No. 14 @MizzouGym Takes on No. 6 Alabama Friday

Friday, January 15

Tuscaloosa, Ala.

6 p.m. CT

University of Missouri

Alabama

1/14/2016 9:20:00 AM | Gymnastics

The Tigers and Crimson Tide compete at 6 p.m. Friday on the SEC Network

COLUMBIA, Mo. - The No. 14 Mizzou gymnastics team travels to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to take on No. 6 Alabama on Friday, Jan. 15 at 6 p.m. CT at Coleman Coliseum. The meet will be aired live on the SEC Network with Bart Conner and Kathy Johnson Clarke calling the action. After a strong opening weekend, the Tigers are ranked 14th in this week's national rankings, the highest ranking for the team since it was ranked 14th on March 5, 2012.

TIGER TIDBITS

The Tigers opened 2016 with a 195.350-195.075 win over No. 15 Illinois on Jan. 8. The score tied the program record for highest opening meet team total in program history. The 2004 squad also opened its season with the same score.
Against the Illini, Mizzou recorded a 49.175 on bars, the team's highest score on the event since midway through the 2014 season. Overall, the Tigers notched nine individual scores of 9.800 or higher, including two apiece from sophomore Shauna Miller and freshman Brooke Kelly.
Miller, sophomore Kennedi Harris and freshman Britney Ward all claimed event titles against the Illini.
Two days later, Mizzou traveled to Lindenwood and notched a 195.200-192.000 win over the Lions.
Freshman Morgan Porter won the all-around with a 39.250 and also claimed the vault (9.825) and bars (9.800) titles. Also earning event wins against Lindenwood were Harris on floor (9.875), Kelly on beam (9.850) and Ward on vault (9.825).
Head Coach Shannon Welker enters his third season at the helm of the Tiger program. Welker led Mizzou to the nation's biggest improvement in 2015, as the squad finished 21st in the national rankings after coming in 41st at the end of the 2014 campaign.
Youth will be served in 2016, as over half (eight) the 15-person roster are freshmen. Additionally, 12 of the team's gymnasts are freshmen or sophomores in 2016.
Welker's Tigers made dramatic strides in 2015. In addition to the rankings bump, Mizzou scored at least 195.000 10 times during the season after reaching the mark just four times combined in 2013 and 2014. The program also scored over 196.000 twice on the season, a feat that had not been accomplished since the 2012 campaign.
Alabama is ranked sixth in the nation and scored a 196.300 in a narrow road loss to UCLA on Sunday.
Gymnastics returns to Mizzou Arena for the second consecutive season when Missouri hosts Georgia on Friday, Jan. 22 in the annual Pink Out.
The Tigers will face a tough schedule once again, with regular season matchups against seven teams ranked in the preseason coaches poll top 10.