Last night, the Gym Dogs hosted Auburn for their final S.E.C. meet of the regular season, concluding their eighth unbeaten conference campaign in an 11-season span. The visitors from the Plains fell to 1-5 in the S.E.C. with the loss, as Auburn has never succeeded in beating the Red and Black in 57 series meetings.
The contest began with Georgia competing in the vault. Katie Heenan concluded the rotation for the Bulldogs by posting a 9.95 score to pace a 49.4 mark in the meet's opening stanza. No Auburn gymnast earned above a 9.875 on the bars, paving the way for a 48.975 team tally for the Orange and Blue.
The Gym Dogs claimed a 49.45 on the bars in the ensuing rotation, buoyed by consecutive 9.925s by Kelsey Erickson and Courtney Kupets, while Auburn continued to trail, eking out a 49.05 in the vault when none of the visiting gymnasts earned over a 9.825.
The Red and Black matched Auburn's 49.05 mark when Grace Taylor opened the third rotation with a 9.925 on the balance beam, but the squad from the Yellowhammer State again failed to keep pace with the host team. The War Eagle wound up with a 49.025 in the floor exercise, in which Julie Dwyer received a 9.9 score.
Randal Graves and Dante Hicks were impressed to learn that Julie Dwyer performed so well on the floor, despite the ill fate that awaited her between "Mallrats" and "Clerks." (Image from CBC.)
Georgia finished strongly in the final stanza, as four Gym Dogs earned 9.9s in the floor exercise to compile a 49.425 team mark. This more than offset Auburn's lackluster performance on the balance beam, which received only a 48.1 score.
In the end, the Red and Black earned a respectable 197.325 to conclude their conference slate with a win over the Orange and Blue, who managed just a 195.15. While Suzanne Yoculan's comments following the meet indicated some dissatisfaction with the Gym Dogs' tally, her team now stands at 5-0-1 in S.E.C. outings and 10-0-1 overall.
One week from tomorrow, Georgia will travel to the City of Angels for a road meet against U.C.L.A. before closing out the Bulldogs' regular-season slate with a home date against Michigan on March 9.
Go 'Dawgs!