Feb. 5, 2010

BATON ROUGE, La. - The No. 1 ranked Alabama Gymnastics team mounted a furious comeback over its last three rotations at the Maravich Assembly Center, but was unable to overcome a pair of falls on its opening event, the uneven bars, losing to No. 12 LSU, 196.475-196.050.

"I've said all along that the competition in the Southeastern Conference is such that you can't afford to have a mistake and expect to win," Alabama head coach Sarah Patterson. "It was apparent from the moment we walked into the arena that LSU was on a mission, and the target was clearly on our back. Their coaching staff remarked that they had not had a great performance this season and tonight they were outstanding and I give credit to them and their coaching staff."

After being led off by senior Morgan Dennis' 9.8 on the uneven bars, freshman Ashley Sledge and junior Kayla Hoffman both had two breaks.

"I thought our ladies were prepared," Patterson said. "I am disappointed in the mental inconsistency of Ashley Sledge's performance. She is hit or miss, while she could be one of the most outstanding bar workers and gymnasts on our team. I will address this personally in her individual workouts this week. She has the capability of being a difference maker on our team.

"Kayla struggled as well and had a fall, but then had a grip failure as well and that is something that should never happen. Again, we will use these things to make us all better."

It was Alabama's first loss of the season, dropping them to 5-1 overall and 3-1 in Southeastern Conference competition while LSU climbs to 4-3, 2-2 in the SEC. Despite the loss, Alabama's total was its fourth consecutive score of 196-plus this season.

"After the uneven bars, I challenged our team to use this evening as if it were the first night of the NCAA Championships where we would have to overcome adversity and perform well on the remaining three events to advance to the national championship," Patterson said. "I thought our comeback was courageous, but unfortunately in the Southeastern Conference you can't give away a point in falls and expect to win."

Senior Morgan Dennis and sophomore Ashley Priess led the Tide in scoring, posting a 39.4 and 39.45, respectively, in the all-around.

"Morgan and Ashley continue to show great leadership on this team and will be key components in leading us forward," Patterson said.

Down by .875 after the first rotation, Alabama finished just .45 behind the Tigers at the end after outscoring the Tigers on the last two events of the meet, the floor exercise and balance beam.

Alabama finished the meet with a season-high 49.3 on the balance beam, led by Priess, who scored a 9.925, and senior Ricki Lebegern, who posted a 9.9 in the leadoff position. On the floor exercise, the Tide posted a 49.325 on the floor exercise led by Dennis' 9.925 and 9.9s from freshman Marissa Gutierrez and sophomore Priess.

"Marissa Gutierrez's performance was a bright spot on the evening," Patterson said. "She performed exceptionally well, tying or bettering her career-best scores on all three of her events. It was also great to get senior Kassi Price out there on the floor exercise."

Led by a 9.9 from Price and a 9.85 from Priess, the Tide totaled 48.275 on the uneven bars. The Tide came back and posted a solid 49.150 on the vault led by sophomore Geralen Stack-Eaton's 9.875.

"We will have to bounce back quickly and this will be a challenge as we take on the Florida Gators, who I consider to be the most talented team in the conference right now," Patterson said. "I urge our fans to continue to support this team and I promise a better performance by our team Friday night."

After two weeks on the road, Alabama returns home to face the No. 3 ranked Florida Gators on Friday, Feb. 12 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available from the Alabama Ticket Office (205.348.2262), located in the lobby of Coleman Coliseum, or online at RollTide.com.