Alabama gymnastics tops Georgia in Power of Pink despite injury to Makarri Doggette
Alabama gymnastics overcame Georgia in the Power of Pink meet Friday night at Coleman Coliseum, 197.475-196.8.
Fans of both the Crimson Tide (4-3, 2-2 SEC) and Georgia (2-5, 0-4) filled the stands, mostly dressed in pink, many with pink shakers. What resulted was one of the loudest home meets this season, with fans cheering for every Alabama routine. They vocalized differences of opinion to the judges when they believed Alabama was slighted on scoring and sang "Rammer Jammer" following the win.
"I definitely felt the energy," senior Shallon Olsen said. "The fans are getting more engaged, everyone's bringing their friends. Let's keep that going next home meet. Honestly, it's amazing."
Alabama coach Dana Duckworth agreed.
"The energy was electric," Duckworth said. "The Power of Pink is powerful. If one person gets inspired by what we did tonight, then we got a win."
Here's what we learned:
Inconsistent start solved quickly
While Olsen got Alabama started with a 9.9 and Jordyn Paradise followed with a respectable 9.85, Shania Adams scored 9.3 to begin an inconsistent streak throughout the rest of the rotation. However, with four 9.9 scores on the uneven parallel bars, the inconsistent vault was a thing of the past.
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Doggette leaves with injury
During her floor exercise routine, Makarri Doggette took a hard fall, leaving her unable to finish. For the only time all night, the otherwise raucous crowd fell silent. Doggette sat up in visible pain and had to be carried to the locker room.
"What we do know is that her Achilles is fine, thank God," Duckworth said. "We will find out what's going on. I'm grateful it's not the Achilles."
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Hudson comes in clutch
The freshman was tasked with getting the Crimson Tide back on track following Doggette's injury, and she performed under pressure. As the next gymnast on the floor after Doggette, Hudson provided a spark that would last the rest of the rotation, scoring 9.95, the first of three straight 9.9 scores for Alabama on the floor to close the meet.
"That routine was for Makarri Doggette, period," said Hudson. "She was on my mind the whole routine. I love her to death. We all hope she's OK."
What's next
Alabama travels to LSU next Friday (8 p.m., SEC Network).
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama gymnastics tops Georgia in Power of Pink meet
