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CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – The Southeast Missouri gymnastics team's regular season is down to two more home meets before the Midwest Independent Conference Championships. Southeast begins its final home stand on Friday when it hosts No. 16 Auburn at Houck Field House. The meet begins at 6:30 p.m.

Last Time Out ­– A slow start proved too much to overcome as Southeast lost nearly six points from its team total from a week ago. The Redhawks finished fourth in a quad meet at Texas Woman's last Saturday, finishing with 188.925 points. Southeast began on floor, where they scored 45.275. Taylor Westrick and Margaret O'Neal each posted top-five finishes individually, with Westrick placing fourth on beam and O'Neal finishing fifth on bars with identical scores of 9.825. Those marks were the highest any Southeast gymnast recorded in the quad meet. Emma Garrett also competed strongly, scoring 9.700 or better on both vault (9.725) and floor (9.700).

Auburn at a Glance – The Tigers are ranked 16th in the nation via their Regional Qualifying Score of 195.735. Auburn ranks no worse than 22nd (vault) on any of the four events and ranks 10th on uneven bars. The Tigers have scored 194 or better as a team seven times, cracked the 195-point barrier six times and eclipsed 196 on three occasions. Individually, Kylie Shields ranks fourth in the country on bars (9.890 RQS) and 25th in the all-around (39.130).

Series History – Auburn leads 12-2.

News and Notes:

'Taylor'-Made Gymnast – Taylor Westrick has rounded into her NCAA Regional qualifying form of a year ago in the past month. After posting only one score above 9.700 in the first three meets of the year, the junior has eclipsed that mark 10 times in her last five outings. She has been particularly strong on the balance beam, scoring 9.800 or higher in five consecutive meets and tying her career-best with a 9.875 in a dual victory over Illinois State on Feb. 24. Westrick currently ranks 55th in the country on beam (9.805 RQS) and is less than two-hundredths of a point out of the nation's top 50.

Home Cooking – Home has been where the Redhawks have been at their strongest this season. Southeast has posted its top two scores and three of its best four totals in Houck Field House. The Redhawks have cracked 190 in all three home meets and achieved their season high (194.375) in their home gym against Illinois State on Feb. 24. Those results are a big contrast to the road production as Southeast has scored above 190 only once in its five outings away from Houck.

Breakout Performance – It appears that the Southeast lineup has stabilized its scores after a difficult start to the season. After scoring above 191 in consecutive outings, the Redhawks erupted for a 194.375 score in their victory over Illinois State on Feb. 24. Southeast posted season bests in all four events, closing the competition with a 49.075 on the floor exercise to secure the comeback win. Sixteen of Southeast's 24 routines scored 9.700 or higher, including all six on floor. Six Redhawks scored 9.800 or higher in the victory over the Redbirds.

Bring in the Specialist – Junior Emma Garrett has been dynamite for Southeast seven meets into the season, posting top-three finishes on both vault and floor in the Redhawks' first three meets. In 16 routines this season, Garrett has posted 13 scores of 9.700 or higher, the most among all Southeast gymnasts this season. Her 35 career routines of such scores ranks second among all active Redhawks. Garrett earned her first career MIC Specialist of the Week award on Feb. 15, after she tallied a 9.825 on floor and a 9.700 on vault in the Perfect 10 Challenge.