No. 11 Auburn Travels to No. 9 Kentucky

Jan. 18, 2017

AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The No. 11 Auburn gymnastics team takes to the road for the first time in 2017, traveling to No. 9 Kentucky for an SEC meet. The Tigers and the Wildcats face off at 6 p.m. CT in Lexington, Jan. 20. The meet will stream live on SEC Network+ from Memorial Coliseum.

There is no better place to grow as a team than on the road," head coach Jeff Graba said. "The distractions are less and there is more time set aside to become more of a cohesive unit. Kentucky is a really good team and we are always tested there. They'll have a big crowd and we have to be ready to go."

IN THE RANKINGS
Auburn moved up two spots in this week's RoadToNationals.com rankings and holds the No. 11 slot with a 195.675 average.

"I'm glad our performance Friday night moved us up in the rankings, but I still feel we have a lot of work to do," Jeff Graba said. "We are significantly better than what we've shown so far. We have a very tough road test this weekend. Kentucky ranks in the top 10 and is very experienced. They are always tough at home and our young squad is going to have to be on their game."

Oklahoma reclaimed the top spot in the nation, while LSU is slightly behind at No. 2. Florida, Alabama, and Utah close out the top five. UCLA, Denver, Missouri, Kentucky, and Nebraska all rank in the top 10.

Auburn ranks in the top 20 in all four events, including tied for 12th on bars with a 49.013 average. The Tigers are tied for 13th on floor (48.950), tied for 17th on vault (48.900), and are 18th on beam (48.813).
Following a career-tying score of 9.950 on floor, senior MJ Rott moved up to 15th nationally in the event with a 9.887 average.

SCOUTING KENTUCKY
The Kentucky Wildcats enter Friday's meet as the No. 9 team nationally with a 196.013 average. They moved up in the rankings following a program-best score of 196.800 at Florida last week.

Freshman Mollie Korth picked up SEC Frsehman of the Week honors after capturing the all-around title vs. the Gators with a 39.575. Korth and sophomore Alex Hyland rank in the top 25 nationally with a 9.862 average on bars. Hyland's 9.875 average on beam is tied for 14th.

UP NEXT
Auburn continues its road swing, traveling to No. 3 Florida Friday, Jan. 27. The meet will be televised on SEC Network. Following their tilt with the Gators, the Tigers will then head to Birmingham for the annual Elevate the Stage meet, facing No. 4 Alabama in a non-conference meet, Jan. 29. Tickets are still available for purchase.

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