The Alabama gymnastics team finished second at the Southeastern Conference Championships after posting a 196.875 at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla., Saturday.
The meet came down to the wire, with Florida winning the title with a 197.05 while Georgia finished third with a 196.825. LSU was fourth with a 195.750, Auburn was fifth at 195.575, Arkansas was sixth with a 195.275 and Kentucky took seventh with a 194.8.
“This is a great meet, and I think if we don’t use it to make us better, then we’ve really lost,” said Alabama head coach Sarah Patterson. “We weren’t perfect tonight, but I thought some of the comeback things we did were really great.”
Sophomore Ashley Priess made her first SEC title a big one, taking top honors in the all-around with a 39.5. It marks Alabama’s first all-around title since Jeana Rice won the title in 2004. Priess also won the balance beam with a 9.95 and was second on the floor exercise with a 9.9.
“I’m very proud of Ashley and the job she did tonight,” Patterson said.
Senior Morgan Dennis repeated as the SEC vault champion, winning the title for the third year in a row. She has now won six career SEC titles.
In the midst of posting its 20th top-2 finish at the SEC Championships, Alabama also came away with its 100th win over the Auburn Tigers.
Alabama returns to action in two weeks at the NCAA Regional Championships. The Tide will learn where it is headed on Monday when the NCAA announces the seedings.