With her floor routine set to begin, Collea Burgess froze, waiting for the music to start. As the EDM instrumental played in the background, the sophomore brought an energetic display to the floor.

Complete with a wink and her signature “shoot” dance, Burgess’ routine earned a 9.85, Maryland’s highest score in the event Friday.

“When it comes to floor, I just dance how I would at a party,” Burgess said. “I just make floor an overall fun time for everyone.”

As the season has progressed, the Terps have steadily improved, most notably through Burgess and other talented gymnasts who were under-the-radar going into the season. That improvement has helped Maryland get past their up-and-down start to the season, and has established the Terps as a formidable foe in the Big Ten.

While Maryland was unable to extend its winning streak to three — falling to No. 16 Minnesota 196.850-195.325 on Friday — the Terps put up another solid display as they eclipsed 195 for the third straight meet.

“What we did [on Friday] is more important than getting a win,” coach Brett Nelligan said. “We handled ourselves extremely well in a tough environment … against a really good team and we came out without counting a fall and a good road score.”

[Read more: Maryland gymnastics has another strong showing but falls to No. 16 Minnesota, 196.850-195.325]

With junior Tiara Wright unable to compete due to illness, the Terps were forced to make some substitutions — seniors Alex Robinson and Shynelle Agaran took Wright’s place on bars and beam, respectively. And both impressed — Robinson earned a career-best score of 9.825 as the Terps posted their new season high on the bars. Meanwhile, Agaran scored a 9.775 in her season debut, Maryland’s second highest score in the event.

Maryland’s performance without Wright, a key contributor, was a testament to the team’s depth and resilience.

“[Tiara] is a huge asset to the team, and I think not having her here was a little bit of a loss,” junior Kirsten Peterman said. “But I think we came together [on Friday] and did really well.”

[Read more: Maryland gymnastics shines on floor, bars to beat No. 20 Ohio State, 195.950-194.250]

On bars, the Terps were efficient, as all six gymnasts earned a 9.825 or above. Maryland, the No. 19 team on bars, broke 49 for the third time this season, earning a 49.25. While Maryland’s all-conference duo shined, with sophomore Audrey Barber and junior Alecia Farina scoring 9.85, it was the Terps’ underrated talent that pushed them to their season-best performance in the event.

Freshman Sanya Glauber eclipsed 9.8 for the third time this season, scoring a 9.85, while sophomore Emilie LeBlanc added a 9.825.

While the Terps weren’t able to reach their heights of the last meet, posting lower scores in the three other events, there were numerous strong performances in all three events.

On vault, freshman Alexsis Rubio put up a 9.8, leading the way for the Terps, while sophomore Sabriyya Rouse earned a 9.725, her career best in the event.

Prior to Maryland’s first meet, Nelligan earmarked Burgess and Rouse as potential key contributors to the team.

“Collea Burgess and Sabriyya Rouse have had phenomenal preseasons,” Nelligan said earlier this year. “So I expect them to really step up and be a major part [of the team] this year.”

With the season now in full swing, Burgess and Rouse have seen their roles expand, with both gymnasts regularly performing on vault, beam and floor. On Friday, their improvement was on full display, as Burgess’ 9.85 was her second highest score on any competition this season.

On floor, Rouse’s lively routine charmed the judges as she earned at least a 9.8 for the second straight meet.

And with the Big Five meet coming up next weekend, the Terps plan to use invaluable experience from these confident performances against talented, ranked teams to progress even further.

“Going against big teams, ranked teams,” Burgess said, “it helps us get numbers under our belt and feel really confident for Big Five.”