No.14 Auburn will travel to Athens on Friday night to take on No.20 Georgia in the final dual meet of the season. Auburn is fresh off its Senior Night last Friday where it defeated No.13 Missouri, but the meet at Georgia will present a new challenge.
Auburn has struggled in road meets this season. The Tigers are not alone in this, but it is an issue the team hopes to address before the SEC Championships and NCAA Regionals. If they want to have a chance to win championships this year, they must perform well away from the friendly confines of Neville Arena.
"This is good," Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said. "I like going on the road. We're all trying to embrace the fact that the opportunity is all ahead of us."
Auburn will have two things working for it when it heads to Athens on Friday. One, the Tigers are coming off their best road meet of the season two weeks ago against LSU. They scored 197.100 in that meet. Two, Georgia has only won one meet this season and its season-high score is 197.300, a mark Auburn could easily surpass.
Despite the favorable trends, Auburn will need to perform well to defeat the Bulldogs. Auburn's strength is in the final two rotations. Against Missouri, Auburn scored a season-high 49.575 on floor while also scoring a strong 49.325 on beam.
The first two rotations have not been as kind to the Tigers at home or on the road. To take the next step, the Tigers need to start off stronger on bars and vault. In the majority of meets this season including in the previous two, they have fallen behind due to subpar scores on the first two rotations.
"I think we put a lot of pressure on that first event because we know that the first event sets the tone for the rest of the meet, or it can set the tone for the rest of the meet," Auburn gymnast Sophia Groth said. "I think we try to be too perfect too quick and sometimes we need to just settle in and be our average and do our normal."
Luckily for Auburn, it has been able to overcome the slow starts with strong finishes which has allowed it to get a strong final score, but starting stronger could take the team to another level. From here on out the Tigers' focus is on how to become the best they can before the SEC Championships and NCAA Regionals.
"(We are) trying to stay focused on what it's going to take to get us through the tournament more than what's going to get us through Friday," Graba said. "
The first step in improving for the tournament begins Friday night. The meet will begin at 6 p.m. inside Stegman Coliseum and will air on the SEC Network.
