AUBURN, Ala. – There's no denying the importance of Friday's meet. No. 12 Auburn and No. 2 Florida are the only teams still unbeaten in the SEC, and the winner will be in the driver's seat to win the conference as we get closer and closer to the postseason.
But that's not where the focus lies for Auburn. The Tigers simply want to improve from the week before and earn a high score to help better position themselves for the postseason.
"It's important, but it's no more important than any other regular season meet," sophomore Meredith Sylvia said. "We go into this just trying to improve on ourselves. It's a big meet, so there's a lot of excitement around it, but they're all the same importance to us as we try to improve throughout the season.
"The mindset for this one is just another step in the process," added Auburn head coach Jeff Graba. "I feel really good about where the team is right now. We didn't score like we wanted to against Kentucky, but I really feel like the girls competed like we wanted them to compete. They were tougher on themselves. They fought for the little things. I do believe we left some stuff out on the table, but we're going to need to fight from now on."
There's been a lot of talk about this Auburn team "staying in the bubble" this season, and that will be crucial on the road against a Florida team that scored a 198.025 last week at Oklahoma.
That doesn't necessarily mean blocking out the noise. The coaching staff wants the team to embrace the noise and embrace the environment. But they also need to stay locked in and not get distracted by the fans or by the other team's scores.
"I think it's really important just because you don't need to look at anybody else's scores," sophomore Drew Watson said. "We are with ourselves, and I think that we have enough competitiveness within our team that we don't need to look outside at that. So I think it's just important to stay focused within our group and get the best scores that we can within our Auburn gymnastics team. We don't need to look at anyone else's scores."
The meet is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. CT and will be televised on SEC Network.
SCOUTING FLORIDA
Though Florida is coming off a loss at Oklahoma last weekend, the Gators posted a season-high 198.025 and are still No. 2 in the nation behind the Sooners. They have earned a 197.300 or higher in all four meets this season.
Coming into the season, Florida returned four gymnasts with 11 All-America honors earned at last year's NCAA Championships – Alyssa Baumann, Alicia Boren, Rachel Gowey and Amelia Hundley. In total, the Gators have 18 routines back from a team that placed third in the NCAA Super Six last year.
The top performer this year, however, has been freshman Trinity Thomas, a member of the current U.S. Senior National Team. Thomas picked up her third SEC Freshman of the Week honor this week after scoring a 39.625 in the all-around against Oklahoma. She currently leads the SEC on bars, beam and floor and is second on all-around with average of 39.613.
INSIDE THE SERIES: FLORIDA
Florida holds a 70-10 advantage in the series. The last time Auburn beat Florida was at home in 2004 when the Tigers posted a 197.000. They also set a new career high on floor with a 49.600 in that same meet.
AUBURN LINEUP
Vault
A'Miracal Phillips
Taylor Krippner
Gracie Day
Derrian Gobourne
Drew Watson
Jada Glenn
Alt: Katie Becker
Bars
Drew Watson
Taylor Krippner
Samantha Cerio
Derrian Gobourne
Abby Milliet
Gracie Day
Alt: Kendal Moss
Beam
Drew Watson
Derrian Gobourne
Skyler Sheppard
Taylor Krippner
Abby Milliet
Meredith Sylvia
Alt: Allie Riddle
Floor
Emma Slappey
Skyler Sheppard
Drew Watson
Derrian Gobourne
Abby Milliet
Gracie Day
Alt: Samantha Cerio
UP NEXT
After back-to-back road trips, Auburn will return home next week to face No. 22 Arkansas on Friday, Feb. 15. It's the final SEC meet inside Auburn Arena and is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. CT.