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It’s a good Friday to be a Tiger fan.
The back-to-back SEC champion #2 LSU gymnastics team is back to facing SEC opponents following a 197.525-196.125 win over Penn State. Tonight, they face #17 Auburn, a team looking to figure themselves out. The meet begins at 8:00 p.m., and doors open at 6:30. The first 1,000 fans will get a cute tote bag, and the first 2,500 fans will get a Louisiana Blue-branded drawstring bag. If you’re going, also make sure to wear white for the whiteout. For those unable to make the meet, SEC Network will be broadcasting it with Alex Perlman and Anastasia Webb on the call. Following the broadcast, SEC Network will premier the new SEC Storied feature on D-D Breaux, “The Fighting Tiger.” Live stats can be found here.
LSU’s match-up history with Auburn
LSU is 90-18 all-time against Auburn and 29-4 all-time against them at home. The last time the two met on the same floor was on 3/14/2025 when LSU went to Neville Arena and won 198.200-197.550. LSU set a program record for highest score in a true road meet (regular season meet hosted by another team in their arena).
About #17 Auburn
Auburn tied for 7th at SECs with Georgia, a result which only happened due to a Georgia neutral deduction, and 11th overall following a tight regional final. The Tigers lost eight NQS-eligible routines from 2025: Sara Hubbard, Sarah Zois and Sydney Schumaker on vault, Gabby McLaughlin on beam and floor, and Sophia Groth on bars, beam and floor. In total, Auburn lost seven seniors. They added two transfers, junior Kaylee Bluffstone from Florida and junior Emma Wehry from West Virginia, and they brought in five freshmen with the biggest name being five-star Charlotte Booth. One odd thing about Auburn’s roster is that they have only one senior.
Auburn comes into this meet 1-4 and 0-4 in the SEC. Their most recent meet was a stunning 197.325-196.275 loss to then-winless Kentucky. Auburn opened the season with a 197.150, but they’ve struggled in the meets since. Their other results have been 196.075, 196.700, 196.050 and 196.275 as mentioned before. The Tigers are tied for 10th with Michigan State on vault [49.195], 32nd on bars [48.845], 12th on beam [49.145] and tied for 11th with Ohio State on floor [49.265].
The main issue Auburn’s dealt with is on bars. They have looked bad compared to years past, and it’s been what’s kept a lot of their scores down. It’s been their lowest-scoring event in four of their five meets. If you need a star to watch, keep an eye on Alex Irvine. The former UCLA Bruin who transferred to the Plains last season is their most consistent gymnast, and she’s also the team’s floor choreographer.
Auburn is led by Jeff Graba in his 16th year. He is assisted by associate head coach Sara Carver-Milne in her fourth year, assistant coach Kurt Hettinger in his 18th year and assistant coach Brooke Leonard-Fincher in her fourth year.
About #2 LSU
LSU is ranked third on vault [49.310], second on bars [49.425], fifth on beam [49.400] and seventh on floor [49.385].
This meet needs to go a lot better than last week’s meet. If LSU wants to keep a good run going for a good seed in the tournament, they need to put together a 198-esque performance. This is the halfway point of the season, so most of the lineups should be solidified. Minor changes are likely, especially on bars, but expect the bulk of the rest to remain the same.
One other big change comes following this meet: rankings move to NQS. For those who don’t know, the NQS formula got simplified for this season. It’s now the Olympic average of all meets in a team’s season (drop the high and the low and average the rest). If we used those rankings right now, Auburn would drop down to 18th while LSU would remain 2nd. LSU’s maximum possible NQS, which comes if they score at least 198.050, is 197.6875. Their minimum possible NQS, which comes if they score 196.850 or worse, is 197.3875. LSU can enter Week 7 as high as #1 and as low as #6 depending on other scores.
Despite the Krewe of Southdowns parade, the PMAC will be rocking like usual. A big score is the big deal tonight, and hopefully the LSU Tigers deliver one.
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