the year.
Despite the third-place finish, Georgia's 197.425 marked the program's best score in the NCAA Regional round since winning the finals in 2019. Friday night's final score was also just the fourth time since 2020 and third this season the team has finished a meet with an all-around score of at least 197.425 or higher.
"We had a great meet and unfortunately came up short by a slim margin," head coach Courtney Kupets Carter said. "I can't ask for much more. We have a young team and they performed to our standard tonight. I'm disappointed to see the season come to an end but the future is bright for Georgia Gymnastics."
The team opened on beam, where they posted their season-best score of 49.450. Three GymDogs tallied three scores of 9.900 or better, with Naya Howard leading the rotation with a season-best 9.900. She was joined by Anya Turner, also with a 9.900, and Smith's 9.950, which also tied her career-best in the event.
Georgia then moved onto floor, where Smith anchored the lineup and earned a team-best 9.925. Sydney Fitzgerald opened the event with a 9.850, with Amanda Cashman earning the same score. The GymDogs tallied a total of 49.300 and held second place heading into the third rotation.
The Bulldogs then posted a season-high 49.300 on vault, tying the highest the program has scored in the competition since posting a 49.375 at Auburn on Feb. 24, 2023. Georgia finished the event strong, with Howard, Jaydah Battle and Wahl earning scores of 9.900, 9.875 and 9.900 respectively. Howard's 9.900 marked her highest score this season.
In the GymDogs' final event of the season, Smith anchored the bars lineup and shared the event title with Florida's Anya Pilgrim for their scores of 9.975. Howard earned her third 9.900 of the night from the second spot, while Ja' Free Scott and Kate Finnegan each notched a 9.850.
In addition to her SEC Freshman of the Year honors, Smith also was named a Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association Regular Season All-American. The Limerick, Pa. native earned a spot on the second team on bars after finishing the year ranked 10th in the nation for her National Qualifying Score of 9.950. Smith and Turner also earned spots on the All-SEC Freshman and All-SEC teams, where with sophomore Scott joining them as well.
FOLLOW THE GYMDOGS
For all the latest on Georgia gymnastics, follow the team on Twitter (@UGAGymnastics), Instagram (@ugagymnastics), Facebook (Georgia Gymnastics), and keep checking in to georgiadogs.com.
FINAL RESULTS
GEORGIA: 197.425 (VT- 49.300, UB- 49.375, BB- 49.450, FX- 49.300)
FLORIDA: 197.925 (VT- 49.575, UB- 49.300, BB- 49.575, FX- 49.475)
MISSOURI: 197.525 (VT- 49.375, UB- 49.475, BB- 49.375, FX- 49.300)
IOWA STATE: 196.575 (VT- 49.050, UB- 48.975 BB- 49.350, FX- 49.200)
BEAM-
Naya Howard: 9.900
Zora Morgan: 9.800
Jaydah Battle: 9.875
Anya Turner: 9.900
Lily Smith: 9.950
Ja' Free Scott: 9.825
FLOOR-
Sidney Fitzgerald: 9.850
Ashlyn Laclair: 9.750
Amanda Cashman: 9.850
Ady Wahl: 9.800
Holly Snyder: 9.875
Lily Smith: 9.925
VAULT-
Ashlyn La Clair: 9.800
Lily Smith: 9.825
Ja' Free Scott: 9.750
Naya Howard: 9.900
Jaydah Battle: 9.875
Ady Wahl: 9.900
BARS-
Katie Finnegan: 9.850
Naya Howard: 9.900
Ady Wahl: 9.800
Holly Snyder: 9.700
Ja' Free Scott: 9.850
Lily Smith: 9.950
Players Mentioned
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VT, UB, FX
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