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A spirit that is not afraid

Gymnastics



Coach Jeff Graba has infused the Tigers' roster with young talent, taking national powerhouses Georgia and Alabama to the limit this season. (FILE PHOTO)

Graba named top 10 gymnastics coach in the nation

 On Tuesday, CollegeAD.com named three-time SEC Coach of the Year Jeff Graba, who led Auburn to the NCAA Championship Super Six this season for the first time in 22 years, one of the top 10 women’s gymnastics head coaches in the country. Auburn broke or tied 52 program records this year as junior Caitlin Atkinson and seniors Megan Walker and Bri Guy were named All-Americans, and six others earned All-SEC honors.

Caitlin Atkinson celebrates with team after successful routine on the beam. Auburn Gymnastics vs Arkansas in Auburn, AL on Jan 23, 2015. Emily Enfinger | PHOTO EDITOR

Auburn gymnastics advances to NCAA Super Six

For only the second time in program history, No. 8 Auburn gymnastics advanced to the NCAA Super Six by placing third in their semifinal with a 197.075, a program record score at Nationals and the sixth-highest score in program history. The top three of the six teams competing would advance to the next round, and Auburn’s third place finish was just enough. No.1 Oklahoma placed first at 197.400, No.

The Auburn Plainsman

Tigers ready for National Championships

On the day before the Auburn gymnastics team travels to Texas for the NCAA National Championships, the team had one final practice in the McWhorter Center on April 14, followed by a short conference with coach Jeff Graba, Caitlin Atkinson and Bri Guy. “There’s a lot of energy in the gym, a lot of excitement,” Atkinson said. After placing second in the NCAA Regional on April 4 in Auburn, the Tigers earned one of the 12 possible spots in the national championship, a feat the program hasn’t achieved since 2003. Despite reaching the national championship for only the third time in 22 years, the Tigers insist that the gravity of the situation won’t overwhelm them. “I think everyone expects us to just go in there and explode, to just collapse,” Guy said.

The Auburn Plainsman

Gymnastics breaks regional record, advances to nationals

No. 8 gymnastics performed above and beyond in front of a full house Saturday night, April 4, during the NCAA Gymnastics Championship in the Auburn Arena. The team totaled 196.900 overall, smashing the record for the highest regional total in the program’s history. “We talked all day about, ‘You have to fight for everything you get here,'” said head coach Jeff Graba.

The Auburn Plainsman

Gymnast embraces pressure during record season

Before she was an All-American at Auburn, and even before she was a national recruit as a teenager, Auburn gymnast Caitlin Atkinson knew she had the talent and the drive to become great. “I always kind of knew when I was younger because, even from the start, I always wanted to go more, always wanted to train more hours,” Atkinson said.

Coach Jeff Graba has infused the Tigers' roster with young talent, taking national powerhouses Georgia and Alabama to the limit this season. (FILE PHOTO)

​Auburn gymnastics coach Jeff Graba named SEC Coach of the Year

Auburn gymnastics coach Jeff Graba was voted SEC Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season and the third time in four years. Graba led the Tigers to a historic season that included several broken program records, including highest NCAA Regional seed, highest overall score and first sellout crowd of 7,424 in Auburn Arena. Graba also led Auburn to a win over Georgia, only the fourth in 80 meetings. The eighth-ranked Tigers finished fourth at the SEC Championship for the first time in the program’s history, and its RQS of 197.045 is a program record. Auburn scored a 197 or higher five times this season.

The Auburn Plainsman

Auburn gymnastics finishes regular season No. 8

Auburn gymnastics held its No. 8 ranking as the regular season comes to a close, its highest final regular season ranking in program history. The Tigers also managed to raise its Regional Qualifying Score to 197.045, another program record. Auburn ranks eighth nationally on vault (49.345), 12th on bars (49.265), eighth on beam (49.315) and 10th on floor (49.315). Individual rankings of note include Caitlin Atkinson at seventh nationally in all-around and Megan Walker at 11th on beam. Up next for the Tigers is the NCAA Regional on April 4 at 6 p.m.