AUBURN, Ala. – The No. 5 Auburn gymnastics team will travel to No. 16 Missouri for a Sunday meet, February 19. The two Tiger squads will face off at 5 p.m. CT on SEC Network in the Hearnes Center in Columbia, Missouri.
"It's always hard to compete on the road, especially at Missouri," head coach Jeff Graba said. "They are a quality team that knocks it out of the park at home and they're coming off a top five finish last year at nationals. They are good enough to beat anyone in the country and it's going to be a test for us."
This week's competition is the first on Sunday for the Tigers this season.
"We're taking advantage of the two extra days of rest," Graba said. "We see it as a good opportunity for us to make some lineup changes this Sunday and give others a chance to rest more. We've got a lot of talent on this team, so this is a good time to give others a chance to make a statement."
With NQS coming into play next week, another road score is key for the Tigers.
"We're entering NQS next week and road meets are very important," Graba said. "We have two meets left on the road and it will be a breath of fresh air if we get a good score this Sunday."
POTENTIAL LINEUP
The 2023 Auburn gymnastics squad brings a wealth of experience to the table this season. The tentative lineup features one fifth year, five seniors, two juniors, three sophomores and one freshman.
The Tigers will go bars, vault, floor, and beam as the visiting squad Sunday.
Auburn starts on bars for the first rotation after setting a season-best 49.500 against LSU last week. Sophomore Sunisa Lee is coming off a back-to-back perfect 10.0s and is first nationally with a 9.962.
Joining her in the top eight will be fifth year Derrian Gobourne, seniors Aria Brusch, Adeline Sabados and Cassie Stevens, juniors Olivia Hollingsworth and Gabby McLaughlin and sophomore Sophia Groth.
Groth and Stevens are coming off big scores against LSU last week. Groth tied her career high with a 9.925 and Stevens added a 9.9 for the Tigers.
The team's top eight will remain the same for vault in the second rotation. Gobourne, Stevens and Lee lead the event for the Tigers, all ranking among the top 15 nationally.
Joining the trio in the vault potential lineup is Sabados, Hollingsworth, Groth, sophomore Sara Hubbard and freshman Hannah Hagle. Hollingsworth, Groth and Hubbard have all been in the lineup this season, while Hubbard kicked off the year with a career-best 9.9. Hollingsworth is coming off back-to-back 9.875s for career highs.
Auburn heads to floor for the for the third rotation. The team is coming off a season-high 49.650 from last week.
Gobourne headlines the floor lineup after finishing second nationally and earning two All-America honors in the event last year. She ranks tied for fourth nationally with a 9.946 average and has scored a 9.95 or better four times already this season, including a pair of 9.975s.
Joining Gobourne in the top eight is Brusch, Lee, Stevens, Hollingsworth and Groth. Lee also has two 9.975s on the season, while Groth has a pair of 9.9s to her name this season.
Hollingsworth set a career high vs. the Razorbacks with a 9.9 in the leadoff spot, while Stevens picked up a season best vs. NC State with a 9.925.
Also battling for a spot in the lineup this week will be Hubbard and McLaughlin.
Rotation four will send the squad to beam.
The squad will be led by All-Americans Lee and Groth. Lee is the NCAA champion in the event and has two perfect scores under her belt already this season.
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 senior Morgan Leigh Oldham and Hagle have earned a spot in the top eight.
Stevens has a 9.95 under her belt this year in the event, while Groth and McLaughlin have each earned 9.9s this season.
UP NEXT
Auburn returns to Neville Arena for a rivalry match up against Georgia. The Tigers and the Bulldogs will face off at 6:30 p.m. CT on Friday, February 24. The meet will be broadcast live on SEC Network.
