The clock is ticking on the 2014 gymnastics season.Just three regular-season meets and the Southeastern Conference Championship remain before NCAA competition and Tim Garrison isn’t hiding from that fact.”We’re looking for a big finish to the season, that way we can accomplish our goals,” Garrison said. “If we don’t have a big finish to the season, we won’t accomplish our goals. So we’re up against it. They realize it, we know it, we’ve told them exactly what we need to do and they’ve embraced it.”The goal for Kentucky is to move into the top 18 of the national rankings for NCAA seeding purposes, meaning the Wildcats need to bolster their Regional Qualifying Score (RQS). To do that, Garrison wants his team to post four scores high enough to replace scores currently counting toward UK’s RQS and move up from its current ranking of No. 24.Some coaches might keep that thinking and the projections that go with it to themselves, but not Garrison. He believes it’s best for his athletes to know exactly what’s being asked of them.”I’ll put the Excel file up on the big screen in our gym and say, ‘Look, here’s where we are,’ ” Garrison said. ” ‘Here’s what we’ve accomplished to this point. Here’s what we need to do to get to where we can achieve our goals.’ “With solid scores of 195.975 and 195.200 last weekend, UK took a step in the right direction. That’s especially true for the three Wildcat seniors: Audrey Harrison, Holly Cunningham and Kayla Sienkowski.”I think obviously we still have places that we can improve,” Garrison said. “It’s nice to see our seniors come out of a little bit of a slump they were in. They’ve gone through quite a bit of a struggle but I think the struggle has made them stronger.”Garrison put a fair amount of thought into the reasons for the seniors’ slump. He’s come to the conclusion that the sense of urgency felt in their final college season got to them.”Maybe they’ve already checked out and they’ve moved on or maybe they’re feeling pressure,” Garrison said. “I think our athletes were feeling the pressure. I think our seniors were feeling the pressure. I think they’ve gotten through that.”Over those issues and enjoying a renewed sense of confidence, the seniors are leading the way as the Cats have begun to take control of their own destiny. “It’s always great when you can feel like your athletes are becoming basically autonomous,” Garrison said. “They go on their own. Obviously we’re driving them, we’re pushing them, we’re coaching them, but when they’re taking those corrections that you’ve been giving them for many months now and then doing them on their own, it’s a good feeling to know that they’re feeling more confident in themselves.”UK will look to put that confidence on display. After returning from a rare two-meet road weekend, the Cats are home the next two weekends, beginning at 7 p.m. ET on Friday against No. 11 Auburn.”Naturally, it’s nice to be in comfortable surroundings back on our home floor in front of the Big Blue Nation again,” Garrison said.Back in the friendly confines of Memorial Coliseum, the Cats will be out to finish with a flourish.”Toward the end of the season, I expect them to perform better because they’ve realized what’s going on, they’ve dealt with it,” Garrison said. “They’ve realized, ‘What’s the point in feeling the pressure? We need to go out there and just do the best we can.’ ”