AUBURN, Ala. - No. 17 Auburn gymnastics will host No. 9 Kentucky Friday night for the first home meet of the year. The Tigers are coming off a meet in Las Vegas, where they competed against three top-10 teams. They finished third in that meet with a final score of 196.600, but they will look to improve that score against the Wildcats.
"Overall, I feel like we just had a really good night," Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said after the meet. "I'm really happy with the fight that this team showed. We have a lot of new people in new positions, but I really felt like they stayed focused throughout all four events. I think that is going to bode well for the future."
Kentucky leads the all-time series between the two schools with a 10-9 record in the meets. The Wildcats have also won the last two meetings. Like Auburn, Kentucky also began their season in Las Vegas. They competed against three top-15 programs and came in second in their meet with a final score of 196.775.
Similar to the Tigers, the Wildcats have a mix of experienced veterans and talented young gymnasts. Fifth-year senior Raena Worley leads the way for Kentucky. She had a career high on the uneven bars in their first meet, along with having the highest score in each rotation except one.
Freshman Delayne Rodriguez for Kentucky had a good debut in their first match as well, participating in the all-around. With the mix of veterans and young talent, the Wildcats are a formidable opponent, and Auburn will need to perform well to win.
Auburn had its second-highest opening season score last week, but had it faced the Wildcats, it would not have been enough to win against them. The Tigers were strongest on the uneven bars in their first meet, finishing with a score of 49.325. However, the beam was a struggle, and they finished with a 48.975.
"I thought it was a solid start to the season," fifth-year senior Cassie Stevens said. "I thought we definitely had those first-meet jitters, but that's what this meet is for. We're taking what we learn from this and build off of it as we head into the next meets."
The Tigers will no doubt be ready for their first home meet of the year. It will be the last home opener for many of the veterans on the team and the first of many for the freshmen. They will look to build on the positives from the first meet, especially the performance on beam, while also improving in other areas.
The meet will begin at 7:30 p.m. Friday night inside Nevile Arena, and it will also air on the SEC Network.
