against Stanford. Goodnight from Pete Maravich Assembly Center, where the Tide tallies another victory, 196.425, to the Tigers' 195.850. Roll Tide everybody!

WVUA radio crew. Erin did a terrific job on the balance beam and is becoming a leader on this event, just in time for post-season. Terin Humphrey kicked up her performance on all four events tonight, throwing all the difficulty on her floor and adding difficulty in her beam routine tonight with a round off to 1 1/2 twist dismount. This final routine was critical in sealing the deal for the competition victory tonight. What great leadership.

against the Stanford Cardinal. Bama won this meet last year at The Farm in Palo Alto but it will be more difficult this year as they have Liz Tricase back in three events and Tabitha Yim is also expected to go all around for them. So we need a huge, preferably sell out crowd to welcome the team back and pump them on to victory. Bama is now 12-1 on the year, with two tough meets to go. Don't forget also that Senior Night will be coming up on the 17th, St. Patrick's Day. What a great way to send our fabulous seniors out in style if we could hit 15,000 again.

Bama 196.425
LSU 195.850

1st Terin Humphrey
2nd April Burkholder
3rd Kelly Phelan

Vault: 3rd Ashley Miles, 2nd Dana Filetti, 1st Emily Ellis
Bars: 3rd Terin Humphrey, Nicki Butler and Lisa Rennie, 1st Melanie Banville
Beam: 1st Brittany Magee, Terin Humphrey, April Burkholder
Floor: 3rd Brittany Magee, 1st Terin Humphrey and April Burkholder

Burkholder, who comes in at 39.400.

final total of 49.05 on this event, 196.425 team final score to LSU's 195.85. LSU had a 49.200 on the floor.

back to balance. New music for her this year. 2 1/2 to punch layout for her second pass. Two passes back to back at the end, finishing with another double tuck. The crowd thinks it's a 10 but no way say the judges. They throw her a 9.925. Nice difficulty but the form was not there on several of the transition moves. That was the score we thought belonged to Melanie Banville.

She completes the opening mount named after her and has a balance check on the flight series, third element but nails the punch front and the switch leap to wolf and the Omeliantchik. She also nails the round off to 1 1/2 twist dismount, new for her this week. Way to go sophomore! Bama has this one in the bag.

a 2 1/2 punch front and a double pike to open. Finishes with front tumbling.

element and she falls. A few more bobbles on the leap series later and she will be deducted accordingly.

would ideally love to drop this score if Martin and Humphrey can score higher. Both are capable of 9.875 or higher.

start value between the judges. We'll see if that score changes.
Mari Bayer is determined! She has some balance checks here and there but keeps moving throughout her flight series, leap series and hops a tiny bit on the gainer back pike dismount.

She opens with a double tuck, nice landing; immediate music change; Rudi in her second pass;

up for Bama. Front aerial, very nice; bhs to layout stepout, perfect as well. Switch leap to straddle, nice height and form this week; switch leap to pike jump, excellent control, height on that pike was at the waist; she dismounts with a bhs to stuck gainer full twist; her teammates engulf her accordingly. Three in the can.

Lauren Klein opens with a double tuck, large step back to balance her landing. She finishes with a front to front full, small step forward. Solid routine.

Flight series of a bhs to layout step-out, perfect. Switch leap to two straddle jumps; punch front, perfect landing; she dismounts with a double front, one step on the landing but she stood it up. Two in the can.

front-front full to front layout, slight leg split mid-air but nice landing; finishes with a front front full to front tuck.

Perfect flight series and the front aerial, on top of her toes; switch leap to wolf, punch front, perfect as well, she is on! Will dismount with a round off to double tuck, one onstep in place. Way to start it off Bama!

balance beam. Bama is at 147.375 and LSU at 146.625. We'll see how consistent the judging stays on both of these final events.

and the team rotate to the balance beam.

Looks like Magee will return to the start of the beam rotation for this week. Terin Humphrey has a new dismount and will move back into the clean up position.

to at least be an agenda to keep the scoring close but it also seems that Alabama continues to run into judges that are taking tenths off where other venues are receiving maybe .025 to .05 at the most. Very frustrating.

protest of the year from Coach Patterson. Honestly folks, we are sitting right in front of the floor and that was Melanie's best routine of the year, packed with difficulty. She did not miss any of her elements in terms of dance requirements either. We just cannot figure out some of the judging this year.

layout stepout onto the beam. The flight series is solid as well, one step back on the landing of the double tuck.

opening pass of the pike full in and the triple turn right after. She follows with a front layout to front full to front layout, very nice. She is selling this routine well and finishes with a double pike, and nails that one too! This one should score very well.

for the Tigers. One handed bhs to bhs to layout stepout. She completes the routine without mishap.

the Tide on floor. More difficulty to follow. She hits the 1/2 in 1/2 out and will follow with a whip-whip-bhs to double pike, nailed it! She finishes with a front through to a double full, awesome landing, super height.

will have to count a fall. Punch front to Korbut shows good difficulty.

mega difficulty of her own. She nails the double front with a huge smile of her own and comes back with a front-front full to front layout, one step forward on the landing to balance it. Nice leap series and she will finish with a double pike, strong ending. Big smile from her.

Rennie receives a 9.775 for her beam routine.

to layout step-out onto the beam. Pike jump to Korbut looks solid. Front aerial to gainer full twist dismount, solid landing.

huge smile, she follows with a 2 1/2 twist to punch front, slight hop on the landing, a little off direction in the corner too. She got her leap series combination in this week and will close with a double pike, nails it. That's what we needed!

flight series, side straddle leap, slight bobble only.

Erin receives a 9.675 for her floor. Bama must do better, starting now with Terin Humphrey. She can be great!

Rightley opens with a super high double pike but takes two large steps back on the landing after hitting several in warm-ups. Alabama must get mentally tough! Second pass looks good and she finishes with a perfect Rudi out of a front handspring, her best of the season. Way to finish.

Bama will open with Erin Rightley after Christina Suhr finishes her opening beam routine. Suhr falls on the third element of her flight series (Korbut).

Cassie Martin stands up her exhibition vault for a 9.725 despite a small step forward on the landing. Omeliantchik is the vault, which is a Yurchenko 1/2 on front pike off.

the stuck landings. Burkholder receives a 9.775 for her bars routine. Rennie will finish.

height in the air. However she only gets a 9.750.

She receives a 9.825.

Butler receives a 9.850 for her bars routine and Filetti a 9.875 for her awesome vault.

She is missing vertical on the handstands but throws a Tkatchev and a toe shoot to the high bar and sticks the double layout chest high.

a small adjustment on the landing as well, which will be deducted.

receive a deduction accordingly. She receives a 9.825 due to tight form and height in the air off the vault table.

Lea receives a 9.775 for her bars and Phelan just fell on her full twisting Tkatchev.

one step forward on the landing.

White receives a 9.725 for her vault. Judging is tight tonight on this event.

on the uneven bars.

White vaults the Yurchenko 1/1, one step on the landing. Nice height and push off the vault table.

pak Salto and a toe shoot to the high bar, full in dismount, low landing forward. She fell on the low bar when she was throwing a clear hip circle and scores a 8.900. Bama has a 49.025 to LSU's 49.075. Bama can make up ground on the vault if they nail those landings.

her vault (Yurchenko 1/1, big step back on the landing).

landing of the double front and receives a 9.675. Terin Humphrey was heading for a big score but takes a step on her landing of the double layout, so that will be deducted. Better job on her handstands this week and a beautiful Khorkina release (no Gienger this week).

Ellis of LSU stuck her Hristakieva vault with excellent form for a 9.95.

Miles receives a 9.825.

Y 1/1 but sticks the landing, bends at the waist to hold it. She receives a 9.825.

and takes two steps back on the landing. Nice form.

Priess receives a 9.700 for her bars routine. Bama must do better than that. Miles is up next and is so far looking good, hitting the Shaposhnikova, the Hindorff and takes one step on the double layout dismount.

Priess encounters trouble on the transition to the low bar and has to change and do a quick switch glide. Takes a hop on the landing of the Arabian double front as well. She missed vertical on the straddle back to handstand, so that will definitely receive a deduction.

but she stands it up and takes a small balancing step on the landing.

First up on the vault for the Tigers will be senior Terin Martinjak. She vaults a front pike 1/2 twist and lands it with a jam (short) and pops it forward on one leg as a result.

Cassie Martin hits her routine (toe on toe off to Tkatchev to pak Salto) and sticks the dismount solid, chest high (full turn to double tuck). One deduction may be due to the rhythm slowing down a little a the end though she appears to have hit all of her major handstands in the process.

LSU is wearing a white, purple and gold streaked leo. The Tide is wearing the crimson leo with the silver wave on the front, continuing along the bodice to the back, with contrasting sheer fabric on the upper bodice and arms with silver sparkles throughout.

tonight, followed by freshman Courtney Priess, senior Ashley Miles, freshman Melanie Banville, senior Dana Filetti and sophomore Terin Humphrey will anchor the event.

The three and a half minute touch will start after the national anthem is played and the flag is saluted.

Vault: Carol Liedtke and Jan Eyman
Bars: Sandy Oldham and Kathy Kuhn
Beam: Sandy Oldham and Jan Eyman
Floor: Carol Liedtke and Kathy Kuhn

are led out by a head cheerleader with the LSU flag.

as well but it's still quite small, which may end up affecting the intensity level of the teams' performances.

by the LSU Pep Band. Lots of '70s music in their repertoire tonight.

Sherine Miles with relatives, Kaitlin White's family, Helen O'Neal, Nancy, Jerry and Abby Delahoussaye, Jean Filetti, and Meredith Laxton too.

as they head out of the arena.

LSU has a small pep band here but the crowd is sparse because of a baseball game going on nearby.

tonight on the beam. Teams are leaving the arena and preparing for the march in.

like Melanie Banville may enter the line-up tonight. O'Neal is having a little trouble on her dismount (double front). The gals overall are showing nice concentration.

For the Crimson Tide, they do not have any significant injuries though Mari Bayer will only perform on beam after spraining a pinky finger this past week. The Tide however has been off two weeks from competition and may be a little rusty. Bama will be throwing more difficulty overall on floor and bars but along with that comes the risk, so they will need to avoid having to count a fall on any event, otherwise it could be a long night.

For the LSU Tigers, they want to put the heat on Bama from the opening event, vault, and finish with a strong floor rotation in front of their hometown fans. They will be without Ashleigh Clare Kearney but Kelly Lea is back on bars and floor after rolling an ankle last week. They have the gymnasts to pull off the victory if Alabama struggles and could take it down to the last routine as well.

Nice double front (tuck) just then from O'Neal. Incredible height also from Erin Rightley on that double pike, ditto for Kaitlin White.

and it looks like she will be second in the floor line-up, Magee in fourth.

floor. Ashley O'Neal will throw the double front (tuck) tonight in the third position on floor.

Rightley, Ashley Miles, Terin Humphrey, Melanie Banville, Brittany Magee and Kaitlin White warm up.

need one just like that Dana in the competition.

The coaches may want to insert Cassie Martin's vault, she's looking terrific after two straight runs (nailed the second one).

Kaitlin White, Brittany Magee, Ashley Miles, Melanie Banville, Dana Filetti, Terin Humphrey and Cassie Martin will be exhibiting her Yurchenko 1/2 on front pike off (Omeliantchik).

Courtney Priess and Dana Filetti, along with Magee exhibiting will be the line-up tonight for the Tide on bars.

The Alabama Crimson Tide will go up against the LSU Bengal Tigers in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in about 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Alabama is warming up on the uneven bars, their first event of the evening, while the Tigers are on the vault. Ashleigh Claire Kearney is warming up on vault but is looking a little rusty, while Lisa Rennie warms up on floor and beam with Christina Suhr under the watchful eye of Coach D-D Breaux.

On the uneven bars Brittany Magee is warming up and will exhibit tonight per David Patterson. Mari Bayer sprained a finger on the vault this week and will go on balance beam only.