AUBURN, Ala. – Fifth year Derrian Gobourne of the No. 12 Auburn gymnastics team was named the Southeastern Conference Specialist of the Year for the third-straight season, the SEC announced Wednesday. The postseason awards are voted on by the league's head coaches.
 
In addition, Gobourne was placed on the All-SEC team and was joined by seniors Cassie Stevens and Aria Brusch and juniors Olivia Hollingsworth and Gabby McLaughlin.
                                         
"Looking back on a season full of adversity, I think you can begin to appreciate how hard this team has had to work," head coach Jeff Graba said. "For us to get five All-SEC awards is a tremendous feat any year, much less a year like this. I am extremely proud of this team and of these award winners."
 
Gobourne is the only gymnast in the league's history to win Specialist of the Year more than twice since the award began in 2014.
 
"Derrian has brought so much to this program over her five years that it is hard to quantify," Graba said. "For her to earn this award again only signifies how much she has meant to our program and how others are aware of her impact on Auburn gymnastics. What a great accomplishment voted by our peers at other schools in the league."
 
Gobourne has put an exclamation on a great career at Auburn, helping the Tigers once again earn big scores this season. She guided the Tigers to three team scores that finished in the program's top 10 and helped the squad tie a program record on vault earlier this year (49.500).
 
The Sarasota, Florida product was named SEC Specialist of the Week twice this season following big performances against rivals LSU and Georgia that led to Auburn wins.
 
Gobourne has competed on vault, bars and floor in her final year on the Plains and the squad has counted all 33 of her scores. She has won two floor and two bars titles as well as one vault crown this season.
 
The fifth year has seven scores of 9.9 or better on floor so far, including a pair of 9.975s. In addition, she has five scores of 9.9 or better on bars that includes a season-best 9.95. She tied her career high on vault with a 9.95 at the start of the season and has totaled nine scores of 9.875 or better in the event.
 
To add to her recognition total, Gobourne earned All-SEC recognition in two events – bars and floor. She scored a 9.9 on bars and a 9.875 on floor to help the Tigers finish fifth with a 197.100.
 
Stevens earned All-SEC recognition on vault, bars, beam, floor and in the all-around. She was SEC vault co-champion after scoring a 9.95 in the event and finished third in the all-around at the conference meet with a season-best 39.650.
 
The senior from Phoenix scored a 9.9 on bars, beam and floor for the Tigers on her way to All-SEC in those events. The wealth of awards for Stevens added to her SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year honor that was announced last week.
 
Brusch, a senior from Cincinnati, earned All-SEC on bars for the second-consecutive season. She scored a 9.9 to finish second in the afternoon session in the event.
 
Hollingsworth, a junior from Seabrook, Texas, earned the first All-SEC honor of her career after a solid performance on floor. She scored a 9.875 for the squad to finish tied for second at the conclusion of the first session.
 
McLaughlin also earned the first All-SEC honor of her career with a solid routine on beam. The junior from Irving, Texas anchored the beam squad with a 9.9 in the event to come in a tie for second overall in the afternoon session.
 
The Tigers return to action next week, heading to the West Coast for the 2023 NCAA Los Angeles Regional. Auburn will compete in the afternoon session, March 30, as the third seed and looks to advance to the Sweet Sixteen, April 1. The three-day regional will be held in Pauley Pavilion on the campus of UCLA.