10:02 am | April 8, 2019 | Go to Source | Author:
Auburn gymnast Sam Cerio will undergo surgery for two dislocated knees and multiple torn ligaments in both legs after she left Friday’s NCAA regional on a stretcher with aircasts on both of her legs, the school announced.
“Sam is a fighter and is in great spirits,” Auburn head coach Jeff Graba said in a statement. “We couldn’t have a better leader for this team.”
Orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews will perform the surgery on Monday afternoon.
On her first tumbling pass of her floor routine, Cerio landed awkwardly as she was trying to execute a double front with a blind landing.
Athletic trainers and medical staff tended to Cerio for nearly eight minutes before she taken off in a stretcher. The LSU crowd at Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, which hosted the regional, gave her a standing ovation.
“The Auburn Athletics Department is thankful for the outstanding care that the Auburn and the LSU medical staffs have provided to Sam,” Graba said. “We also are thankful for the support from the LSU Athletics Department for going above and beyond in this situation.”
Cerio, a 5-foot senior, posted on Instagram that Friday’s meet was her final night as a gymnast, expressing her gratitude to Auburn and the gymnastics community for the support.
“It may not have ended the way I had planned, but nothing ever goes as planned,” Cerio wrote.
Auburn advanced to the regional final on Friday night but did not qualify for championships after a fourth-place finish.
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