The No. 18 Auburn gymnastics team (3-5, 2-4) will take on No. 26 Brigham Young University in the Smith Fieldhouse in Provo, Utah, at 9 p.m. March 4.
The meet will be the first of two the Tigers are scheduled to complete while on the road before returning to Auburn to take on Southeast Missouri State.
"We just haven't been sharp," said Jeff Graba, head coach. "Part of that is due to the fact that we've shown our nerves out at meets--not on every event, but every once in a while. In practice we're quite a bit sharper."
In gymnastics, individual performance is a key component of team success.
"Wins don't really come into play with how we coach them," Graba said. "What we're trying to do is maximize scoring potential because that's really what matters to us. If you do that, you'll end up with wins anyway."
A victory against Pittsburgh last week with a season-high 195.925 raised spirits.
The Tigers also won five individual titles for the Feb. 25 meet.
"Part of it is going to be going on the road and working that segment of it, but also the rotations are going to be a little bit different because we're in a four-team meet out at BYU," Graba said.
The BYU Cougars (5-3), a characteristically strong team this season, have beaten opponents including Utah State, Kent State and Arkansas--an opponent the Tigers were unable to top--but have lost against teams like Arizona and LSU, which was a big SEC win for the Tigers.
"Honestly, our No. 1 goal is to finish the season with no regrets," said senior Rachel Inniss. "I've never competed against BYU, so it's going to be really fun. It's been a while since we've had two meets in one weekend, so that's going to be interesting to see how we deal with that, but it's kind of like preparation for regionals and championships."
Auburn ranks No. 25 for vault with 48.715. BYU is not ranked.
Auburn ranks No. 20 for uneven bars with a 48.695, behind BYU at No. 17 with a 48.805.
Balance beam puts Auburn at No. 11 with 48.630.
BYU barely makes the rankings at No. 25 with 48.390.
Neither Auburn nor BYU rank for floor at this time.
"We're focusing more on the little things now at practice," said sophomore Toi Garcia. "Trying to hit 24 for 24 routines is our main goal for our meet against BYU."
With several of the girls setting new personal records or tying their personal bests, the Tigers are consistently pushing themselves.
The Tigers return to action at 7 p.m. March 11 at the Auburn Arena against the SEMO Redhawks before the start of the SEC Championships the following week.
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