2023 SEC Gymnastics Awards Announced

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (March 22, 2023) – The Southeastern Conference announced its annual gymnastics awards, selected by the head coaches from each institution, for the 2023 season.

Trinity Thomas of Florida was selected as SEC Gymnast of the Year, and Derrian Gobourne of Auburn was named Event Specialist of the Year. Florida’s Kayla DiCello was selected as Freshman of the Year, and Kentucky’s Tim Garrison was named SEC Coach of the Year.

Thomas is the second gymnast in conference history to be named SEC Gymnast of the Year three times (Andreé Pickens of Alabama – 2000, 2001 and 2002) after earning the award in 2020 and 2022. He is one of three gymnasts in the country. earned a maximum of five 2023 Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) All-America honors. Thomas posted a total of 39.800 in the conference championship competition this season as he defended his all-around title. She is one of two gymnasts in league history to record two 10.0s during a single SEC Championship when she defended her floor exercise title with a 10.0 and completed the 2023 Season Slam with a 10.0 on the uneven bars. Thomas has recorded seven 10.0s this season to tie the nation’s high mark and 27 10.0s for his career, one behind the all-time collegiate leader. A finalist for the AAI Award, she led Florida with 28 event wins (9 floor, 7 bars, 5 all-around, 4 vault and 3 beam) and holds the program’s career event title record with 141.

Gobourne is the first gymnast in conference history to be named Event Specialist of the Year three times since creating the award in 2014. This season, she was named Specialist of the Week twice (Feb. 14 and 28) after helping the Tigers. for a pair of conference wins. Gobourne has competed on vault, bars and floor for the Tigers this season, and the squad has accounted for all 33 of her scores. She has recorded seven scores of 9.9 or better on floor, including a pair of 9.975s. Gobourne has also registered five scores of 9.9 or better on bars, including a season-best 9.95. She set a career best on vault with a score of 9.95 earlier in the season and had nine scores of 9.875 or better on the event. Gobourne has won two floor and two bars titles as well as one vault crown this season.

In her rookie campaign, DiCello earned three 2023 WCGA regular-season All-America Second-Team honors (around, uneven bars and balance beam). At the 2023 SEC Championships, she placed second on the balance beam and floor exercise with a score of 9.95, and she was the top freshman with a score of 39.600, good for sixth place. DiCello was the first rookie in the nation this season to record 10.0, recording a perfect score on the uneven bar February 10 vs. Missouri. He set the league record for the number (8) and consecutive (6) SEC Freshman of the Week. DiCello was also named SEC Specialist of the Week on January 17th. DiCello’s all-around score of 39.750 is the second-best among freshmen this season, and he has now won seven events (bars). [3]beam [2]all-around and floor [1]).

In his 12th season as head coach of the Wildcats, Garrison led his team to the program’s highest team score at the SEC Championships with 197.675, good for fourth place at the 2023 SEC Championships. while the No. 3 seed entering the championship is the highest in program history. The Wildcats previously finished in the slot three times (1996, 2018 and 2021). Kentucky received the No. 9 seed in the 2023 NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Championships and will compete in the Norman Regional, hosted by the University of Oklahoma, against No. 8 Alabama, Illinois and Iowa in the second round on March 30.

The All-SEC Team consists of the student-athletes with the top two scores (including ties) in each event and in the All-Around competition in the first session and second session of the SEC Championships. The All-Freshman Team consists of the freshman athlete with the highest score (including ties) in each event in the first session of the SEC Championships and the freshman athlete with the highest score (including ties) in each event in the second session of the Championship. The All-Freshman Team also includes the freshman athlete with the top two scores (including ties) in each Championship session.

2023 SEC Gymnastics Awards

Gymnastics of the Year	Trinity Thomas, Florida
Event Specialist of the Year	Derrian Gobourne, Auburn
Freshman of the Year	Kayla DiCello, Florida
Coach of the Year	Tim Garrison, Kentucky

All-SEC

Louise White, Alabama
Gabby Gladieux, Alabama
Lilly Hudson, Alabama
Shallon Olsen, Alabama
Norah Flatley, Arkansas
Frankie Price, Arkansas
Cami Weaver, Arkansas
Lauren Williams, Arkansas
Aria Brusch, Auburn
Derrian Gobourne, Auburn
Olivia Hollingsworth, Auburn
Gabby McLaughlin, Auburn
Cassie Stevens, Auburn
Sloane Blakely, Florida
Kayla DiCello, Florida
Victoria Nguyen, Florida
Trinity Thomas, Florida
Leanne Wong, Florida
Haley de Jong, Georgia
Vanessa Deniz, Georgia
Soraya Hawthorne, Georgia
Shealyn Luksik, Kentucky
Isabella Magnelli, Kentucky
Haleigh Bryant, LSU
Aleah Finnegan, LSU
Bryce Wilson, LSU
Amari Celestine, Missouri
Helen Hu, Missouri
Jocelyn Moore, Missouri
Sienna Schreiber, Missouri
Alisa Sheremeta, Missouri