LSU went to the final rotation this past Friday night against No. 1-ranked Oklahoma trailing in the meet by a scant 0.075 points.
By the time the Tigers got to the fourth spot in their floor rotation, sophomore Amari Drayton's spot, LSU was in position to pull off the comeback.
Drayton put them there.
A dazzling routine that drew a 10.0 score from one judge and got a 9.95 overall, a season- and career-high mark, gave Aleah Finnegan in the next spot the opportunity to clinch the emotional victory with a 9.80. Haleigh Bryant got another 9.95 in the anchor spot, tying Drayton, LSU freshman Kailin Chio and two OU gymnasts for first place, but the Tigers didn't need her score to win the dual meet.
That LSU had that luxury was in large part thanks to Drayton, a sophomore from Spring, Texas, just outside Houston who embodies both the present flair and future greatness of the LSU program when seniors like Bryant and Finnegan depart the floor after this season.
"I've never gotten a 10 in my life," Drayton said. "I was so excited (for the one judge's score). Having the potential to get a perfect score makes me want to work harder, work in and out of the gym every day to stay with the same mindset."
LSU coach Jay Clark has frequently sung Drayton's praises in her two years with the team, her talent as well as her positive attitude. She was also the Tigers' alternate Friday on balance beam but isn't training now for uneven bars because of a shoulder problem.
"She's explosive," Clark said. "She's expressive. She shows her routines well. Everything she does is big and has tremendous amplitude.
"Then you've got that personality. She's got this infectious laugh and smile. I can see her continuing to grow and be a fan favorite. She's got it all. She's a total package."
Drayton will try to help the No. 3-ranked Tigers come home with a victory from No. 9 Kentucky on Friday night in Lexington. First vault is set for 6 p.m. on the SEC Network.
It's been a controversial, or at least confusing, week for LSU.
Despite beating No. 1 Oklahoma in the program's first No. 1 versus No. 2 showdown since 2021, an achievement that would boost a team to the top rung in most sports, the Tigers instead slipped to No. 3 in this week's national rankings.
The reason: NQS: National Qualifying Score. At this point in the season, women's collegiate teams are ranked taking only their top six scores (including a minimum of three road scores) into account, eliminating the top score and averaging the other five. On that basis, LSU's season average actually improved from 197.400 to 197.420, but the Tigers still dropped a spot behind UCLA (197.455), which shot up from No. 5.
Part of the mathematics dragging down LSU's NQS is the Tigers' worst performance of the season, a 196.600 on Jan. 24 in a loss at Arkansas.
If LSU can post anything better than a 196.600 at Kentucky, the Tigers' season average will improve as that score will be counted along with LSU's 197.650 in the Sprouts Collegiate Quad meet in Oklahoma City and its 197.300 last time on the road in a win at Alabama.
The whole prospect sounds easier than it has historically been for the Tigers. LSU hasn't won at Kentucky since 2017, including a 197.175-196.575 loss there in two years ago.
Clark said Monday he doesn't care that LSU dropped, at least for now, to No. 3. A more-immediate goal is trying to win a piece of the program's first regular-season title since 2018. The win over OU lifted the Tigers (7-2 overall) into a first-place tie with the Sooners (10-1), both at 4-1.
Clark said he has tried to depressurize his team as much as possible, trying to help them forget (if possible) that they need to win their last three SEC meets at UK, against Georgia and at Auburn to insure they capture at least a piece of the SEC regular-season title.
"They know enough to know," Clark said. "They're not oblivious to these things, or that there's a regular-season championship that we're competing for. Internally we're trying to de-emphasize it as much as possible. We have to be process-based and performance-based compared to outcome and perception.
"We've got to stay focused on the task at hand. We've got to take the next step as a team and get better."
Every road meet is a challenge, but Drayton said she knows the plan the Tigers need to have.
"We need to adjust to their equipment and their environment as quickly as we can," Drayton said.
SEC standings
Team SEC Pct. Overall Pct. NQS
Oklahoma 4-1 .800 10-1 .909 197.730
LSU 4-1 .800 7-2 .778 197.420
Florida 2-2 .500 7-2 .778 197.190
Missouri 2-2 .500 10-3 .769 196.995
Kentucky 2-2 .500 5-3 .625 196.950
Auburn 2-2 .500 9-3 .750 196.785
Georgia 2-2 .500 4-4 .500 196.745
Arkansas 2-3 .400 4-6 .400 196.630
Alabama 0-5 .000 3-5 .375 196.535
Last week's results
Friday's results
LSU 198.050, Oklahoma 197.675
Georgia 197.125, Arkansas 197.050
Kentucky 197.175, Temple 194.200
Missouri 197.150, Alabama 196.675, Illinois 196.225, Iowa 195.000
Florida 197.675, Auburn 196.825
Friday's schedule
LSU at Kentucky, 6 p.m. (SEC Network)
Georgia at Missouri, 7 p.m. (SECNetwork+)
Auburn at Alabama, 7:30 p.m. (SEC Network)
Arkansas vs. Arizona, Oregon State, Southeast Missouri, 7:30 p.m.
Florida at Oklahoma 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
#-Metroplex Challenge, Fort Worth, Texas
All times Central