LEXINGTON, Ky. — Delaynee Rodriguez of the University of Kentucky gymnastics team has earned recognition for excellence both in competition and in the classroom, being named to the 2025-26 College Sports Communicators Academic All-America Women's At-Large Team on Tuesday. The rising senior from Las Vegas was selected for the Second Team with a 4.0 GPA in Integrated Strategic Communications.

Rodriguez's selection comes after a career year in 2026 that saw her achieve significant athletic milestones. The junior ranked in the top 75 nationally on all five gymnastics events and finished 10th in the all-around standings. She also qualified for the NCAA National Championships as an individual event specialist on balance beam, placing 17th with a score of 9.8875.

During the 2026 season, Rodriguez set career-highs across all four events and earned her first All-SEC and All-America honors. She posted a career-high all-around score of 39.650 at Auburn, a mark that ranks as the fourth-highest in Kentucky program history. Rodriguez also recorded multiple scores of 9.950 on bars, beam, and floor exercise.

The gymnastics honor reflects a pattern of academic achievement alongside athletic excellence. Rodriguez has earned SEC Academic Honor Roll distinction in each of her first three seasons and was previously recognized as a WCGA Scholastic All-American. She competed in every meet during her first three collegiate seasons, demonstrating consistency that few athletes in her conference maintain.

The CSC Academic All-America Women's At-Large Team includes 45 student-athletes across three tiers and recognizes athletes in sports without their own dedicated CSC team, including gymnastics, rowing, skiing, and water polo, among others.