2016 AUBURN GYMNASTICS. Kentucky. Jan. 15, p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Auburn Arena

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1 AUBURN ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS: 392 SOUTH DONAHUE DRIVE AUBURN, AL GYMNASTICS SCHEDULE 1-0, 0-0 SEC Date Opponent Time (CT)/Result Jan. 10 at Oregon State W, Jan. 15 Kentucky* 7 p.m. Jan. 17 vs. Alabama# 3 p.m. Jan. 22 Florida* 7:30 p.m. Jan. 29 at Arkansas* 7:30 p.m. Feb. 5 at TWU 7 p.m. Feb. 12 Alabama* 7:30 p.m. Feb. 19 at LSU* 7:30 p.m. Feb. 26 Missouri* 7 p.m. Mar. 4 at Georgia* 6 p.m. Mar. 11 Arizona State 7 p.m. Mar. 19 SEC Championships TBA Apr. 2 NCAA Regionals TBA Apr NCAA Championships TBA * -- SEC meets # -- Elevate Meet at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex COACHING STAFF Head Coach... Jeff Graba (Sixth Season) Assistant Coach...Kurt Hettinger (Eighth Season) Assistant Coach... Mary McDaniel (First Season) Director of Operations... Dawn Schueller (Fifth Season) Athletics Trainer... Janet Taylor (11th Season) TV: SEC Network + Play-by-Play... Jeff Shearer Analyst... Megan Walker Online:... 2MEET Kentucky Jan. 15, p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Auburn Arena Site... Auburn Arena TV...SEC Network +/Watch ESPN Live Stats... Auburn.Statbroadcast.com Twitter...@Auburn_Gym Last Meeting...3/21/2015 (AU W, ) Tigers open conference slate vs. Kentucky Auburn hosts it first meet of the season on Jan. 15 against No. 21 Kentucky at 7 p.m. The Tigers are coming off its season opening victory at No. 12 Oregon State, posting the second highest opening score in program history. Movin on up The Tigers jumped three spots in the latest national rankings to No. 7. and are tied with George Washington and Utah with an average score of Auburn ranks tied for fifth nationally on vault with a score of , tied for 14th on bars with a , 10th on beam with a and 11th on floor at Scouting the Wildcats Kentucky kicked off the 2016 season with a win over the Ball State Cardinals. Freshmen contributed early to make up a large part of the narrative, as 17 of UK s 24 spots were taken by freshmen. Sidney Dukes took the All-Around title, scoring a while claiming both the vault and bars titles. Freshman Alex Hyland earned the beam title with a 9.875, while junior Taylor Puryear took the floor title with a AUBURN KENTUCKY VS Rankings...t-7th 2016 Record...1-0, 0-0 (SEC) Head Coach... Jeff Graba Record at AU (6 yrs) Rankings... 21st 2016 Record...1-0, 0-0 (SEC) Head Coach... Tim Garrison Record at UK (5 yrs) SOCIAL: #WAREAGLE Facebook... AUGymnastics AUBURN ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS EVAN ROBERTS... Communications Assistant... evan.roberts@auburn.edu Web... AuburnTigers.com Office Phone...(334) Quick Facts Location... Auburn, Ala. Nickname...Tigers Enrollment...25,469 Colors... Burnt Orange and Navy Blue Conference...Southeastern President... Dr. Jay Gogue Athletic Director...Jay Jacobs Facility... Auburn Arena Last Time against Kentucky Auburn and Kentucky last saw each other at the SEC Championships, where the Tigers won Kentucky won the last dual meet on March 6 last season, , in Lexington, Ky. McDaniel Faces Familiar Foe Assistant coach Mary McDaniel will face the Wildcats for the first time after spending the last four years in Lexington. McDaniel coached the Wildcats on balance beam and coordinated dance routines for floor exercise. She helped Sydney Waltz become UK s first NCAA Chamionships all-around qualfier since 2002 and help recorded two team scores that rank in the top-10 in program history. Tigers top Oregon State to open season The No. 10 Auburn gymnastics team defeated No. 12 Oregon State, , on Jan. 10 at Gill Coliseum. Auburn s score was the second highest total in a season opener in program history. Auburn opened on bars with a total score of , led by sophomore Abby Milliet s Senior Caitlin Atkinson led the Tigers on vault with a while junior MJ Rott and senior Lexus Demers scored a Auburn took a lead following the third rotation after scoring a on floor. Demers scored a team high 9.875, followed by junior Kullen Hlawek s Atkinson, Rott and Kluz scored a The Tigers closed the meet with a score of on beam.

2 Tigers on the SEC Network Four Auburn gymnastics meets will be televised live nationally on the SEC Network this season. The Tigers home matchup with the defending NCAA champions, Florida, will be televised on Jan. 22 at 7:30 p.m. CT, and will be re-aired on ESPN2 Jan. 24 at 6 p.m. CT. On Jan. 29, Auburn s meet at Arkansas will be televised at 7:30 p.m. CT, before the Tigers host Alabama on Feb. 12 at 7:30 p.m. CT. A week later, Auburn will travel to LSU for a 7:30 p.m. CT meet on Feb. 19. Auburn s meet against Missouri and Georgia will be re-aired on the SEC Network on February 29 at 6 p.m. CT and March 7 at 6 p.m. CT, respectively. Record Breakers Auburn finished the 2015 season with 52 broken or tied program records following its incredible run to the Super Six for the first time in 22 years. Six of the top eight team totals in program history were scored this season led by Auburn s all-time highest team total of vs. No. 9 Georgia in the first sellout in history. The Tigers also scored record team totals in the SEC Championship, NCAA Regional, NCAA Semifinal and the NCAA Super Six. Auburn broke its all-time bars score after posting a against No. 12 Arkansas in the first home SEC meet of the season. Three meets later, the Tigers scored a record on vault against No. 2 LSU. MJ Rott tied her own Auburn vault record of against No. 9 Georgia. Auburn averaged 6,188 fans per home meet last season, for a total of 30,940 in attendance over the year. Both are program records and helped Auburn to the fifthhighest average attendance in the nation. All-American Atkinson Senior Caitlin Atkinson earned her second NAGC/W Regular Season All-America honor in all-around last season after breaking the school record with a score of against Alabama in Birmingham on March 8. The Houston, Texas native also earned NCAA All-America honors in beam and allaround, scoring a career high on beam at the NCAA Championship semifinals on April 17. Atkinson won the all-around in the second semifinal with a total of , tying for third overall. SEC STANDINGS as of January 12, 2016 TEAM SEC Pct. Overall Pct. High Missouri Auburn Florida Kentucky LSU Arkansas Alabama Georgia TIGERS IN THE RANKINGS as of January 12, 2016 TEAM EVENT AVG NAT L REG. Vault t-5 2 Bars t-14 3 Beam Floor Team Total INDIVIDUAL RANKS (Top 50 National :: Top 25 Region) GYMNAST EVENT AVG NAT L REG. Caitlin Atkinson A-A t-15th Vault t-1st 1st Beam t-18th Samantha Cerio Bars t-18th Lexus Demers Vault t-37th t-13th Beam t-40th t-10th Floor t-23rd t-7th Emma Engler Vault t-15th Kullen Hlawek Beam t-40th t-10th Floor t-21st Kait Kluz Bars t-18th Taylor Krippner Bars t-11th Abby Milliet Bars t-15th t-4th Beam t-9th t-3rd MJ Rott Vault t-37th t-13th 2016 MEET-BY-MEET RESULTS DATE MEET RESULT VAULT BARS BEAM FLOOR TEAM OPP. I OPP. 2 OPP. 3 1/10 at #12 Oregon State Win /15 #21 Kentucky /17 vs. #6 Alabama /22 Florida / /12 Alabama / /26 Missouri / /11 Arizona State /19 SEC Championships /2 at NCAA Regionals /15-17 at NCAA Championships TEAM AVG Auburn vs. Kentucky January 15, :00 p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Page 2

3 PRONUNCIATION GUIDE Telah Black Samantha Cerio Lexus Demers Kullen Hlawek Kait Kluz Kelsey Kopec Abby Milliet A Miracal Philips MJ Rott Lucia Scaglione Jeff Graba Kurt Hettinger tay-luh sair-ee-oh DUH-merz KULL-IN LAW-ECK KATE CLUES CO-peck MILL-aye uh-miracle WROTE lou-chee-uh scag-lee-oh-knee GRAY-buh HET-ING-GUR TEAM AUBURN PROBABLE LINEUP VAULT 1. Taylor Krippner 2. Emma Engler 3. A Miracal Phillips 4. Lexus Demers 5. MJ Rott 6. Caitlin Atkinson Alt. Kelsey Kopec Exh. Sarah Garcia BARS 1. Kelsey Kopec 2. Taylor Krippner 3. Emma Engler 4. Kait Kluz 5. Abby Milliet 6. Caitlin Atkinson Alt. Samantha Cerio Exh. Samantha Cerio BEAM 1. Kullen Hlawek 2. Taylor Krippner 3. Emma Engler 4. Lexus Demers 5. Abby Milliet 6. Caitlin Atkinson Alt. Samantha Cerio Exh. Samantha Cerio FLOOR 1. Lucia Scaglione 2. Abby Milliet 3. Kait Kluz 4. Kullen Hlawek 5. MJ Rott 6. Lexus Demers Alt. A Miracal Phillips Exh. A Miracal Phillips Jeff Graba Returns Head coach Jeff Graba returns for his sixth season at the helm of the Auburn gymnastics program in In his first five seasons with the program, Graba has recorded a (.420) overall record, giving him the third most registered wins in Auburn gymnastics history. Graba is also a three-time SEC Coach of the Year (2012, 2014, 2015). He is joined by reigning NCAA Co-Assistant Coach of the Year Kurt Hettinger, entering his eighth season with the program and assistant coach Mary McDaniel, who is in her first season at Auburn. All-SEC Competitors RS-Senior Lexus Demers and sophomore Abby Milliet were named to the All-SEC Team last season. It marked the first time in Demers career that she has been named to the All-SEC Team, while Milliet was also named to the All-Freshman Team. Demers and Milliet tied for third on beam at the SEC Championships with a score of 9.9 and Milliet scored a 9.85 on bars. Milliet s All-Freshman Team selection was the first since Caitlin Atkinson in Annual Preview Meet Auburn gymnastics held its annual Preview Meet in Auburn Arena on December 6. The meet was the first opportunity for fans to catch a glimpse of the 2016 roster. It was also the first opportunity for Auburn s newcomers to compete in the Tigers competition arena. GYMNAST OF THE WEEK Jan Bridget Sloan (UF) & Myia Hambrick (LSU) Jan Jan Feb Feb Feb Feb March 1... March 8... March SEC WEEKLY HONORS FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK Jan Sarah Finnegan (LSU) Jan Jan Feb Feb Feb Feb March 1... March 8... March SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK Jan Shae Zamardi (LSU) Jan Jan Feb Feb Feb Feb March 1... March 8... March Auburn vs. Kentucky January 15, :00 p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Page 3

4 Returning Letterwinners For the second year in a row, Auburn returns 13 members from last season s team. The 13 returning letterwinners include: sophomores Brooke Bray, Kennedy Finister, Sarah Garcia, Blake Jones, Abby Milliet and Cara Stricklin; juniors Kullen Hlawek, Kelsey Kopec, MJ Rott and Lucia Scaglione; and seniors Caitlin Atkinson, Lexus Demers and Kait Kluz. SEC Championship Results The 2015 Auburn gymnastics team scored its program record SEC Championship team total with a to finish fourth at the 2015 SEC Championships in Duluth, Ga., at the Arena at Gwinnett Center. The Tigers fourth place finish is its highest since SEC WEEKLY TEAM RANKINGS as of Jan. 12, 2016 Team Total 1. LSU Florida Alabama Auburn Missouri Georgia Arkansas Kentucky Vault 1. LSU Arkansas Auburn Florida Kentucky Georgia Alabama Missouri Bars 1. Florida t-2. Alabama t-2. Georgia Arkansas t-5. Auburn t-5. Missouri LSU Kentucky Beam 1. Florida LSU Alabama Auburn Missouri Arkansas Kentucky Georgia Floor Exercise 1. LSU Alabama Florida Georgia Auburn Missouri Kentucky Arkansas Welcome to the Plains The Auburn gymnastics team inlcudes six newcomers for the 2016 season. The six new members include Telah Black (Helena, Ala.), Samantha Cerio (Huntersville, N.C.), Emma Engler (Raleigh, N.C.), Taylor Krippner (Cypress, Texas), A Miracal Phillips (Enterprise, Ala.) and Emma Slappey (Jacksonville, Fla.). Up Next The Tigers face in-state rival, Alabama, on Jan. 17 in Birmingham, Ala., for the annual Elevate Meet. The Elevate Meet is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. CT at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex. SEC WEEKLY INDIVIDUAL RANKINGS as of Jan. 12, 2016 All-Around Rank Name, School A-A Avg. High 1. Bridget Sloan, UF Myia Hambrick, LSU Ashleigh Gnat, LSU Kennedy Baker, UF Mackenzie Brannan, UA Vault Rank Name, School Vault Avg. High t-1. Caitlin Atkinson, AU t-1 Alex McMurtry, UF t-3. Mackenzie Brannan, UA t-3 Amanda Wellick, ARK t-3. Ashleigh Gnat, LSU t-3. Randii Wyrick, LSU Bars Rank Name, School Bars Avg. High t-1. Katie Bailey, UA t-1. Kiana Winston, UA t-1. Sydney Snead, UGA t-4. Abby Milliet, AU t-4. Bridget Sloan, UF t-4. Brittany Rogers, UGA Beam Rank Name, School Beam Avg. High 1. Sarah Finnegan, LSU t-2. Ericha Fassbender, UF t-2. Alicia Boren, UF t-2. Myia Hambrick, LSU t-5. 6 tied Floor Rank Name, School Floor Avg. High 1. Ashleigh Gnat, LSU Shae Zamardi, LSU t-3. 6 tied Auburn vs. Kentucky January 15, :00 p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Page 4

5 TV Roster Cailtin Atkinson Senior Houston, Texas Telah Black Freshman Helena, Ala. Brooke Bray Sophomore West Palm Beach, Fla. Samantha Cerio Freshman Huntersville, N.C. Lexus Demers Senior Blaine, Minn. Emma Engler Freshman Raleigh, N.C. Kennedy Finister Sophomore Magnolia, Texas Sarah Garcia Sophomore Temecula, Calif. Kullen Hlawek Junior Fulshear, Texas Blake Jones Sophomore Baton Rouge, La. Kait Kluz Senior Wixom, Mich. Kelsey Kopec RS-Junior Alpharetta, Ga. Taylor Krippner Freshman Cypress, Texas Abby Milliet Sophomore Denton, Texas A Miracal Phillips Freshman Enterprise, Ala. MJ Rott Junior Stillwater, Minn. Lucia Scaglione Junior Tampa, Fla. Emma Slappey Freshman Jacksonville, Fla. Cara Stricklin Sophomore Mandeville, La. Jeff Graba Head Coach Sixth season Auburn vs. Kentucky January 15, :00 p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Page 5

6 SEASON AND CAREER HIGHS COACHES POLL CAITLIN ATKINSON :: SENIOR Vault (1/10/16) (3/8/15) Bars (1/10/16) (3/8/15) Beam (1/10/16) (2x) Floor (1/10/16) (2/27/15) All-Around (1/10/16) (3/8/15) SAMANTHA CERIO :: FRESHMAN Bars (1/10/16) (1/10/16) LEXUS DEMERS :: RS SENIOR Vault (1/10/16) (2/13/15) Beam (1/10/16) (4/5/14) Floor (1/10/16) (2/21/14) EMMA ENGLER :: FRESHMAN Vault (1/10/16) (1/10/16) Beam (1/10/16) (1/10/16) SARAH GARCIA :: SOPHOMORE Vault (3/13/15) Bars (1/30/15) KULLEN HLAWEK :: JUNIOR Vault (2/21/14) Bars (1/23/15) Beam (1/10/16) (3x) Floor (1/10/16) (3/13/15) KAIT KLUZ :: SENIOR Vault (4x) Bars (1/10/16) (1/23/15) Beam (2/28/14) Floor (1/10/16) (2/27/15) All-Around (2/28/14) KELSEY KOPEC :: RS JUNIOR Vault (3/8/15) Bars (1/10/16) (1/23/15) TAYLOR KRIPPNER :: FRESHMAN Vault (1/10/16) (1/10/16) Bars (1/10/16) (1/10/16) ABBY MILLIET :: SOPHOMORE Bars (1/10/16) (2/27/15) Beam (1/10/16) (3/21/15) A MIRACAL PHILLIPS :: FRESHMAN Vault (1/10/16) (1/10/16) MJ ROTT :: JUNIOR Vault (1/10/16) (2x) Bars (2/21/14) Beam (4/5/14) Floor (1/10/16) (2/14/14) All-Around (4/5/14) LUCIA SCAGLIONE :: JUNIOR Floor (1/10/16) (1/10/16) NATIONAL TOP 25 Jan Rank Team Avg. t-1. LSU t-1. Michigan Florida Oklahoma UCLA Alabama t-7. Auburn t-7. George Washington t-7. Utah Arizona California Oregon State Denver Missouri Georgia t-16. Arkansas t-16. Kent State New Hampshire Illinois Eastern Michigan Kentucky Stanford t-23. North Carolina State t-23. Minnesota Maryland TEAM TOTAL VAULT UNEVEN BARS BALANCE BEAM FLOOR EXERCISE at No. 12 Oregon State at No. 12 Oregon State at No. 12 Oregon State at No. 12 Oregon State at No. 12 Oregon State 2016 TOP SCORES INDIVIDUAL ALL-AROUND Caitlin Atkinson, at No. 12 Oregon State VAULT Caitlin Atkinson, at No. 12 Oregon State UNEVEN BARS Abby Milliet, at No. 12 Oregon State BALANCE BEAM Abby Milliet, at No. 12 Oregon State FLOOR EXERCISE Lexus Demers, at No. 12 Oregon State AUBURN RECORDS TEAM Vault vs. LSU 2/13/15 Bars vs. Arkansas 1/23/15 Beam at Centenary 2/29/04 Floor vs. Florida 2/13/04 Total vs. Georgia 2/27/15 INDIVIDUAL Vault Julie Dwyer MJ Rott Bars Sarah Wentworth Beam Rachael Tarantino Sally Cantrell Floor Becky Erwin AA Caitlin Atkinson Auburn vs. Kentucky January 15, :00 p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Page 6

7 INDIVIDUAL GYMNAST PERFORMANCES CAITLIN ATKINSON :: SENIOR at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High TELAH BLACK :: FRESHMAN BROOKE BRAY :: SOPHOMORE SAMANTHA CERIO :: FRESHMAN at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High LEXUS DEMERS :: RS SENIOR at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High EMMA ENGLER :: FRESHMAN at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High KENNEDY FINISTER :: SOPHOMORE SARAH GARCIA :: SOPHOMORE Career High KULLEN HLAWEK :: JUNIOR at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High BLAKE JONES :: SOPHOMORE KAIT KLUZ :: SENIOR at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High KELSEY KOPEC :: RS JUNIOR at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High Auburn vs. Kentucky January 15, :00 p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Page 7

8 TAYLOR KRIPPNER :: FRESHMAN at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High ABBY MILLIET :: SOPHOMORE at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High A MIRACAL PHILLIPS :: FRESHMAN at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High MJ ROTT :: JUNIOR at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High LUCIA SCAGLIONE :: JUNIOR at Oregon St RQS (Avg.) Season High Career High EMMA SLAPPEY :: FRESHMAN CARA STRICKLIN :: SOPHOMORE 2016 EVENT TITLES MEET VAULT BARS BEAM FLOOR ALL-AROUND at #12 Oregon State Atkinson Milliet Milliet Demers --- #21 Kentucky vs. #6 Alabama (Birmingham, Ala.) Florida Alabama Missouri Arizona State SEC Championships NCAA Regionals NCAA Championships Auburn vs. Kentucky January 15, :00 p.m. CT Auburn, Alabama Page 8