The Auburn gymnastics team will compete in its third match of the season against the University of Georgia Friday at 7 p.m. at Auburn Arena.
No. 17 Auburn fell to No. 12 LSU 195.025-193.800 in Baton Rouge Jan. 13.
Despite the loss, senior Auburn gymnast Kylie Shields and junior Toi Garcia each posted strong vault scores, with Shields scoring a career high of 9.875 and Garcia scoring a 9.9.
Shields and senior Allyson Sandusky shared the event title for bars with each scoring a 9.8.
Shields also scored a season-high 9.9 on beam.
Coming into the match against No. 6 Georgia, coach Jeff Graba said he feels more confident in all four events now that the freshmen on the team have had a chance to become acclimated.
"(The competition with Georgia) was a dual meet," Graba said. "A freshman has never been involved in a situation like this before. They weren't competing aggressively. They were timid."
Georgia is coming off a close 196.475-196.325 loss to Alabama Friday in Tuscaloosa.
The Tigers have not defeated Georgia since their first-ever victory against the Bulldogs in 2010.
Prior to the 2010 win, Georgia had defeated Auburn 64 consecutive times.
Auburn freshmen had to fill in for several upperclassmen in the meet against LSU, and Graba anticipates this will also be the case Friday.
He said while there haven't been any serious injuries on the team, some players are dealing with "just normal wear and tear--if someone pulls a muscle, we just don't want to push them."
Graba has freshmen competing in every event and said he doesn't think nerves will be a problem this time around.
"I think after two weeks now, they'll settle down and do a good job, especially competing here at home," he said.
Graba said the team is always making changes and is still experimenting with its lineup, adding that he's becoming much more confident in the team's ability in all four events.
"If we can do a good job on all four we can compete with anybody," Graba said.
The meet against the Bulldogs will be Auburn's first home meet of the season.
"I want to encourage everybody to come out," Graba said. "It's a real good test for us. We are trying to prove ourselves against some of the top talent in the country. Those who come out will be able to witness a very fun and exciting meet."
The Tigers are scheduled to compete against five more teams currently ranked in the top 25 of the NCAA rankings, including No. 5 Alabama Jan. 27 at home and No. 3 Arkansas Feb. 3 in Fayetteville.
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