AUBURN, Ala. – The No. 5 Auburn gymnastics team takes to the road for it's first Southeastern Conference match up, traveling to No. 2 Florida for a Friday night contest. The Tigers and the Gators will face off at 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPN2 in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
"I love competing at Florida because they have a great environment," head coach Jeff Graba said. "You know what you're walking into with Florida. We're approaching it like another meet because we know we have to control ourselves and withstand the environment by staying in our bubble."
Auburn and Florida finished in a 198.575-198.575 tie the last time the two teams met in the regular season (3/4/22). That score was a record for both programs.
The Tigers are looking forward to building off another program record set last weekend at the Super 16, where the squad earned a 197.350 - an Auburn best in a season opener. That included a 49.500 on vault in the final rotation, tying a program record on the apparatus.
"The better we do on Friday, the better the rest of the season looks," Graba said. "I was really happy with what happened in Las Vegas because that would have been a counting score for us last year. To start like that, it's a big deal. And to build off of it this weekend on the road will only benefit us later in the season."
POTENTIAL LINEUP
The 2023 Auburn gymnastics squad brings a wealth of experience to the table this season as the team lost just two routines from 2022. The tentative lineup features one fifth year, five seniors, two juniors and four sophomores.
Auburn will start on bars in the first rotation. The Tigers return all routines from a 2022 team that finished fifth in the regular season with an NQS of 49.490 and put together a 49.400 in the first meet of 2023.
All-Americans Derrian Gobourne and Sunisa Lee are set to lead the team after going 9.9 and 9.95 in Las Vegas. In addition, Gobourne was national runner-up in the event and Lee was the SEC bars champion.
Senior Cassie Stevens and juniors Olivia Hollingsworth and Gabby McLaughlin are all coming off 9.85s last Saturday. Those scores were career highs for Hollingsworth and McLaughlin.
Sophomore Sophia Groth and seniors Adeline Sabados and Anna Sumner will also bring a wealth of experience in the event.
The Tigers move to vault for rotation two after tying a program record with a 49.500 in Vegas. Gobourne tied a career high last week with a 9.95, while Stevens picked up a 9.925. Lee and classmate Sara Hubbard chipped in 9.9s.
Sophomore Ananda Brown, Groth, Hollingsworth and Sabados will all vie for a spot in the top eight in the event.
Auburn heads to floor for the third rotation and return all but one routine from the previous season. Gobourne headlines the floor lineup after finishing second nationally and earning two All-America honors in the event last year.
Senior Aria Brusch, Lee and Stevens also return from the lineup that was sixth nationally with a 49.500 NQS. Hollingsworth, Hubbard, McLaughlin and Oldham have earned a spot in the top eight as well for the squad.
The Tigers will close out the meet on beam.
The squad will be led by All-Americans Lee and Groth. Lee is the NCAA champion in the event, earning a 10.0 last week in Las Vegas.
Groth is a two-time All-American and All-SEC performer on beam. McLaughlin, Hollingsworth, Stevens and Brusch all return from last year's lineup with big scoring potential, while Oldham and Hubbard have earned a spot in the top eight.
UP NEXT
The Tigers open their home schedule in Neville Arena on Friday, January 20, hosting Arkansas. The two teams will face off at 7:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network.
