NEW ORLEANS – The No. 12 Auburn gymnastics team finished strong in the afternoon session of Saturday's SEC championship to place sixth overall with a team score of 196.375.
"I was proud of the girls because we actually got into the mix and started to step it up," Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said. "But we have to start faster than that. These postseason meets, you have to start right away. You have to come out of the gates strong."
Derrian Gobourne made her debut at the SEC championship this year, but you wouldn't have known it by her performance Saturday. The freshman earned All-SEC honors on vault and floor after finishing in the top two on both events in the afternoon session. She was also named to the All-Freshman Team on both events as well as in the all-around where she earned a 39.250.
Goboure, who scored a 9.900 on floor and vault, placed in a tie for third overall on vault.
"I think she handled it fantastic," Graba said. "She gave a little bit away on beam, but boy she was good on the other three events. To come into this – I think it affected most of our girls a little bit – but to be a freshman and handle it like that, that's pretty impressive."
LSU captured its third straight SEC championship with a 197.900, narrowly edging Florida who finished second at 197.750. Alabama (197.350) took home third, followed by Georgia (197.00) and Arkansas (196.475) in fourth and fifth. After Auburn, it was Kentucky (196.225) and Missouri (195.900) rounding out the field.
Next up for Auburn is the NCAA Regionals, and the Tigers will find out where they're headed during Monday's NCAA Selection Show, which airs at 4 p.m. CT on NCAA.com.
Bars: In what was the first event of the meet, Auburn started a little tight on bars. The Tigers, ranked No. 7 nationally coming in, finished with a 49.050. Gobourne highlighted the event with a team-high 9.850, and then it was senior Taylor Krippner with a 9.825. Senior Samantha Cerio and junior Katie Becker each earned a 9.800 while sophomore Drew Watson added a 9.775.
Beam: Senior Abby Milliet, who couldn't compete on bars due to injury, returned to the beam lineup and paced the Tigers with a 9.850. Next it was junior Skyler Sheppard with a 9.825 – her third 9.825 or higher in the last three meets. Watson led off for Auburn with a 9.800, and sophomore Allie Riddle continued to impress on beam, posting a 9.775. As a team, Auburn finished with a 48.950.
Floor: The momentum started to turn for Auburn on floor where Gobourne earned the first 9.900 of the meet and helped the Tigers score a 49.250 on the event. Cerio and junior Emma Slappey each matched their season highs with a 9.875 and 9.850 respectively. Milliet also posted a 9.850 in her first meet back since Elevate, and Sheppard added a 9.775.
Vault: Closing on vault for the first time all season, Auburn finished with a 49.125 on the event. Gobourne once again led the way as she stuck her Yurchenko 1.5 and earned her second 9.900 of the meet. Watson followed with another Yurchenko 1.5 and a 9.850. Then it was junior Gracie Day and sophomore Jada Glenn, who each posted a 9.800 for the Tigers.