Jan. 12, 2017
By Jeff Shearer
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. - Nothing like a visit from a Southeastern Conference rival to sharpen everyone's focus.
Auburn's gymnastics teams, ranked No. 13, welcomes No. 30 Georgia to Auburn Arena Friday at 6 p.m.
"They beat us last year to get into the Super Six," Auburn coach Jeff Graba said. "We beat them the year before to get in the Super Six. It's two teams that should finish in the top 10. It's going to be a heck of a matchup."
Both teams are seeking their first win. While Auburn lost at home last week in the season opener, Georgia struggled on beam at LSU, scoring 193.6 in a loss to the Bengal Tigers.
"We've got to be good, but they're going to feel the same pressure," Graba said.
Auburn dropped its first meet to nationally ranked Oregon State, scoring 195.275.
"There's definitely fuel under our belts after last weekend so there's tons of motivation in the gym," said sophomore Taylor Krippner, who scored a career-high 9.825 on beam. "We're trying to keep the energy up in practice like it is a meet, like it will be at Georgia. That's how we're preparing."
Redshirt freshman Emma Slappey scored a 9.7 in her Auburn debut.
"It felt really great to finally get out there and compete," Slappey said. "After sitting out for a year, I had a lot of fuel underneath me to go out there and show everyone what I can do. It was worth all of the hard days in the gym, definitely."
Graba, who said he prefers to start the season on the road because of the bonding experience it creates, was proud of the way his young team battled.
"There was a lot of grit and determination on the team," he said. "Nobody was giving up. It was a tough night. There's a bunch of fighters on the team. There's a bunch of people who are really high-end athletes, but they're obviously raw at times. And very nervous out in front of our fans and in their first collegiate experience meet. For the most part, I thought they did a good job.
Graba is sticking with his plan to develop depth by adjusting Auburn's lineup in the January meets.
"We're going to have to put other people in to give them experience," he said. "I want to see that the team reacts well to that. There are a whole bunch of dynamics when you do that. Somebody has to come out of the lineup, and that's usually somebody who has earned their spot, so they get a little bit frustrated that you pull them out.
"But they've got to keep a team atmosphere about it. So that's a challenge. The other end of the spectrum is usually the people we're putting in are new. So those people actually have to do well. Otherwise, our depth doesn't mean anything. A lot has to happen in the next couple weeks for me to feel comfortable in February that we're going to hit our stride and start scoring our potential."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @jeff_shearer