MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The West Virginia gymnastics team opens its 2021 campaign with a dual meet against 2019 national champion and reigning Big 12 champion Oklahoma at 7 p.m. on Friday, inside the WVU Coliseum, in Morgantown.
Direct links to the video stream and live stats can be found on the gymnastics schedule page at wvusports.com.
Of note, due to safety precautions from the COVID-19 pandemic, only essential game operations personnel and families of the gymnasts and gymnastics staff will be admitted into the arena.
“We never had a schedule quite like this,” WVU coach Jason Butts said. “All four teams in the Big 12 are very strong. Oklahoma and Denver have recently been on the national stage, but we need to focus on what we can control and that is our own performance and how we approach our training. We’re trying not to let anything from outside our bubble get to us. There is no offense or defense in gymnastics. We can’t control what the other team does or what the judges do. Whatever the environment may be like, it is all going to be different. Our whole focus has just been doing what we have been doing.”
WVU opens its season at home for the first time since 2018, when WVU played host to No. 2 Florida. The Mountaineers are 6-10 in season-opening meets under Butts, who enters his 10th season as WVU’s head coach.
The Mountaineers return to competition following an 11-win season and a 6-1 record at home. WVU registered four top-50 scores last year, including a season-high 196.425 in wins over Pitt and Rutgers on March 1, 2019, at the WVU Coliseum.
All nine returning Mountaineers earned time in at least one lineup last season, with eight reaching the podium. Classmates Abbie Pierson and Kianna Yancey paced WVU with 10 podium finishes each in their first season as a Mountaineer.
The Sooners (2-0, 0-0) are ranked No. 2 nationally with a 197.238 average after the first two weeks of competition. OU most recently knocked off No. 3 Utah on Jan. 17 by a score of 197.025-196.55, inside the Lloyd Noble Center, in Norman, Okla. Oklahoma won three of four event titles against the Utes, with senior Anastasia Webb taking home vault, freshman Audrey Davis taking home bars and junior Emma LaPinta earing a share of the floor title.
Friday’s action will be carried live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+, the conference’s digital platform, with Michael Minnich and Julia Merwin on the call. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $5.99 a month (or $59.99 per year) at espnplus.com, espn.com or on the ESPN App (mobile and connected devices). It also is available as part of The Disney Bundle offer that gives subscribers access to Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu (ad-supported) — all for just $12.99/month.
