Huskers Set To Battle Scarlet Knights in Big Ten Dual

Nebraska Cornhuskers (1-3, 1-2 Big Ten) vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (0-3, 0-2 Big Ten)
Sunday, Feb. 7, 4:00 p.m. CT -- Lincoln, Neb. (Bob Devaney Sports Center)
Live Scores: Huskers.com
Stream: BTN+ (Paid Subscription)

Lincoln, Neb. -- The Nebraska women's gymnastics team returns home to the Bob Devaney Sports Center for a Big Ten Conference duel with Rutgers. The Huskers and Scarlet Knights will meet on Sunday, Feb. 7 at 4 p.m. The event will be streamed on BTN+.

The Huskers last took part in a Big Ten tri-meet in East Lansing, Mich. against Ohio State and Michigan State. NU finished third at the meet, while Michigan State won the event. Two Huskers won at least a share of three event titles, as senior Anika Dujakovich took home the vault title and shared a part of the floor title with junior Kaitlyn Higgins. 

Rutgers enters this meet with a record of 0-3 after meets with stiff Big Ten opponents. The Scarlet Knights hit the road for the first time of the 2021 season and look to improve their record under third-year head coach Umme Salim-Beasley.

The Huskers will look to their veteran leadership in order to pick up their second win of the season. A core of seniors including Dujakovich, Kynsee Roby and Makayla Curtis have provided NU with big scores in timely moments and will need to continue to do so against Rutgers.

NU takes on Rutgers at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Sunday, Feb. 7 at 4 p.m. The event will be streamed on BTN+.

Following the Huskers' meet against Rutgers, Nebraska heads to Ann Arbor, Mich. for a duel against the Michigan Wolverines on Feb. 15 at 2 p.m. CT. 

Fans can follow the Huskers on Twitter at @HuskersWGym, Instagram at @HuskersWGymnastics and Facebook at facebook.com/NebraskaWGym.

Notes:

SCOUTING RUTGERS
Rutgers enters this meet with a record of 0-3 and a Big Ten record of 0-2. The Scarlet Knights last faced off with Maryland for the second time this season in a 194.925-192.750 loss. Belle Huang competed in the all-around and posted two scores of 9.80 or higher and finished with a score of 39.300. 

NEBRASKA ENTERS WEEK FOUR RANKED NO. 34
The Huskers enter this meet at Michigan State as the No. 33 program in the country, according to the Road To Nationals rankings. NU bounced back from a difficult first meet with much stronger performances in weeks two and three. Nebraska looks to ride that wave of momentum heading into this week's home meet.

ROBY RANKED NO. 29 ON BALANCE BEAM
Senior Kynsee Roby, following stellar beam performances against Illinois and Penn State, ranks 29th in the nation on the apparatus. Roby won at least a share of the event title in Nebraska's first two meets and looks to build upon the strong foundation she has set so far in 2021.

YOUTH SHINES FOR NU EARLY IN SEASON
Nebraska's freshmen have provided crucial depth for the Huskers through the first three weeks of the season. The Huskers will rely on them to continue their development against Rutgers. Chloe Lorange took home the all-around title against the Fighting Illini, while Kinsey Davis and Danielle Press consistently performed in big moments for NU.

NU RANKED THIRD IN BIG TEN PRESEASON POLL
The Huskers enter the 2021 season as the No. 3 ranked team in the Big Ten Preseason Coaches' Poll. Michigan and Minnesota claimed the top two spots in the poll, while Iowa and Illinois round out the top five. 

BIG TEN SCHEDULE IN 2021
The Big Ten Conference announced that its members will participate in a conference-only regular season. Week one of the season for Nebraska will serve as a non-conference meet against Big Ten foe Illinois. Weeks 2-7 will serve as the Big Ten regular season, with the Big Ten regular season champion being crowned at the Big Five meet. Weeks eight and nine include non-conference meets against Big Ten opponents. 

ROBY, DAVIS NAMED GYMNASTS TO WATCH
The conference announced that senior Kynsee Roby and freshman Kinsey Davis were selected as Nebraska's Big Ten Women's Gymnasts to Watch for the 2021 season. 

UP NEXT
The Huskers head to Ann Arbor, Mich for a meet with the Michigan Wolverines on Feb. 15 at 2 p.m. The meet will be televised on BTN.

ROSTER OUTLOOK
The Huskers welcome back three seniors for the 2021 season. Makayla Curtis, Anika Dujakovich and Kynsee Roby will serve as veteran leaders for the program. The lone junior on the Huskers' squad is newcomer Kaitlyn Higgins, who started her career at Minnesota and will add depth for NU on beam and floor.

Nebraska's sophomore class consists of Clara Colombo, Kathryn Thaler and Kylie Piringer. Piringer looks to build upon the strong foundation she set during her freshman campaign after being named a second team All-Big Ten selection following the 2020 season. Head coach Heather Brink also welcomes six freshmen, Martina Comin, Kinsey Davis, Joanne De Jesus-Cortes, Chloé Lorange, Danielle Press and Caroline Williams.

HUSKERS INTRODUCE FIVE 2021 SIGNEES
Head Coach Heather Brink announced the signing of five future Husker gymnasts joining the 2021 women's gymnastics signing class. Ayzhia Hall (Fayetteville, AR), Emma Simpton (Dallas, Texas), Halle Rourke (Waverly, Neb.), Savanah Warren (Parker, CO) and Emma Spence (Cambridge, Ontario) will join NU's program for the 2021-22 season. 

CORNHUSKERS REPRESENT ACROSS UNITED STATES AND BEYOND
Nebraska features gymnasts from six states:  Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, North Carolina, New Jersey and Texas. The Huskers also feature three international gymnasts, Clara Colombo and Martina Comin of Italy and Chloé Lorange of Canada.