No. 4 Arkansas gymnastics soaring to new heights on national stage
It has taken the Arkansas gymnastics team only two meets this season to make its presence known on the national stage, reaching the program’s highest ranking since 2012.
The Gymbacks now find themselves sitting at No. 4 in the country, overall, and also within the Top 10 in all four individual performance apparatuses. They are ranked third on the floor exercise, fifth on the vault, sixth on the beam and ninth on bars.
“We’ve just been working really hard to perform lights-out in all the events,” Hogs’ fifth-year Head Coach Jordyn Wieber said. “Like one of our seniors said, ‘We’re feeling really good, but we’re hungry for more.’ So that is just really descriptive of their feeling, and they know that they can be even better.”
Arkansas opened the season with a home win over Georgia two weeks ago with a total score of 197.150, the highest season-opening score in the program’s 21-year history. They followed that up Friday night with a tie against then-No. 3 Alabama, but posted the highest overall score in program history with a 197.525.
Wieber, a former Olympic gold medalist, has taken the program to new heights since her arrival in 2019. With two more former Olympians on her staff, the foundation for excellence is in place to reach the pinnacle of the sport.
“I think, for us, it’s just continuing to stay into rhythm,” she said. “We just want to get a little bit better in all the areas that we saw deductions, from one meet to the next. That’s our plan moving forward.”
With six of the Top 10 teams in the country currently from the SEC, the schedule does not get any easier for the Gymbacks, who host Auburn on Friday, beginning at 6:45 p.m. inside legendary Barnhill Arena.
“It feels the same every weekend in this conference for gymnastics, because every team is just so strong,” Wieber said. “It can be anybody’s night on any night, so we’re going to continue to just push our own limits.
“Gymnastics is one of those sports that one mistake, one fall, can put one team in front of another, so we’re just going to go in and do our very best to compete and fight, and be the best team that we can be.”
Although Arkansas is fourth nationally as a team, the Gymbacks have just one gymnast in the Top 100, individually, which speaks for the overall balance this team has throughout the lineup. Freshman Priscilla Park is ranked No. 93, individually, with an average score of 38.525.
“I think what makes this team different is their hunger,” Wieber said. “This team is so competitive, and they want to see this program get to a place that it has not been to in a while. That is something that fuels them every day, and I think we are going to continue to see that in competition. Their reaction so far has not been of complacency, but, ‘Let’s continue to grow and get better – we’re hungry for more.’
“I give so much credit to our student athletes because they are the ones working hard every single day, perfecting their routines so that they can go out and perform for these fans and really make the Razorback community really proud,”
The rise of the program also means a rise in national exposure. Arkansas is schedule to be televised on the ESPN flagship network for the first time ever when they face off with No. 8 Florida in Gainesville on Feb. 9.
“We just preach to our athletes to just eliminate any distractions, and just really focus on your job and your gymnastics,” Wieber said. “Blocking out those distractions is a big part of the mental game of our sport. But I think the exposure that gymnastics is getting these days is so exciting.”
She also credits the spirited home crowds for aiding in the growth and success of the program. Arkansas averaged nearly 5,000 in attendance per meet last season, which was seventh, nationally. Despite the treacherous weather two weeks ago, the Gymbacks had 4,552 in attendance for the Georgia meet.
“It just continues to grow and grow every year, as far as support and enthusiasm for our student-athletes. Every year, people show up. They come to our meets and have a great experience. It means the world to us, and the girls, as well.
“They are the ones that are doing the hard part of competing, but every single one will tell you that their favorite thing about being a student-athlete at Arkansas is the fan base. The fans love the athletes, but the athletes also really love the fans.”
