BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Though No. 13 Auburn dropped Saturday's Elevate meet to No. 9 Alabama, there were plenty of positives to take away from the Auburn side. For starters, the Tigers earned a 196.775 – tied for their second-highest score of the season.
But the biggest positive might have come on beam where Auburn posted a 49.550, the second-highest beam score in program history, thanks to a pair of 9.950s from Abby Milliet and Allie Riddle. It was a career high for both gymnasts, who shared the individual title. Sophomore Meredith Sylvia also matched her career high with a 9.925 on beam to close out the event for the Tigers.
"I could not have been able to make that score or make that routine without my team," Riddle said. "We were just on fire step by step by step. It was just incredible to see the camaraderie tonight, and I think that's what the secret was to this great score."
"We've been trying to challenge ourselves to get to beam with pressure on and to do something with it," added head coach Jeff Graba said. "And right before beam started we got together, and I just said 'Hey, this is what you guys keep saying you want. Now let's go get it.' It was nice to see that they actually cut loose and did what they do every day in practice."
Sophomore Drew Watson, who posted a 9.875 on beam, won the all-around title with a 39.400. It's the fifth time this season that Watson has either won or shared the AA title, and between her and teammate Derrian Gobourne, they have won it in nine of the team's 10 meets.
Senior Taylor Krippner also won an individual title with a 9.875 on bars.
"We were significantly better tonight than we were the last few weeks," Graba said. "I feel like we took a big step forward."
Auburn will return home next week for the final home meet of the season. The Tigers will welcome Air Force to town in the last meet before the SEC championships.
Bars
Auburn finished with a 49.175 on Saturday after all six gymnasts earned a 9.800 or higher. Krippner led the way with a 9.875 to win the individual event title – her first of the season. Gobourne stuck her dismount and posted a 9.850. After those two, it was Watson and Gracie Day with a pair of 9.825s, and then a 9.800 from seniors Milliet and Samantha Cerio.
Vault
If there was one event that Auburn would like to have back, it would have been vault where the Tigers scored a 48.850. However, Watson was strong again as the sophomore stuck her Yurchenko 1.5 and earned a team-high 9.875. Krippner served as the anchor and scored a 9.800 on her Yurchenko full. And both Gobourne and Katie Becker added a 9.750.
Floor
Auburn welcomed juniors Emma Slappey and Skyler Sheppard back to the lineup Saturday, and the duo responded with a pair of 9.825s in the first and second spots. Watson followed with another 9.825, and then the scores began to escalate with a 9.850 from Gobourne and a 9.875 from Milliet. The 9.875 was tops for the Tigers, who finished with a 49.200.
Beam
It was a performance to remember for Auburn, who made history with the second-highest score in program history (49.550) on beam. Milliet and Riddle shared the individual title with a score of 9.950 – a career high for both. Sylvia also matched her career high with a 9.925 to close out the event, and Watson and Sheppard earned two of their better scores of the season with a 9.875 and 9.850.