AUBURN, Ala. – The No. 14 Auburn gymnastics team kicks off the 2019 season at home in Auburn Arena, hosting No. 29 Iowa of the Big Ten Conference. The Tigers and the Hawkeyes will face off Friday, Jan. 4, at 7 p.m. CT and the meet will be streamed on SEC Network+.
"I really like our team and where we are right now," head coach Jeff Graba said. "This is one of the first years that we have enough depth and talent to be competitive with anyone in the country. It's going to come down to team culture and the tangibles the team brings to not just the meets, but practice every single day. The team has done a great job to build up a big trust in each other.
"Iowa is typically a strong team that starts each season off really well," Graba added. "I'm expecting them to be hitting on all cylinders when they get here. Friday night is going to be a good opening test for us."
EVENT INFORMATION
Friday's meet is Auburn's annual 'Flip For A Cure' in Auburn Arena. Fans are encouraged to wear pink and pink light-up wristbands will be handed out while supplies last.
In addition, the Tigers will hold an autograph session after the meet is over. The team will be split up into three groups and will be located behind sections 117, 111 and 107.
PARKING INFORMATION
Fans are encouraged to park in the Campus Safety Lot off of Wire Road and Donahue Drive. The location is a quick walk to the main entrance of Auburn Arena. Fans who park in the lot will receive a discounted ticket for the team's meet against No. 4 LSU, Jan. 11.
Free parking is also available in the East Coliseum Lot as well as the Athletics Complex Deck.
AUBURN LINEUP VS. IOWA
Depth and experience is what the Tigers bring to the table in 2019 as the squad didn't lose a single routine from 2018. The tentative lineup for Friday's meet features four seniors, three juniors, four sophomores and one freshman. (Lineups are subject to change prior to the meet).
Picking up where she left off last year in the all-around will be sophomore Drew Watson. The Tyler, Texas, product represented Auburn in the all-around at the 2018 NCAA Championships, finishing 10th with a 39.2875. She advanced to the national meet after setting a career-best 39.425 at the NCAA Salt Lake City Regional.
Auburn will open the evening on vault in rotation one with a lineup that is made up of one freshman, two sophomores, two juniors and one senior. Junior Gracie Day will kick things off in the lead slot, returning as a 2018 All-SEC performer in the event. Senior A'Miracal Phillips follows as one of the top mainstays in the Tiger lineup with junior Katie Becker going third. Sophomore Jada Glenn is slated in the fourth spot, while newcomer Derrian Gobourne follows in fifth. Watson will anchor the talented group and redshirt junior Skyler Sheppard will compete in exhibition.
The second rotation features an experienced group with seniors Taylor Krippner, Samantha Cerio and Abby Milliet leading the way. Cerio is a two-time All-SEC performer in the event as well as a two-time NCAA qualifier.
Watson is set to lead things off on bars with Krippner following. Gobourne and Cerio will go third and fourth with Milliet and Day capping the scoring. Juniors Kendal Moss and Becker are down for exhibition.
The team will move to beam in the third rotation where the squad will feature yet another experienced lineup. Watson will once again lead things off and will be followed by classmate Allie Riddle. The Mobile, Ala., product earned a spot in the lineup in every meet last year as a freshman.
Krippner and Milliet will go in slots three and four, while Skyler Sheppard will make her beam debut as a Tiger in the fifth slot. Milliet returns for her fifth year after securing a spot at the NCAA Championship in the event as an individual. Sophomore Meredith Sylvia will cap the event as anchor after being one of the team's most consistent beam workers last year. Gobourne and sophomore Ashley Smith will compete in exhibition.
The fourth and final rotation will have Auburn go on floor. Sheppard is set to kick things off with Gobourne following. Day, Cerio and Watson are slated next with Milliet anchoring the event. Glenn and Riddle are set to do their routines as exhibition.
SCOUTING IOWA
The Iowa Hawkeyes come to the Plains as the No. 29 team in the preseason coaches' poll. The squad capped the 2018 season at No. 33.
The Hawkeyes return 12 letterwinners from last year, while adding seven freshmen. The team is under the direction of head coach Larissa Libby in her 15th season at the helm of the program.
Senior Nicole Chow and junior Charlotte Sullivan were recently named to the Big Ten Gymnast to Watch List.
UP NEXT
Auburn continues its home swing, hosting two-time defending champion LSU, Jan. 11. The two Tiger teams will face off at 7:30 p.m. CT in Auburn Arena and the meet will be televised live on SEC Network.
