Gorgia gymnastics needed to fight. The Gym Dogs were stuck in a rut, stuck with intermingling scores of 197 and 195 and a healthy mix of excellence and inconsistency.

Enter Courtney Kupets, the Gym Dogs senior leader. Also enter 15 pairs of boxing gloves, a few pairs of boxing shorts and the “Rocky” theme song, and you get a 198.200, of course.

After a team meeting in which the Gym Dogs talked about the word “fight” embodying their season, as they struggle to find consistency and battle injuries, Kupets went out and bought 15 of boxing gloves. And her team fought Saturday afternoon.

“It was something that we needed to get going, get those juices flowing, have fun, be excited,” Kupets said. “In a meeting a lot of us said what we thought this team was, and most of the girls just said fight. And what better way to fight than with boxing gloves.”

Said coach Suzanne Yoculan: “I know it’s a gimmick and a lot of people don’t believe in them, but throughout the years those little tangible, visual gimmicks have really helped our team to find the fight and find the focus that they need to reach their potential. And that’s what they did tonight, is really show what this team is capable of doing.”

The boxing gloves are here to stay, Kupets said, not borrowed or taken out on loan.

They’ll be around for the rest of the season, as the Gym Dogs’ fight, and reign at No. 1, looks likely to be.

“We want to fight, and we’re going to fight for Georgia,” she said. “Not against any other team, this is about what we want to fight for. We want to fight for ourselves, fight for our teammates.”

“You’ve got to hand it to her. She’s definitely learned a few things from this old coach,” Yoculan said.

“I love it. The leadership that makes the most difference with the team is when it comes from within and it comes from the players . Most of the times when we’ve been a 198 team all I’ve had to do is turn the lights on.”