No. 12 Auburn Hosts No. 6 Alabama in Home Finale Friday

Feb. 21, 2018

No. 12 Auburn vs. No. 6 Alabama

• Promotions
• Meet Notes
• Watch ESPN
• Location

MEET

AUBURN, Ala. ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" The No. 12 Auburn gymnastics caps its home slate Friday, hosting rival and No. 6 Alabama in Auburn Arena. The Tigers and the Crimson Tide will face off at 7:30 p.m. CT and the meet will be televised on SEC Network.

"This Alabama team is as talented as they always are and will be coming in here ready to get back on their winning streak in Auburn Arena," head coach Jeff Graba said. "My goal is that we come out and keep our focus because it is going to be a full house with a lot of energy."

PROMOTIONS
Friday's meet will be the team's All Auburn, All Orange contest where all fans attending are encouraged to wear orange. Light show wristbands will be handed out while supplies last!

In addition, Friday will serve as the team's senior night. The squad will recognize its two senior student-athletes ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" Kennedy Finister and Cara Stricklin ÃÆ'Æ'¢ÃƒÆ'¢'¬" as well as the three student managers prior to the meet.

PARKING INFORMATION
Reserved Parking is available in the Auburn Arena Parking Lot on a first-come, first-served basis beginning at 3:30 p.m. CT for the following:

• Ticket holders with a valid ticket to that night's meet
• Tigers Unlimited members with a valid membership card
• Individuals possessing a meet credential

Public parking is available at the following locations:

• Donahue Dr. and War Eagle Way Parking Lot (X Lot)
• Coliseum Lot
• Stadium Parking Deck
• Lowder Business Lot
• Biggio Parking Deck (Top level, surface lot ONLY)

Once the arena lot fills up, we encourage fans to park in one of the surrounding lots listed above.

Accessible (ADA) parking is available in the Auburn Arena parking lot (limited spaces available) in addition to select spots in the Donahue Dr. and War Eagle Way Parking Lot (X Lot). To utilize these spots, you will need a state tag or hangtag and a photo ID of the owner of the registered tag. The owner must be present to obtain access to accessible parking.

While general parking is available in the Lowder Hall lot for Auburn Athletic events at Auburn Arena, parking is prohibited in spaces designated for construction personnel. These spaces are immediately adjacent to, and facing, the construction fence of the Graduate School building project. There are signs labeling these spaces and this parking restriction is enforced 24/7, including weekends. Vehicles left in these spots are subject to ticketing and towing.

SHUTTLE SERVICES
Shuttles will be available starting at 5 p.m. from the Donahue Dr. and War Eagle Way Parking Lot (X Lot).

SCOUTING ALABAMA
The Alabama Crimson Tide is sixth nationally with an RQS of 196.570. The team is 4-3 overall with a 4-2 mark in Southeastern Conference meets.

Alabama is coming off a 196.925 win at home vs. Kentucky last week, putting together season-best vault and bars scores.

Seniors Nickie Guerrero and Kiana Winston have been the leaders in competition for the Crimson Tide. Guerrero is second in the SEC on vault with a 9.880 RQS, while Winston is fourth on bars at 9.9. The pair have also been successful on beam with Guerrero coming in tied for 11th at 9.855 and Winston 13th at 9.85. Guerrero is also tied for 11th on floor, having a 9.855 RQS.

AUBURN/ALABAMA SERIES HISTORY
The Crimson Tide have held the upper hand throughout the entire series and stands at 121-10 overall vs. the Tigers.

The last time Alabama visited Auburn Arena (Feb. 12, 2016), Auburn snapped a Tide winning streak that dated back to 1979. The Tigers edged the visitors, 197.275-197.250 in front of a sellout crowd.

AUBURN LINEUP VS. ALABAMA
The Auburn lineup is full of youth against Alabama as 17 of the 24 routines will come from five freshmen and three sophomores.

Freshman Drew Watson will get her fourth start the all-around after picking up the first title of her career in the event last week vs. Rutgers.

The Tigers begin the evening on vault and are led by sophomore Gracie Day and freshmen Jada Glenn and Watson. The trio are capable of putting together three-straight 10.0 vaults for the squad. Day has captured three event titles this year and is among the nation's best with a 9.865 RQS. Watson and Glenn have each reached a 9.9 in the event this season. Sophomore Katie Becker will lead off the event with juniors A'Miracal Phillips and Taylor Krippner following.

Auburn moves on to bars for rotation two with Becker once again leading off. The Boone, N.C., product earned a career-best 9.85 at TWU and followed with a 9.825 against Rutgers last week. Watson and Krippner will follow with bars specialist Kendal Moss going fourth. Redshirt junior Abby Milliet is slated to fifth and picked up her first title in the event this season last week vs. Rutgers with a 9.9. Day will anchor for Auburn.

Rotation three is beam where five of six Tigers are among the Top 25 in the Central Region. Freshman Allie Riddle will lead off once again with Watson going second and classmate Meredith Sylvia going third. Riddle and Sylvia are 14th and 17th, respectively, in the region. Redshirt sophomore Emma Slappey follows, while Milliet and Krippner will close out the rotation. Milliet is among the nation's best in the event, ranking tied for fourth overall with a 9.9 RQS.

AU will feature a youthful floor squad with three freshmen, two sophomores, and one junior. Freshman Ashley Smith leads off for the ninth-straight meet and will be followed by Glenn and Watson. Slappey and Day will follow and Milliet will anchor. Milliet's 9.885 RQS is tied for 13th nationally.

UP NEXT
Auburn travels to Baton Rouge for a Sunday afternoon tilt vs. No. 2 LSU. The two Tiger teams will go head-to-head, March 4, at 2:30 p.m. CT in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center and the meet will be broadcast live on SEC Network.

For the latest on Auburn gymnastics, follow @AuburnGym on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AuburnGym.