No. 8 Huskers Face MPSF Rivals at Stanford Open

The No. 8 Nebraska men’s gymnastics team meets up with Mountain Pacific Sports Federation rivals No. 6 Stanford and No. 4 California this Saturday, Jan. 24, at the Stanford Open in Palo Alto, Calif., beginning at 9 p.m. central.

This is the third consecutive weekend Nebraska has faced MPSF opponents. The Huskers enter the Stanford Open after falling to Oklahoma in two straight weeks. Despite the two losses on NU’s record, Nebraska saw huge improvement in its team score. The Huskers jumped from a 332.400 at the Rocky Mountain Open to a 337.600 against Oklahoma.

Following this weekend’s competition, Nebraska will have competed against all four of its conference opponents, giving it a sneak preview at what it can expect from the MPSF Championships on April 4.

The Cardinal enter the Stanford Open following a 338.400-342.20 loss to California on Jan. 18 at the Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif.

The Stanford Open will be featured on an online webcast for the third concecutive year. Check the Nebraska men’s gymnastics homepage at Huskers.com for a link to the webcast.

Scouting the Stanford Open
No. 4 California
2009 Record: 1-0-0
Head Coach: Barry Weiner (18th Year)
2008 Overall Record: 13-12
2008 MPSF Finish (Score): Third (356.050)
2008 NCAA Finish (Score): Fifth (356.150)

A Quick Look at the Bears
California enters the Stanford Open after an upset over rival and previously-ranked No. 1 Stanford on Friday, Jan. 16. After the Cal win, the Bears moved up the polls to No. 4, while Stanford fell to No. 6.

Freshman Glen Ishino was named the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Gymnast of the Week for his efforts in the Stanford-California dual last weekend. Ishino took first in the all-around (86.200) for the Bears in his first collegiate competition. Ishimo also captured the pommel horse title with a score of 15.400, which was almost a full point ahead of his closest competitor. In addition, Ishimo placed second on parallel bars behind senior captain Kyson Bunthuwong.

With nine letterman returning for California, the Bears look to make a statement at the MPSF and NCAA Championships this season.

No. 6 Stanford
2009 Record: 0-1-0
Head Coach: Thom Glielmi (Sixth Year)
2008 Overall Record: 16-1
2008 MPSF Finish (Score): Second (357.200)
2008 NCAA Finish (Score): Second (362.750)

A Quick Look at the Cardinal
After dropping its first meet of the season to No. 4 California, the Cardinal is back to seek revenge this weekend. Stanford returns 14 letterwinners, with six gymnasts returning as NCAA All-Americans. Junior Bryant Hadden placed second in the all-around for the Cardinal last weekend behind Cal’s Glen Ishino.

Stanford ended the 2008 season with a second-place finish at the NCAA Championship. The Cardinal fell only to Oklahoma in the Championship.

Huskers Move to No. 8 in National Poll
For the first time since the 2005 season, the NU men’s gymnastics team moved up the polls and is rated eighth nationally in the latest GymInfo poll released Monday, Jan. 19.

In addition, the Huskers rank 13th nationally on floor exercise (54.075), fourth on pommel horse (55.300), fifth on still rings (57.225), fifth on vault (60.425), seventh on parallel bars (55.500) and 11th on high bar (52.475).

Individually, senior T.J. Schmidt ranks fourth on pommel horse (14.575) and seventh on parallel bars (14.675), while senior James Mauldin ranks ninth on pommel horse (14.125) and 20th on still rings (14.400). Freshman Josh Dilworth is eighth on vault (15.500) and junior John Robinson is ranked 12th in the all-around (83.075).

The first poll of the season is calculated by determining the team’s average team score. However, after Feb. 16, the poll will be determined by using a three-score average.

Huskers Set Season-High Score in Loss to Oklahoma
The No. 10 Nebraska men’s gymnastics team scored a team mark of 337.600 in front of 450 fans at the Bob Devaney Sports Center against the No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners on Sunday, Jan. 18. Despite strong individual scores across the board, NU’s performance wasn’t enough to prevail over Oklahoma, which posted a score of 354.300 for the win.

"I saw some good things and I saw some things that weren’t so good," Nebraska Coach Francis Allen said. "But I don’t like to dwell on the bad things. (John) Robinson did really well. His hand was in bad shape and he hasn’t been able to practice much this week, but he’s doing the right things in the competition. T.J. (Schmidt) did some good things and (James) Mauldin is really coming around. Our ring team is coming together and we’re going to need them down the road. I was happy to see (Kyle) Shanahan back in the lineup. The first home meet is always an eye opener. We just need to get healthy if we’re going to be a good team."

Individually, senior T.J. Schmidt earned his first pommel horse title of the year with a score of 14.65. Freshman Josh Dilworth placed third on vault with a score of 15.85, while junior John Robinson notched a third-place finish in the all-around with a season-high score of 84.70.

Nebraska followed Olympic order from start to finish, entering the first rotation on floor exercise. Behind several strong performances, the Huskers pulled together a season-best score of 55.55. Senior Jacob Ives started the Huskers off on floor, igniting a string of season-high scores. Ives earned a new season-high of 13.10, while junior Josh Rusler also notched a new season-high of 13.55. Freshman Josh Dilworth and senior T.J. Schmidt continued the record setting streak, each earning season-high and Nebraska team-high scores of 14.20 on floor exercise.

NU struggled in the second rotation, only putting together a score of 54.60 on pommel horse. Despite several falls early in the lineup, Schmidt and Robinson ended the event on high notes. Schmidt not only earned the event title, but also set a new season-high score of 14.65. Robinson also set a new season-high with a score of 13.80. After two rotations, the Huskers dropped behind the Sooners, 110.150-114.350.

The Huskers kept swinging on the still rings in the third rotation, tallying a team total of 56.75. Although NU was unable to establish a new team-high score on the event, individually, Robinson crushed his previous still rings season-high of 14.10 with a new season-high of 14.35. He also held the highest score for the Huskers on still rings.

Nebraska gained a boost of momentum in the fourth rotation, posting a season-high score of 61.35. Several Huskers also captured season bests, including Ives (15.05), sophomore Garret Durst (15.20) and Robinson (1525). The best vault of the day for the Huskers came from Dilworth, who notched a season- and team-high score of 15.85, which earned him a third-place finish on the event. After the fourth rotation, Nebraska continued to fall behind Oklahoma, 228.250-236.550.

The Huskers had a rocky fifth rotation, as they scored a 55.85 on parallel bars. Seniors James Mauldin led NU on parallel bars with a season-high score of 14.35, which blasted his Rocky Mountain Open score of 13.20. Schmidt held NU’s top score, as he posted a 14.55 on the event.

Despite several rough rotations, Nebraska finished strong in the sixth rotation, posting a score of 53.50 on high bar. Junior Kyle Shanahan competed on the high bar for the first time this season, earning a score of 13.85. Robinson also scored a new season-high of 13.75 on the event. Nebraska’s score on high bar would not be enough to send the Huskers ahead of Oklahoma. With two losses to OU on the year, Nebraska falls to 1-2 on the season.

Flashback to the 2008 Stanford Open: NU Finishes Third at Stanford Open
Palo Alto, Calif. - The No. 14 Nebraska men’s gymnastics team finished third at the Stanford Open in front of a blaring crowd at the Burnham Pavilion on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2008. The Huskers scored a 333.85 on the night, while Stanford notched a 361.35 for top honors and California scored a 357.90 for second place. NU fell to a 0-6 all-time record against the Cardinal and a 1-4 all-time record against the Golden Bears.

With Stanford and Cal’s athletes in full force, Nebraska was unable to crack the top three in any event. However, several gymnastics earned career-high scores on the night.

"We did some really good things, but we missed 60 percent of our routines," Nebraska Coach Francis Allen said. "That’s killing us right now. We started off good today, but in our last three events we couldn’t seem to finish. We are seeing some bright spots here and there."

Nebraska began the competition with a solid performance on still rings, pulling together a score of 56.85. Although the team score was not the best of the season, two gymnasts notched career-high scores for the Huskers, including Garret Durst (13.85) and T.J. Schmidt (14.30). Despite the effort, NU fell quickly behind both Stanford (61.35) and Cal (58.20) in the first rotation.

NU then marched to vault, historically Nebraska’s best event of the season. However, the Huskers, who struggled to stick a landing, scored a 58.99 on the event. Nebraska managed to narrow the gap on the top two teams though, as NU held a score of 115.85 behind Stanford (118.00) and Cal (117.70) after the second rotation.

Shaking the nerves at the end of the third rotation, sophomore Daniel Br?l? and Schmidt set career-high records on parallel bars, leading the Huskers to a season-high score of 57.10 on the event. Br?l? blasted his previous score of 14.25 by notching a 14.65 at Stanford. Schmidt scored a 14.95 on the event, .05 points higher than his previous season-high set against Oklahoma and Air Force. Junior James Mauldin also made his first appearance for the Huskers on parallel bars, scoring a 12.85 on the event. After three rotations, the Huskers continued in third place with a score of 172.90, while Cal overtook the Stanford lead, 178.35-177.35.

Nebraska gained momentum in the first half of the high bar lineup, as three Huskers set career-high marks in the fourth rotation. Sophomore John Robinson started off for the Huskers, capturing a career-best 13.20. Both junior Eric Daigle and sophomore Josh Rusler blew their previous high bar scores out of the water, earning scores of 13.60 and 14.10, respectively. Despite the early boost, NU was only able to score a 54.65 on the event. Stanford regained the lead after four rotations with a score of 240.25. Cal moved to second place (239.95), while Nebraska stayed in third (227.55).

Despite inconsistencies in the fifth rotation, the Husker team was able to pull together a season-high score of 56.50 on floor exercise. Senior Stephen T?trault jump started the floor lineup, earning a career-high score of 13.90. Freshman David Spitdowski then stepped up for the Huskers, notching another career-high mark of 14.75.

Heading into the sixth and final rotation, Stanford kept the lead with a score of 300.70. Cal and Nebraska trailed with scores of 298.15 and 284.05, respectively.

The Huskers finished the meet with a score of 49.80 on the pommel horse, which would not be enough to catch up to Stanford or California. NU dropped to 2-4-0 on the season