Auburn is headed into a top 15 matchup with Georgia on Friday after a season-high road score at Missouri.
The Tigers remains ranked in the No. 19 spot this week, but their average increased to 195.805 following Friday’s 196.100 score at Missouri.
“I feel like the girls did a good job last weekend...[and] we’re on the right track,” said head coach Jeff Graba. “Any time you can break a 196 on the road, it’s a good thing and we were pretty competitive mentally.”
With the opportunity to compete with a healthy team, Graba said the team got the chance to do “some upgrades that needed to get done...that didn't cost the team.” Headed into the matchup with No. 12 Georgia, Graba said the team has done very well during practices this week.
"We just have to stay healthy and keep our head down and keep improving," Graba said.
Coming off a season full of injuries and competitive matchups with a young team, focus has shifted to the postseason. With just two meets remaining and the SEC Championship slated for March 20.
“If you want to be competitive with [the top teams], you have a choice to make: you either try to win on Friday night or you try to maximize your score,” Graba said. “If you [choose to win], you sacrifice long term improvement and your long term ability to score at a high level and possibly make the postseason…. You have to keep the end in mind and that’s where we are right now.”
Graba said he hopes to build on the success and consistency found for LSU and Missouri.
Mid-season chaos caused problems with consistency in the lineups, but Graba says the team is confident for Georgia, but still looking for a strong opening in each event.
“We did that against LSU… and we have to be able to do that down the stretch," Graba said.
The team also looks to make upgrades in routines this week as disrupted scheduling has rushed the normal progression those would take. Focus on overall improvement is heavy and the emphasis is placed on becoming more competitive as the season wraps up and postseason approaches.
The Tigers are set to take on No. 12 Georgia at 7:00 p.m. CST in Auburn Arena.
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Callie Stanford is from Springville, Alabama and is currently a sophomore at Auburn. She has been with The Plainsman since January 2021.
Twitter: @Stanford1Callie
