July 10, 2017
Rising sophomore Kendal Moss looks to be a heavy contributor on the bars this season for head coach Jeff Graba and the Tigers. Moss stepped up for the Tigers in 2016 competing in four SEC events with her career-best score of 9.850 versus Arkansas.
Q: What is it like competing with teammate Katie Becker (former teammates on club team) on the team?
A: "We have been best friends since we were 12. We grew up together. We went to the same club gym. Honestly, I couldn't imagine competing without her because we have been through everything together. It's really nice to know that she always has my back, and so do my other teammates, but the bond we have is just different. We looked at a lot of the same schools but we never planned on going together but it just kind of worked out that way."
Q: Why did you choose Auburn over other schools that recruited you?
A: "I chose Auburn because I really love the campus and the coaching staff here is really great. The whole Auburn Family just drew me in. A lot of schools claim to be a family but here I feel like it's just genuine and different."
Q: What are some of the biggest differences between competing in college gymnastics and club gymnastics?
A: "College is definitely more team oriented. Everything you do affects your team in some way, whether it's good or bad. In club, it's really just about yourself. Also, the stage you compete on in college, there's a bunch of people watching. We have 8,000 people come to our meets. In club, it's only like your mom, your grandma and that's about it."
Q: What do you enjoy most about Auburn?
A: "Really just the whole Auburn Family. Everyone is just so nice hereÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬¦southern hospitality. I grew up in North Carolina so we had that there too, but it's just different here."
Q: What are your hobbies outside of gymnastics?
A: "I like watching Netflix, doing yoga and just hanging out with my friends."
Q: How much does yoga help with the gymnastics?
A: "I say it helps a lot with just working flexibility. There are a lot of yoga poses that you don't really get in gymnastics. You would think 'Oh, you're a gymnast, you're flexible, so you would be good at all of it' but there are some things we really cannot do because we don't work those muscles ever."
Q: What are your personal goals for this season?
A: "Definitely to be a main contributor on bars this season for my team. I didn't really have the best season last season, so I just want to come out and show everyone what I can do."
Q: What steps do you and the team have to take to get back on track to where the team was a couple seasons ago?
A: "We're definitely using how we finished last season as motivation, kind of fuel to our fire, because we don't want to end up there again. We're using that to just work extra hard this summer and all throughout preseason to keep us motivated and get back to get where we were."
Q: Do you have any pre-meet rituals or superstitions you must do before competing?
A: "You know, I don't really have any. I do follow like a set schedule. I like everything to be on a time schedule but I don't really have anything I do each and every time."
Q: What are you studying and what would you like to do with your degree?
A: "My major is marketing. I want to do sports management, something in the sports field. I really like the college athletics environment but also professional would be fun too."
Q: If you could travel to any place in the world, where would it be?
A: "Australia. I just see pictures and it's just so nice. And it's so far away."
Q: Did you compete in any others sports when you were going through school?
A: "I played soccer for a few years. Then, I decided I liked gymnastics better."
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