No. 3 UCLA gymnastics heads off to Columbus, Ohio, on Sunday to wrap up Big Ten regular season play against No. 21 Nebraska, No. 22 Ohio State and Rutgers at the Big Fours. Sports contributor Hannah Westerhold breaks down each opponent before the Bruins lower the curtain on their first season in the conference.

Nebraska
Ranking: No. 21
Strength: Beam
Weakness: Vault
X-Factor: Emma Spence

The Cornhuskers will walk into Sunday’s competition on a high – boasting their highest national ranking since 2020.

They’re led by Emma Spence, who was named an alternate for Canada at the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games.

Since joining the squad in 2022, Spence consistently competed in the all-around – and this year is no different. The senior holds Nebraska’s highest all-around national ranking at No. 21.

Beam is Nebraska’s stronghold, ranking 16th nationally on the event. The Cornhuskers are fresh off a 49.250 performance in which the entire rotation posted scores of at least 9.775. Emma Simpton led the rotation with a season-high 9.900, landing her a three-way tie for the event title.

While floor isn’t Nebraska’s highest ranked event, the team has shown marked improvement on the event. The Cornhuskers marked a 48.125 on floor in their first competition Jan. 4 – their lowest event total on any apparatus this season.

Now, their national qualifying score, which averages their top-six floor totals, stands at a 49.260 – more than a point higher than the squad’s week one score.

Sophia McClelland helped lift the Cornhuskers to a top-20 floor ranking, notching a trio of 9.925 marks this season. McClelland is also a reflection of the team’s improvement: After posting two season-low 9.775 marks to begin the 2025 campaign, she now holds the nation’s No. 39 individual floor ranking – tied with Bruin graduate student Chae Campbell.

Vault is the only event where the Cornhuskers ranked outside the top 20, with the team sitting at No. 34. Against Michigan State on Feb. 15, Nebraska earned a 49.025 total – its first vault score this season to surpass 49.000. The squad dropped to a 48.950 last weekend, but the rotation was still enough to secure their second-highest total this season.

Ohio State
Ranking: No. 22
Strength: Vault
Weakness: Bars
X-Factor: Tory Vetter

UCLA already defeated Ohio State once this season Jan. 11 at the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad – and did so by more than a point. Despite the loss, the Buckeyes posted a 49.300 vault total to outscore UCLA’s 49.100.

Ohio State is ranked No. 12 in the nation on vault – the squad’s highest ranking on the event since 2012. Consistency could be responsible for the team’s vault success, with only a .350 margin between its season high and low.

JJ Coleman and Cameron Smith both vaulted 10.000 start values last week, scoring 9.875 and 9.850, respectively. Smith has not dipped below a 9.825 this season, and Coleman secured a career-high 9.900 on Jan. 18 against Iowa.

But Coleman’s highest scores come on floor. Her floor scores have improved with each of her last three routines, peaking at a career-high 9.925 last week. The freshman helped lead Ohio’s State’s floor squad to a No. 17 national ranking, making the apparatus the Buckeyes’ second-highest ranked event.

Last weekend against Penn State, Ohio State posted a season-low 48.575 event total on bars – the squad’s lowest nationally ranked event at No. 38. The rotation featured four scores 9.675 or lower, with Tory Vetter and Karleigh Reutzel managing the only scores of at least 9.800.

Vetter is a cornerstone all-arounder for the Buckeyes and has competed on all four events at every meet this season. She has only posted 9.850 or higher marks on floor this season, including three scores of at least a 9.900.

Vetter’s steadiness could boost Ohio State in the national rankings after this weekend.

Rutgers
Ranking: No. 44
Strength: Beam
Weakness: Vault
X-Factor: Gabrielle Dildy

The Scarlet Knights appear to be finding their groove this season. The squad increased its event totals on every apparatus last weekend against Michigan State to finish with a season-high 196.275.

Slotting in at No. 24 on beam – Rutgers’ highest ranked event – the team improved from a 48.725 on Feb. 15 to a 49.100 last weekend.

One of the beam regulars is junior Gabrielle Dildy, who notched a career-high 9.900 last weekend. Dildy’s beam trends match that of the team totals, with last week being her second consecutive week of improving scores.

Dildy has also been a staple in the floor lineup, marking a season-high 9.900 on Feb. 2. She has also demonstrated consistency with at least a 9.825 on the event in each of the last four meets.

Vault is Rutgers’ lowest-ranked event and its only apparatus ranked outside the nation’s top 50. The squad posted a season-low 47.950 event total at the Rutgers February Quad – its lowest score on the event since 2021.

Since the Scarlet Knights’ rough patch from Feb. 2 to Feb. 9, they’ve turned steady progress to a weekly tradition on vault. Last week, the squad notched a 49.050 – more than a point higher than its season low.

UCLA can put Rutgers’ upward trajectory to the test Sunday, serving as the highest-ranked challenge the Scarlet Knights have faced this season.