It’s time for the hosts to take the floor, as third-ranked California will battle 14th-seeded Auburn, Pac-12 rival Stanford, and first-round winner Southern Utah in the second session of the second round.
The Golden Bears have had a stellar season, ranking in the top three all season long behind their duo of top-six ranked all arounders—eMjae Frazier and Mya Lauzon. Thanks to them, California is the only school with two all arounders with an NQS in the 39.7s, while fellow steady all arounders Madelyn Williams and Ella Cesario have been key in keeping the Golden Bears balanced across all four events. Other than a third-place performance during conference championship weekend, California has looked consistently excellent all season long.
Not too far back in the all around rankings at 14th is Cassie Stevens, who led Auburn to a matching seed in the first year of the post-Sunisa Lee era. She continued to be the solid four-eventer that she’s always been, while role players like Olivia Hollingsworth, Gabby McLaughlin, and freshman Julianne Huff have stepped up to keep the Tigers amongst the top 16. Vault has fallen flat in recent weeks while bars has had its ups and downs this year, making Auburn’s middle two rotations today its must-hits if it wants to advance.
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