Tag: sec gymnastics

Auburn gymnastics checks in at No. 11 in latest ranking by Road to Nationals

The Tigers have another challenging meet ahead of them as they host No. 9 Kentucky on Friday.

After a successful opening weekend in Las Vegas, Auburn gymnastics is nearing a top-10 ranking.

Auburn posted a 196.600 in last weekend’s Mean Girls Super 16 Championships, beating then-No. 5 UCLA in the process. The Tigers’ high score in Saturday’s competition pushes them to No. 11 in this week’s rankings from RoadToNationals.com. Rankings from Road To Nationals are based on average all-around scores every week.

“It’s obviously really early in the season and I’m more interested in how we’re ranked closer to the end,” Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said of the rankings. “However, I think being ranked 11th right now is exciting for such a team that has many new faces and many experienced gymnasts in new positions. It was a great start to the season in Vegas, but we had some work to do as we enter SEC competition.”

This week’s rankings are dominated by SEC squads, as six of the conference’s seven programs reside in the top 25. Missouri, Alabama, and LSU check in at No. 3-5 respectively. Georgia slides into the No. 15 slot this week.

Auburn’s next opponent, Kentucky, checks in at No. 9 this week after scoring 196.775 in their opening weekend meet in Las Vegas. The Wildcats finished second behind No. 1 Oklahoma and finished ahead of No. 14 Michigan State and No. 20 Michigan in a quad meet.

The Tigers square off with Kentucky on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. CT at Neville Arena in Auburn.

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Gymnastics opens season with 196.600 at Mean Girls Super 16 Championships

The No. 17 Tigers open the season by taking down No. 5 UCLA in Las Vegas.

The No. 17 Auburn Gymnastics squad opened the season by scoring 196.600 in its first competition of the season.

Auburn traveled to Las Vegas to compete in the Mean Girls Super 16 Championships on Saturday to take part in a quad match with No. 5 UCLA, No. 7 California, and No. 8 Alabama. The Tigers finished third in the meet, defeating UCLA (196.550) and finished behind Alabama (197.125) and California (196.850).

“Overall, I feel like we just had a really good night,” head coach Jeff Graba said following 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.”

[autotag]Sara Hubbard[/autotag] carried the Tigers on vault by scoring a 9.875. [autotag]Sydney Schumaker[/autotag], [autotag]Julianne Huff[/autotag], and [autotag]Olivia Hollingsworth[/autotag] also scored a 9.8 in the event. On bars, three Tigers reached a 9.9 or better with [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag] earning a 9.925.

Hollingsworth and [autotag]Gabby McLaughlin[/autotag] each scored a 9.850 on beam. Hollingsworth also joined Stevens by scoring a 9.9 on floor to close the meet.

Hollingsworth ended the event with the fourth-highest all-around score with a 39.450. She is expected to be one of the heavy hitters this season following the departures of [autotag]Suni Lee[/autotag] and [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag]. She has trained hard this offseason, and her work paid off in Las Vegas.

“I’ve just been working hard and so I decided just to trust my training this year,” Hollingsworth said Saturday. “I know that I can score well and do my routines really well, so I just trusted myself tonight and it paid off.”

The Tigers open the home slate next Friday against No. 9 Kentucky. The meet begins at 7:30 p.m. CT inside Neville Arena, and will be broadcasted by SEC Network.

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Auburn checks in at No. 17 in WCGA preseason rankings

Auburn, as well as the rest of the SEC, is set to be extremely competitive again in 2024.

Preseason rankings were released Friday and the Auburn Tigers are ranked No. 17 according to the Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association’s poll.

The SEC is set to be a very competitive environment this year, as all eight teams rank in the top 20, and four are ranked in the top 10. The Florida Gators are the conference’s highest squad, checking in at No. 2 in the initial poll.

Without [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag] and [autotag]Sunisa Lee[/autotag] on this year’s roster, Auburn head coach [autotag]Jeff Graba[/autotag] knows that his team will have to perform at a high level each week to achieve their goals for this season.

“The SEC is always very competitive, and this year is no different,” Graba said in a press release. “It will be a tight season once again this year with every conference team in the top 20. It will be a very exciting year and we’re looking forward to getting the season started!”

Despite Lee and Gobourne not returning this year, Auburn returns several key performers such as [autotag]Gabby McLaughlin[/autotag], [autotag]Olivia Hollingsworth[/autotag], [autotag]Sophia Groth[/autotag], and [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag]. Several talented transfers have also joined the roster this offseason, such as [autotag]Anna Hill [/autotag](Temple) and [autotag]Madelynn Crow[/autotag] (Georgia).

Auburn will officially open the season on January 6th at the 2024 Super 16 Challenge in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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Photo Gallery: A look back at Derrian Gobourne’s time at Auburn

“The Queen” had a memorable five-year career on the Plains. Here’s a look back at some of her key moments.

The 2023 season for Auburn Gymnastics was truly an “end of an era” type of season.

Since 2019, Auburn Gymnastics has competed in three NCAA Regionals, and one NCAA National meet. One constant in Auburn’s incredible run has been [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag].

Gobourne arrived on Auburn’s campus in 2019 and has been a staple in the all-around lineup over the last five seasons. She has been a member of the All-SEC team in all five seasons that she has competed for Auburn and has won a national championship, doing so on vault in 2019.

Several other awards that Gobourne earned during her time at Auburn include: WCGA All-America (2020-23), NCAA All-American (2019, 2022), SEC Specialist of the Year (2023), and SEC Co-Specialist of the Year (2019).

Gobourne concluded her collegiate career in Forth Worth, Texas in the 2023 NCAA Championships, competing in the individual floor event. Gobourne’s final performance earned her a 9.9125.

“I was just grateful at the end,” Gobourne said after competing. “Grateful that I had a great career and that I was able to end it like that at nationals.”

RELATED: A look back at Suni Lee’s Auburn career

Re-live the exciting career of Derrian Gobourne by checking out some of the best photos from her time at Auburn:

LSU gymnastics leads SEC in attendance

Baton Rouge showed up in full force to support the Tigers this year.

Baton Rouge loves gymnastics.

With the regular season in the rearview mirror, LSU announced it set a new program record for attendance on its way to leading the SEC.

LSU averaged 12,075 fans per contest. Over 60,000 fans traveled to the PMac throughout the year. The largest crowd came on Jan. 16 when 12,065 fans showed up to watch LSU face Oklahoma.

According to the release, LSU sold over 7,400 season tickets.

LSU faced adversity this year, getting bit by the injury bug, but it finished the year having not lost in six matches.

The Tigers are now preparing for the SEC championship meet in Duluth, GA. LSU will compete in the night session on Saturday after earning a top-four seed. The Tigers will be joined by Alabama, Kentucky and Florida.

LSU will look to unseat the Gators, who are the defending champions.

This was head coach Jay Clark’s third year at the helm after long-time coach D.D Breaux retired.

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Auburn gymnastics ends regular season with 197.600 in win over Penn State

Cassie Stevens and Derrian Gobourne take home multiple event titles in their final meet at Neville Arena.

For seven Auburn seniors, their final meet inside Neville Arena ended in the best way possible.

No. 9 Auburn welcomed Penn State for the regular season finale on Friday night and ended with a 197.600-197.025 win. Not only did the team have to battle the emotions of senior night, but they also had to compete without Suni Lee for the second week in a row. Despite the challenges, head coach Jeff Graba was thrilled about his squad’s performance.

“I thought the girls did a good job of coming in and building off what we’ve tried to work on in practice,” head coach [autotag]Jeff Graba[/autotag] said following Friday’s meet. “This is a hard night, a lot of emotions, and I thought they did a really good job to get through it and get us set up for the next few weeks.”

Auburn ended the first rotation by trailing Penn State but jumped ahead after a solid performance on bars. Four Tigers scored 9.9 or higher on bars, with seniors [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag] and [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag] earning 9.925’s in Auburn’s overall score of 49.525. Gobourne was delighted with her team’s performance on bars and says that it proves just how talented Auburn is at the event.

“With Suni in or out, we’re going to have her back. We’re going to do what we need to do,” Gobourne said. “Showing up the way we did even though we were missing her is really special, and it shows what we can do.”

Auburn continued to separate themselves from the Nittany Lions in their third rotation by scoring 49.250 on the beam. [autotag]Gabby McLaughlin[/autotag] paced the Tigers with a 9.950 and senior [autotag]Aria Brusch[/autotag] closed her home campaign on beam with a 9.900.

Then, in what has become the norm, Auburn closed out the event with a spectacular showing on the floor.

Brusch and [autotag]Sophia Groth[/autotag] scored 9.9 in the first half of the event, which paved the way for [autotag]Olivia Hollingsworth[/autotag] to put on a spectacular show for a team-leading 9.950, which sets a new career high. Seniors Cassie Stevens and Derrian Gobourne ended the meet with 9.9 and 9.875 respectively. Stevens was the all-around winner by recording a 39.525.

“I think we came together as a team tonight, and it was really fun,” Stevens said following her final meet at Neville Arena. “The vibes were different. We were doing it for each other. We were having fun while we were doing it. That’s Auburn gymnastics.”

The regular season has now concluded, and Auburn will now get ready for its next task, the SEC Championships. Auburn will compete for a series of conference crowns next Saturday at Gas South Arena in Duluth, Georgia.

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Auburn gymnastics vs. Penn State: How to watch Friday’s home finale

Eight gymnasts will take part in their final meet at Neville Arena on Friday night.

No. 9 Auburn faces No. 37 Penn State on Friday night at Neville Arena, and if you’re wondering how you can watch the action live, you’ve come to the right place.

Auburn gymnastics will face Penn State to close the regular season on Friday, and it will also be the end of an era as eight members of this year’s roster will compete in front of their home fans for the final time in their Auburn careers.

Senior such as [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag], [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag], [autotag]Aria Brusch[/autotag], and [autotag]Adeline Sabados[/autotag] will take part in one last meet at Neville Arena, while [autotag]Suni Lee[/autotag] will also be recognized despite not competing due to “non-gymnastics health issue.”

Below, you will find key information ahead of the final regular season meet including a how-to-watch guide, gymnasts to watch, and last week’s results.

Suni Lee to miss regular season finale vs. Penn State

Head coach Jeff Graba says that Lee is going through a non-gymnastics health issue.

Gold medal olympian [autotag]Suni Lee[/autotag] was expected to participate in her final meet at Neville Arena on Friday when Auburn takes the floor against Penn State for senior night.

However, Auburn head coach [autotag]Jeff Graba[/autotag] revealed that Lee will not compete in Friday’s meet due to what is being called a “non-gymnastics health issue.”

Here is the official statement that Auburn Gymnastics posted on Twitter.

“Suni is going through a non-gymnastics health issue that has impaired her ability to train. We do not want to put our athletes in any position that could risk their overall health and well-being. With that said, we’ve decided that it is in Suni’s best interest to take Friday’s meet off.”

Lee did not compete in last Saturday’s meet at Kentucky, though no reason was given. In her last meet, Lee won the all-around title by scoring a 39.475 in Auburn’s win over Georgia at Neville Arena on Feb. 24.

Auburn Gymnastics closes the home slate on Friday night with Penn State at 7 p.m. CT. Auburn will honor Lee, as well as seniors [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag], [autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag], [autotag]Aria Brusch[/autotag], [autotag]Morgan Leigh Oldham[/autotag], [autotag]Adeline Sabado[/autotag]s, and [autotag]Anna Sumner[/autotag].

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Cassie Stevens wins all-around title in Auburn’s meet at Kentucky

Stevens’ 9.975 on vault paved the way for the senior to take the meet’s overall high score.

Due to projected inclement storms in the Lexington area on Friday, No. 9 Auburn‘s meet at No. 12 Kentucky had to be pushed to Saturday afternoon.

Despite the slight change in routine, Auburn stayed close to Kentucky until the end, falling to the Wildcats, 197.460-196.450.

Both teams stayed close to one another until the final event.  Kentucky would post a 49.400 on floor, but two scores of 9.300 and 9.275 caused Auburn to have a low score beam, thus propelling Kentucky to an overall win.

“Maybe it will leave a bad taste in our mouth,” head coach [autotag]Jeff Graba[/autotag] said of Saturday’s meet. “We’ve got a week to work on it and get ready to go for Senior Night.”

[autotag]Cassie Stevens[/autotag] won the all-around with an overall score of 39.500, beating out Kentucky’s Raena Worley. Stevens’ best event was the vault, where she scored a 9.975. In her other three events by scoring 9.825 or higher.

“I think it shows what a quality athlete (Stevens) is and the depth of our team,” Graba said. “If we get everybody on the same page like where Cassie is right now, we’re in really good shape.”

[autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag] paced the team on bars with a 9.900, Stevens led on beam with a 9.825, and [autotag]Gabby McLaughlin[/autotag] earned a 9.990 on floor. Auburn sophomore and Olympic gold medalist, [autotag]Suni Lee[/autotag], did not participate in Saturday’s meet.

Auburn will conclude the regular season on Friday by hosting Penn State at 7 p.m. CT. The Nittany Lions squad currently ranks No. 32 in the country by posting an average score of 195.995 per meet.

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Auburn gymnastics posts 197.550 in rivalry win over Georgia

Suni Lee wins the all-around title as Auburn defeats Georgia for the third straight season.

Several starters returned to their usual positions on Friday night in No. 7 Auburn gymnastics’ meet with rival Georgia, who entered the meet as the No. 16 team in the nation.

A strong start by the Tigers on vault and a great finish on floor allowed them to cruise to a strong victory defeating the rival Gymdogs by over a full point, 197.550-196.075.

Auburn kicked off Friday’s meet by scoring 49.450 on vault. [autotag]Derrian Gobourne[/autotag] and [autotag]Sara Hubbard[/autotag] took home the events’ high scores with 9.900. Auburn’s outstanding opening act is a product of a hard week of practice following a short week.

“It is what we set out to do. Our whole week, that is what we have been focusing on, even starting strong in the gym,” [autotag]Olivia Hollingsworth[/autotag] said following Friday’s meet. “It meant a lot to us to achieve that goal that we were working for this week.”

Auburn mirrored their 49.450 vault score on floor. Three athletes reached a 9.90 score or higher, led by Gobourne’s 9.950.

Auburn reached a 197 score for the seventh time in eight meets on Friday, which led Gobourne to reflect on just how far the program has come in her five years on the Plains.

“A few years back, this would be a top score for us. We would be jumping up and down,” Gobourne said Friday. “Just being able to look at the (197.550) score and be like ‘alright, this is an OK night,’ it is inspiring honestly and I am so proud of this team. I’m so grateful and I can not wait to see what it looks like when we put it all together.”

Auburn hits the road for their final SEC meet of the season next Friday when they face No. 12 Kentucky in Lexington. Check out Friday’s results below.