The Missouri gymnastics team trailed the No. 10 Nebraska Cornhuskers after the opening rotation and was unable to make up the early deficit Friday night at the Hearnes Center.

But in gymnastics, it’s not always about the wins and losses.

“This is a confidence booster for us, we overcame our struggles and are ready to fight,” sophomore Lauren Swankoski said. “We want to get back to where we were last year, and we now know what it takes. ”

The team posted a season-high all-around score of 195.400 — a total that would have been enough for victory against four of their five previous opponents.

“We’re on track now and have grown up a lot, I think things are going in the right direction,” coach Rob Drass said.

The team has navigated through a grueling schedule so far this season, having faced a top-tier opponent in Iowa State and also participating on the national stage in the Metroplex Challenge. Tonight was the squad’s first regular dual-team meet of the season and first true home meet.

“The crowd kept the energy level up, and having that noise along with the band is exciting and keeps us focused on what we need to do,” junior Mary Burke said.

Both Burke and Swankoski turned in their best performances of the season Friday night.

Burke posted the highest score of any competitor with a 39.450 all-around, a new career-high for the junior from Inverness, Ill.

Swankoski did not participate on the uneven bars due to a wrist injury, but was electric in each of the other events, setting new career-highs on vault, beam and floor routine.

Despite career-high scores of 9.875 on the vault from senior Alex Gold and Swankoski, the Tigers trailed the Cornhuskers 49.125 to 49.050 at the first rotation.

As the Tigers headed to the uneven bars, Nebraska continued their impressive showing on the vault. Nebraska senior Erin Davis set a meet-high and tied a personal season-high with a score of 9.925.

Burke paced the Tigers with a score of 9.875, but two key misses by the Tigers — the only two of the night, left them trailing by a score of 98.525-97.225 after two rotations.

The team responded well after their struggles on the bar, something Burke attributes in part to the support of the home crowd.

“Knowing we have the fan’s support allowed us to comeback and prove ourselves on the beam,” she said.

Gold recovered from a disappointing stint on the bars by finishing strong, with two stellar performances on the beam and floor routine, which helped the Tigers right the ship.

Sophomore Tori Howard ended the night tying her personal best of 9.850 on floor.

All in all, it was a successful night for the Tigers, as they were not overcome by early struggles.

“You’re going to encounter adversity,” Drass said. “The teams that are mature and strong are able to shrug it off like it’s nothing, and tonight we did that.”