No. 20 Gym'Backs host No. 2 Gym Dogs Friday

FAYETTEVILLE — Just three weeks into the season the 20th-ranked University of Arkansas gymnastics team is in the thick of things hosting defending national champion and second-ranked Georgia in Barnhill Arena Friday at 7:00 p.m. Arkansas has two big meets, the Super Six Challenge and a road meet at No. 14 Penn State, under its belt but very few teams compare to the talents of Southeastern Conference foe Georgia. The Gym Dogs have won back-to-back national titles and return to silver medalists on this year’s roster. "Georgia has great gymnastics and they have great athletes in the gym," said co-head coach Rene Cook. "They are historically strong and I think they have a great chance of defending their title this year. That being said, we’re excited to face them and see what we can do. Our team loves the challenge of going against the best in the country and it’s great when you can do that in your own gym." The Gym’Backs were a bit nervous opening the season with the Super Six Challenge and the scores reflected the jitters. But Arkansas rebounded with a big road win at No. 14 Penn State in a meet that saw the team settle in and battle through each performance. "We really felt prepared for our first meet physically," said co-head coach Mark Cook, "but there were some jitters. We re-focused and worked on the mental approach last week and that was a big help for last week’s meet." Junior Emily Peacock has been solid in the first two meets of the year picking up an individual win on the floor last week. She is joined by a youthful lineup that has carried a lion’s share of the work load this year. Arkansas had 14 routines from freshmen and sophomores last week and the Gym’Backs expect their youngsters to continue to impact the lineup. "We were better last week (at Penn State) but we still have a lot of little things we need to work on," said Mark Cook. "Some of that is due to the youth of the lineup but everyone is getting better each week. It’s going to be fun to watch the progress of the team this year." The Gym’Backs are hoping for a good home score before facing back-to-back road meets at No. 14 LSU and No. 3 Utah in the coming weeks. For more information about Arkansas gymnastics and for tickets please call the Lady Razorback Ticket Office at 57-LBACK or log on to LADYBACKS.COM.