No. 10 Huskers Prepare for NCAA Championships at Stanford

The tenth-ranked Nebraska gymnastics team travels to Palo Alto, Calif., this week to end the 2008 season at the NCAA championships held at Maples Pavillion on the Stanford University campus. Competition is slated to begin on Thursday, April 17 with the team qualifying sessions at 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. CST. The championship will continue on Friday, April 18, with the team and all-around finals, and concludes on Saturday, April 19, with the individual event finals.

Tickets are $30 for all-session adult passes and $20 for youth, senior citizen and student all-session passes. Single-session passes for the championship are priced at $4, with all seats being general admission.The team and all-around finals will be broadcast tape delayed on ESPN2 on Thurs., April 24 at 5 p.m. CST.

Nebraska is one of 12 teams to qualify for the meet, and will compete during Session I at 3 p.m. CST on Thursday. The Huskers will square off against some of the nation’s toughest programs during the competition during the first rotation, including No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Penn State, No. 6 Michigan, No. 7 Ohio State and No. 11 William and Mary. The Huskers must finish within the top three teams in their session in order to advance to the team finals on Friday.

Nebraska is familiar with just one of the five teams in its session, after having competed against Oklahoma three times during the regular season and again at the MPSF Championships on April 5. Although the Huskers and Sooners have competed against each other several times, NU has yet to post a win over Oklahoma this season.

OU and Penn State both present the biggest challege with average scores of 358.740 and 358.280, respectively, which are nearly 15 points higher than Nebraska’s season average.

Six other top teams will compete in Session II of the team qualifier, including No. 1 Stanford, No. 4 California, No. 5 Illinois, No. 9 Minnesota, No. 10 Iowa and No. 12 Temple. Both Stanford and California represent the MPSF during the second session. Nebraska has competed against all but Illinois and Temple, with a big win over No. 10 Iowa on March 14.

Nebraska brings several seasonedcompetitors to the national championship, including junior T.J. Schmidt, who is ranked fifth on parallel bars. Last year, Schmidt earned his first All-America honor as he placed fifth on pommel horse. Senior Stephen Tetrault, a three-time NCAA All-American, is also ranked 15th on pommel horse with a 14.20 average. Freshman Anthony Ingrelli also forged his way into the rankings last week, as he sits 15th on still rings with a 15.12 average.

Scouting the Competition
No. 2 Oklahoma
2008 Record: 13-1
Head Coach: Mark Williams
Top Returner: Jonathan Horton
2008 MPSF Finish (Score): First (359.150)
2007 NCAA Finish (Score): Second (220.200)

A Quick Look at the Sooners
Coming off a first-place finish at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championship for the fourth-consecutive year, No. 2 Oklahoma is geared up to claim first at the NCAA Championships at Stanford. Last season, the Sooners placed second with a score of 220.200 behind Penn State. Several Sooner All-Americans return to claim the No. 1 spot, including first-place all-around finisher, Jonathan Horton. Horton also claimed first on high bar and floor exercise at last season’s NCAA Championship. Other All-Americans included Russ Czeschin on floor exercise, Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons on vault and Christ Brooks on high bar.

No. 3 Penn State
2008 Record: 6-3
Head Coach: Randy Jepson
Top Returner: Casey Sandy
2008 Big 10 Finish (Score): 1st (360.450)
2007 NCAA Finish (Score): 1st (221.000)

A Quick Look at the Nittany Lions
Penn State has a rich history at the NCAA Championship. This season, the Nittany Lions will try for their 13th team national championship, with its most recent title last season in its home gym. Penn State’s Casey Sandy is the nation’s No. 1-ranked all-around, while returners Santiago Lopez and Nick Virbitsky will also be factors for All-America honors. The Nittany Lion’s still rings line-up features four nationally ranked competitors. Overall, Penn State has eight competitors who hold 22 top-20 spots in the national rankings. Penn State comes to the championships after claiming the Big 10 Conference title on April 4 with a score of 360.450.

No. 6 Michigan
2008 Record: 7-5
Head Coach: Kurt Golder
Top Returner: Paul Woodward
2008 Big 10 Finish (Score): 4th (353.000)
2007 NCAA Finish (Score): 4th (218.400)

A Quick Look at the Wolverines
Michigan enters the NCAA Championships after placing fourth in the Big 10 Conference championships on April 5. Last year, the Wolverines finished fourth at the NCAA Championships with a 218.400 average. Michigan has a relatively young roster, as it only has one true senior. Freshman Thomas Kelley stands out this year, as he won the floor exercise title at the Big 10 Championships in route to being natmed the Big 10’s Freshman of the Year.

No. 7 Ohio State
2008 Record: 4-8
Head Coach: Miles Avery
Top Returner: DJ Bucher
2008 Big 10 Finish (Score): 3rd (354.35)
2007 NCAA Finish (Score): N/A

A Quick Look at the Buckeyes
No. 7 Ohio State will compete in the NCAA Championships after claiming third at the Big 10 Conference Championships two weeks ago. The Buckeyes have faced Michigan and Penn State several times this season, as they’re each competitors in the Big 10. Last year, Ohio State did not make the top-six at the NCAA tournament, but three Buckeyes combined for four All-America honors.

No. 11 William & Mary
2008 Record: 10-4
Head Coach: Pete Walker
Top Returner: Andrew Hunt
2008 ECAC Finish (Score): 2nd (341.35)
2007 NCAA Finish (Score): N/A

A Quick Look at the Tribe
William and Mary earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championships because of its high season average. The Tribe enters the 2008 NCAA Championships after claiming second to Temple at the Eastern College Athletic Conference championships and second at the USA Gymnastics College Championships. William & Mary did not qualify for last season’s NCAA Championships.

Huskers Finish Fourth at MPSF Championships
The Nebraska men’s gymnastics team finished fourth with a team score of 337.750 at the 2008 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation in front a crowd of 259 at the Devaney Sports Center on Saturday, April 5.

No. 2 Oklahoma captured the team title for the fourth consecutive year with a score of 359.150. No. 1 Stanford finished second with a score of 357.200, while No. 4 California came in third (356.050) and No. 15 Air Force placed fifth (328.500).

Nebraska’s T.J. Schmidt was the only Husker to make the top-three in the event standings with a third-place finish on parallel bars with a career-high mark of 15.40. Sophomore John Robinson was also the only gymnast to compete in the all-around for Nebraska as both senior Stephen T?trault and sophomore Kyle Shanahan were out with injuries.

The Huskers started the meet off on the parallel bars, one of their strongest events of the year. Nebraska put together a team score of 58.50, while Schmidt was the stand-out on the event, posting a career-high score of 15.40 for third place. Robinson also set a new career-high of 14.60 on the event. After one rotation, Oklahoma led the meet with a score of 64.150, with California in second (59.100), Air Force in third (58.600), Nebraska in fourth (58.500) and Stanford in fifth (54.400).
NU was unable to pull together a full lineup on high bar in the second rotation. The Huskers posted a score of 50.10, which is seven points lower than their highest high bar score of the season. After rotation two, Oklahoma kept the lead with a score of 124.600, Air Force moved into second (118.100), Cal was in third (115.350), Stanford was fourth (115.00) and Nebraska fell to fifth (108.600).

Nebraska moved to floor exercise in rotation three and notched a rocky score of 56.250, nearly three points lower than their season-high score. Freshman David Spitdowski led the Huskers on the floor exercise with a score of 14.40. At the end of the third rotation, California took the lead with a score of 191.600, while Oklahoma fell to second (180.150), Stanford was in third (178.400), Air Force moved to fourth (172.750) and Nebraska remained in fifth (164.850).

The Huskers struggled again on pommel horse in the fourth rotation, only notching a score of 51.35, which is seven points lower than their season-high. T?trault was the stand-out on the event, posting a score of 14.10. After four rotation four, Oklahoma regained the lead with a score of 242.100, while Cal battle in second (238.550), Stanford remained in third (238.500), Air Force stayed in fifth (222.550) and Nebraska was in fifth (216.200).

After four rocky rotations, NU regained momentum on the still rings in the fifth rotation. Freshman Anthony Ingrelli’s career-high score of 15.50 helped the Huskers set a new team-high score of 59.65 on the event. Ingrelli finished fourth in the event. Sophomores Garret Durst and John Robinson also posted career-high scores of 14.45 and 14.70, respectively. Heading in to the last rotation, California was in the lead with a score of 300.300, while Oklahoma was in second (298.450), Stanford was in third (295.300), Air Force remained in fourth (279.450) and Nebraska stayed in fifth (275.850).

Nebraska ended the meet on vault, historically NU’s best event of the season. The trend held true as the Huskers posted a score of 61.90 on the event. Spitdowski led the Huskers with a score of 15.60. Freshman Bear Danley tried the event for the first time this season and posted a score of 15.25. However, the late surge was not enough to place the Huskers in the top-three teams.

NU Competes Two All-Arounders at NCAA Championships
Despite a knee injury two weeks ago, sophomore Kyle Shanahan should be back in the all-around for the Huskers, joining sophomore John Robinson in the event. Neither Husker has competed in the all-around at an NCAA event, however, both have the talent to be major competitors for Nebraska.

Shanahan was named the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Gymnast of the Week on Tuesday, March 25. Not only was it Shanahan’s first gymnast-of-the-week honor of his career, but it was also the first MPSF Gymnast of the Week selection for the Huskers in 2008.

Robinson has competed in the all-around three times for the Huskers this season and plans on a fourth time at the MPSF Championships. Since his all-around debut, Robinson has increased his score from an 80.20 against Stanford on Feb. 16 to a career-high 86.30 against Air Force on March 22. The all-around competition seemed to bring confidence from the Charlotte, N.C. sophomore, as he earned a second-place finish on vault with a score of 16.00 before capturing first place on vault against Air Force with a career- and team-high score of 16.10.

Three Huskers Rank Nationally
Senior Stephen Tetrault, junior T.J. Schmidt and freshman Anthony Ingrelli each bumped up in the individual event national rankings with their high scores from the MPSF championships.

Although Tetrault, a three-time All-American, has a foot injury that stopped him from competing in the all-around, he continues to push hard on the pommel horse. The Lincoln, Neb. native sits 15th nationally with a 14.240 average on the year.

Schmidt bumped up two spots from a week ago to fifth-place nationally with a 15.15 average. He set a new career- and team-high score of 15.40 at the MPSF Championshps.

Ingrelli made his way to the standings for the first time this season as the 15th-ranked still rings competitor. Ingrelli set a season-high 15.50 score at the MPSF Championships.