Huskers Capture Third Place in RMO

Colorado Springs, Colo.- The Big Red traveled to Air Force for the Rocky Mountain Open battling five top-ranked teams to finish the night landing in third place.

The No. 4 Huskers rallied throughout the meet to claim a final team score of 405.300 to finish in third place, highlighted by captain Taylor Christopulos snagging the floor event title with a score of 14.40, among his third-place all-around finish with a career-high score of 81.800.

Rotation One

The Huskers started the night off on vault where they put up a team score of 70.400. Chris Hiser led the squad notching a 13.55. James Friedman followed with a 13.95, while Donte McKinney collected a season-high score of 13.70. Luke James put up a 14.20 career-high. Taylor Christopulos closed the event scoring a 14.60 for NU.

Nebraska ends the first event with a 70.400 team score on vault.

Rotation Two

Moving to the second event on parallel bars, Nebraska began with freshman Asher Cohen scoring a 13.10, while Joey Pepe put up a 13.00, both career-highs for the gymnasts. James Friedman earned a 12.85. Taylor Christopulos anchored the event with a 13.25, also a career-high for the Husker.

NU completed parallel bars with a running team score of 136.050.

Rotation Three

Nebraska showed out on high bar for the third rotation with each competitor notching a career-high for the Huskers. Notably, All-American Donte McKinney made a mark with a 14.25 career-high score. Zac Tiderman capitalized with a 14.10, while Toby Liang notched a 13.70. Joey Pepe earned a 13.05. Taylor Christopulos anchored again collecting a 13.95.

Nebraska moves to the fourth rotation with a team score of 205.100.

Rotation Four

NU shows floor for the fourth rotation. Taylor Christopulos highlights the event with an impressive career-high score of 14.40 for Nebraska, good for the floor title. James Friedman acted as lead-off scoring a 13.00. Chris Hiser put up a 13.85 season-high and Luke James scored a 12.45 respectively. Toby Liang followed with a 13.45 career-high for the freshman.

The Huskers finish the floor rotation with a team-score of 272.250.

Rotation Five

Moving to pommel horse for the fifth event, Travis Wong impressed with strength after notching a 13.75, a career-high for the sophomore. Nathan York followed with a score of 12.05, and James Friedman earned a 13.30 respectively. Cooper Giles collected a 13.70. Taylor Christopulos scored a 12.70.

NU moves into rotation six with a team score of 337.750.

Rotation Six

Nebraska ends on rings for the final rotation, led by James Friedman notching a 13.70 for the Huskers, a career-high. Following, Chris Hiser notched a 13.85 and Asher Cohen put up 13.45, a career-high. Travis Wong scored a 13.05 for the Huskers. Moritz Mueller earned a 13.30. Taylor Christopulos scored a 12.90, aimed towards the gymnast’s all-around score.

The Cornhuskers completed the night capturing third place (405.300) in the 2023 Rocky Mountain Open, behind second place Oklahoma (411.850) and No. 1 Stanford claiming first place (420.100). Michigan fell in fourth place (398.800), Arizona State in fifth place (397.400), and Air Force in sixth (381.450), respectively.

Taylor Christopulos competed in the all-around taking third place for the night with a career-high score of 81.800.

Up Next

The Huskers are set to dual against No. 2 Penn State next Saturday, Jan. 29 in University Park, Penn. The meet is set to begin at 12:00 p.m. CT. Fans can follow @NebraskaMensGym on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter for live updates during the meet.