Razorbacks place third in Baton Rouge regional semifinal Friday

BATON ROUGE, La. — Arkansas finished third at the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional Second Round Semifinal I, falling to second place finisher Minnesota by 0.125.

Individual qualifiers for the NCAA Championships will be announced following the conclusion of the Regional Final in Baton Rouge.

Semifinal I Team Standings
Utah: 196.800
Minnesota: 196.300
Arkansas: 196.175
BYU: 195.550

First Rotation: Arkansas Bars: 48.900
Arkansas sat in fourth place after the first rotation, with sophomores Hailey Garner and Sarah Shaffer posting scores of 9.800 and 9.825, respectively. Freshman Kennedy Hambrick sat just behind them with a 9.775 as junior Michaela Burton and sophomore Sydney Laird scored a 9.750 each to round out Arkansas’ scorers.

Second Rotation: Arkansas Beam: 49.050
Arkansas made up some ground in the second rotation with 49.050 on the beam for running score of 97.950. Junior Jessica Yamzon led the rotation off with a 9.750. After a fall in the second spot, Arkansas’ final four competitors held strong with little room for error. Freshman Amanda Elswick scored a 9.725 in the third spot that led to three consecutive solid scores from the Razorbacks.

Sophomore Sophia Carter and Burton posted a 9.825 and a 9.850, respectively, in the four and five spots. Garner, making her fifth appearance on the apparatus this season, scored a season high 9.900 as the team’s anchor to lead all Razorbacks on the event.

Third Rotation: Arkansas Floor: 49.175
Arkansas was again in second place after the third rotation with a running score of 147.125. The fifth scorer, Hambrick, tallied a 9.775 as the four other scorers all scored higher than 9.800.

Elswick recorded a 9.850 in the third spot that was followed by a 9.800 from senior Sydney McGlone. Shaffer posted a 9.850 before Carter anchored the rotation with a 9.900. The Regular Season All-American has now produced 10 floor routines of 9.900 or higher this season.

Fourth Rotation: Arkansas Vault: 49.050
Arkansas passed the 49 mark on vault wit four scores over 9.800 from its final four competitors in the rotation. Freshman Savannah Pennese recorded a 9.750 in the second spot as Arkansas’ first scorer in the event. Shaffer recorded a 9.825 that was followed by a 9.850 from Hambrick’s Yurchenko 1.5. McGlone tallied a 9.825 as Elswick anchored the rotation with a 9.800.

Minnesota narrowly beat Arkansas to finish second in the semifinal as Golden Gophers Lexy Ramler and Ivy Lu each posted 9.900’s as the team’s anchors. The scores paved way for Minnesota to drop a low score and beat Arkansas by 0.125 points and advance to tomorrow’s final.