Hailey Davis (Vicky Graff Photo)
Hailey Davis initially didn’t want to say a lot about the upcoming meet with defending national champion LSU after Kentucky beat Auburn last week.
“We’re all locked in. Our team is so incredibly close and we’re not focused on the other team, we’re focused on each other,” Davis, who won the floor exercise against Auburn, said. “I think you can really tell that in our energy.”
However, she would not deny how big Friday’s meet in Memorial Coliseum against No. 1 LSU will be.
“It’s a big matchup,” Dailey said. “We have the potential to have a really good upset. I hope it is sold out because it is a huge opportunity for us.”
Kentucky coach Tim Garrison expects an “incredible” atmosphere for this matchup. He thinks the environment could be a step up from any previous meet at UK.
“We need to be sharper (to beat LSU). There’s no question about it,” Garrison said after the Auburn win. “We’re gonna need to be sharper.”
Kentucky had some highlight moments against Auburn but also made one major mistake that cost the team momentum even though freshman Chesney Bennett had a strong showing after UK’s previous competitor on beam fell.
“She executed at a high level and who knows, she could be in the same spot a week from tonight,” Garrison said after the Auburn win. “I really like how she handled everything in that pressure packed situation. She stepped up there as a freshman.
“I think we are going to have to be better next week to be able to take down the defending national champions. We did some great things (against Auburn) but we have to do more great things moving forward.”
Garrison said every meet is about preparing for the postseason competition and scoring high enough to be competitive in the biggest meets.
“I have no complaints about our effort but that does not mean we get an A plus,” the coach said.
LSU got an A plus last week when it beat previous No. 1 Oklahoma 198.050-197.675 in front of 13,386 fans, the third largest in program history. The Tigers got season-high scores in vault (49.600) and on floor (49.700). Freshman Kailin Chio claimed her third consecutive all-around title with a 39.725 that included a 9.950 on floor, 9.950 on vault, and 9.9 on uneven bars. It was her 11th event title of the season.
LSU claimed two event titles – graduate student Sierra Ballard won her first beam title of her collegiate career with a 9.95 while three Tigers claimed a share of the floor title with 9.95 scores – senior Haleigh Bryant, sophomore Amari Drayton and Chio.
