Lexington, KY – In a meet decided by the narrowest of margins, the No. 7 Missouri Tigers secured a historic 196.825–196.800 victory over the No. 25 Kentucky Wildcats on Friday night. The win marked a major milestone for the Mizzou program, as it was their first-ever victory in Lexington against the Wildcats. Entering Historic Memorial Coliseum with momentum from a recent upset over Florida, the Tigers managed to hold off a furious final-rotation charge by Kentucky to escape with the win.

➡️  Kentucky vs Missouri photos

Missouri established an early lead by outperforming the Wildcats on both vault and uneven bars. On the bars, freshman Kimarra Echols continued her standout rookie season, tying her career-high with a 9.950 to share the event title. On vault, redshirt senior Elise Tisler delivered a team-high 9.900, helping the Tigers build a steady cushion at the halfway point. Kentucky, meanwhile, struggled to find their rhythm early, trailing by two-tenths after the first two rotations.

The Wildcats refused to go quietly, fueled by a sensational performance from junior Delaynee Rodriguez. Rodriguez was nearly perfect across multiple events, posting career-high marks of 9.950 on both bars and floor exercise. Her all-around score of 39.500 earned her the individual title and kept Kentucky within striking distance. As the meet moved to the final rotation, Kentucky found themselves trailing by four-tenths, needing a near-flawless floor performance to pull off the comeback.

The final rotation on floor was a showcase of power and precision for the Wildcats. Kentucky posted a season-high 49.400on the event, led by back-to-back 9.950 scores from Rodriguez and Creslyn Brose. The crowd in Lexington reached a fever pitch as Brose anchored the lineup with a routine that left Kentucky needing a perfect 10.0 to overtake Missouri. While the routine was stellar, the judges’ score fell just short of the elusive “perfection,” sealing the victory for the visiting Tigers.

Despite the loss, Kentucky saw significant progress, matching their season-best score on the balance beam (49.200) thanks to career-high 9.900 marks from Chesney Bennett and Gabby Van Frayen. For Missouri, Hannah Horton was instrumental in the clinch, matching her career-best 9.950 on floor to split the event title with the Kentucky duo. The Tigers’ depth proved to be the difference-maker, as they counted scores of 9.800 or higher on every event.

Looking ahead, Missouri (6-3, 2-3 SEC) will step out of conference play to host the Mizzou Quad on February 20. Kentucky (1-7, 1-3 SEC) will look to build on their season-high home score as they head to Fayetteville next Friday for a challenging matchup against No. 8 Arkansas.