No. 9 Huskers Head to Norman for Round Three

After posting its highest score of the season at Iowa two weeks ago, the No. 9 Nebraska men’s gymnastics team travels to Norman, Okla., this Saturday, Feb. 28, where NU hopes to break a losing streak to Oklahoma that dates back to the 2000 season. The dual is slated to begin at 7 p.m. at the Howard McCasland Field House and will be available online to Sooner All-Access Subscribers at SoonerSports.com

Nebraska and Oklahoma clash for the third time this season. Both teams opened their 2009 campaigns at the Rocky Mountain Open on Saturday, Jan. 10. The Sooners topped the competition with a score of 355.000, while NU placed second with a score of 332.400. Nebraska then hosted Oklahoma on Sunday, Jan. 18, where OU won the dual with a score of 354.300 and NU scored a 337.600.

The Nebraska-Oklahoma rivalry has been around nearly as long as Nebraska gymnastics. The Huskers first met up with the Sooners in 1966, where NU was victorious, 165.00-118.25. The two teams continued to meet up nearly every year since 1966. Oklahoma leads the series, 37-28-1.

For the Huskers, the dual is one of three remaining regular-season competitions. NU returns to the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Sunday, March 15, for Senior Day. The showdown against Minnesota and Arizona State will begin at 2 p.m. NU will then travel to the University of Illinois at Chicago on March 20, competing against UIC for just the second time in Husker history.Scouting the Sooners

No. 2 Oklahoma
2009 Record: 4-0-0
Head Coach: Mark (10th Year)
2008 Overall Record: 28-1
2008 MPSF Finish: First
2008 NCAA Finish: First

A Quick Look at the Sooners
No. 2 Oklahoma holds a perfect 4-0 record on the 2009 season with a three-score average of 354.517. Four Sooners hold top-five national ratings, including Steven Legendre (second-floor exercise, second-vault, second-parallel bars), Russell Czeschin (fourth-vault), Corey English (fifth-pommel horse) and Chris Brooks (third-vault).

Oklahoma scored a 354.250 in a dual meet home win over 10th-rated Iowa on Saturday, Feb. 21. The Sooners recorded a season-high scores on floor (60.65) and pommel horse (57.05). Legendre captured the floor exercise title with a career-high score of 15.65. Russel Czeschin placed first on vault with a career-high score of 16.1, while Jacob Messina topped the pommel horse standings with a career-high 14.80.

Huskers Hang on to No. 9 in National Poll
For the sixth-consecutive week, the Nebraska men’s gymnastics team holds on to its top-nine ranking in the GymInfo weekly poll. NU was rated ninth by the latest GymInfo Poll released Monday, Feb. 23.

In addition, the Huskers rank 10th nationally on floor exercise (56.667), 12th on pommel horse (53.717), sixth on still rings (58.000), ninth on vault (61.000), eighth on parallel bars (56.267) and ninth on high bar (55.683)

Individually, senior T.J. Schmidt ranks eighth on pommel horse (14.567) and sixth on parallel bars (14.750), while junior Tony Maras ranks 13th on still rings (14.850). Junior Robinson also ranks 14th in the all-around with an average of 83.183.

Thirteen Huskers on Big 12 Commissioner’s Fall Honor Roll
Thirteen members of the Nebraska men’s gymnastics team earned spots on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Fall Honor Roll, which recognizes a grade point average of 3.0 or higher during the fall semester.

The list of Husker honorees features 10 gymnasts as repeat selections, including sophomores Cory Baumgarten and Matthew Forrest, juniors Tony Maras, Josh Rusler, Kyle Shanahan and Stefan Wallof, seniors Bo Benak, Jacob Ives and T.J. Schmidt, and former Husker Stephen Tetrault.

New members to the Big 12 Honor Roll include senior James Mauldin, junior Daniel Br?l? and freshman Michael Killeen.

A total of 324 Nebraska student-athletes earned at least a 3.0 GPA during the fall, including 38 student-athletes who posted 4.0 grade-point averages. A complete list of Husker men’s gymnastics selections and their academic majors is provided below.

Big 12 Commissioner’s Spring Honor Roll
Cory Baumgarten-Mathematics and Physics (third selection)
Bo Benak-Industrial Technology Education (sixth selection)
Daniel Br?l?-Geography (first selection)
Matthew Forrest-History (third selection)
Jacob Ives-Actuarial Science (fourth selection)
Michael Killeen-Pre-Landscape Architecture (first selection)
Tony Maras-Economics (second selection)
James Mauldin-Communications Studies (first selection)
Josh Rusler-Broadcasting (fifth selection)
T.J. Schmidt-Nutrition, Exercise and Health Science (fourth selection)
Kyle Shanahan-International Business (third selection)
Stephen Tetrault-Mathematics (eighth selection)
Stefan Wallof-Civil Engineering (fifth selection)

Last Meet Recap: Huskers Place Second with Season-High Score
owa City, Iowa ? The ninth-raked Nebraska men’s gymnastics captured a season-high team score en route to a second-place finish in a close triangular meet at Iowa City, Iowa, on Saturday, Feb. 14. NU scored a 343.500, while No. 6 Minnesota topped the competition with a score of 345.900 and Iowa finished third with a score of 342.600.

"We had a terrible meet on pommel horse, but we were unbelievable on everything else," Nebraska Coach Francis Allen said. "The guys did a great job on floor, vault and rings. We fell behind in the second rotation and the guys kept fighting. It took a total team effort to beat Iowa. We are going to have to learn how to fight and we did a great job. We had three or four of the best practices this week at Nebraska than we’ve had in the past four years and it showed during this meet. The guys are really jelling well together."

Six Huskers posted top-three results on five different events, including junior John Robinson, who captured the first all-around title of his career with a score of 82.200. Junior Tony Maras captured his first event title of the season, placing first on still rings with a season-high score of 15.30, while senior T.J. Schmidt placed first on parallel bars with a season-high score of 14.90.

The Huskers came out swinging on rings, where they posted a season-high score of 58.95 on the event. Ringmen Tony Maras and Anthony Ingrelli paved the way for NU on rings, as the pair placed took first and second place, respectively. Maras scored a season-high of 15.30, while Ingrelli posted a season-high of 14.90. Freshman Cory Baumgarten (13.15) and senior James Mauldin (14.60) also blasted their previous season-highs on still rings.

NU kept up the momentum on floor exercise in the second rotation, where it notched a season-high score of 59.00, besting its previous high of 55.55. Freshman Josh Dilworth captured second-place honors on the event with a season-high score of 15.15, which bested his previous high of 14.20 by more than one point. Four other Huskers scored new season-bests, including junior Daniel Br?l? (13.70), junior Josh Rusler (14.70), junior Kyle Shanahan (14.25) and Schmidt (14.90).

Nebraska struggled in the third rotation, as the team scored a 49.65 on pommel horse, NU’s lowest score of the season. However, the Huskers pulled together in the fourth rotation, posting a score of 56.65 on high bar. Br?l? earned his first top-three finish of the season on high bar with a score of 14.50, while Dilworth and Rusler posted season-high scores of 14.30 and 13.70, respectively.

NU continued on to vault in the fifth rotation, besting its previous high score of 61.35 with a score of 61.45. Maras held NU’s best showing on vault with a fourth-place finish and a career-high score of 15.65.

The Huskers closed out the meet with another season-high score of 57.80 on parallel bars, which blasted their previous high of 55.85. Schmidt topped the charts on parallel bars with a season-high score of 14.90, while Br?l? earned another second-place finish with a season-high score of 14.80. While NU’s showing on parallel bars was the best of the season, the late surge would not be enough to overtake the Gophers.

Flashback to the 2008 Oklahoma Dual: Huskers Fall to Sooners in Oklahoma
The No. 10 Nebraska men’s gymnastics team scored a team mark of 337.75 in front of 1,238 fans at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla., against the No. 6 Oklahoma Sooners on Friday, Feb. 1, 2008. Despite strong team and event scores, NU’s performance wasn’t quite enough to prevail over OU, which posted a score of 355.55 for the win.

Junior T.J. Schmidt earned his third pommel horse title on the year, tying Oklahoma’s Jason Laughton for first place with a score of 14.35. In addition to his title, Schmidt recorded a second-place finish on parallel bars with a score of 14.70. Senior captain Stephen T?trault posted a third-place finish in the all-around with a score of 83.40.

Despite a season-high score of 53.80 pommel horse, the first three competitors lost points due to falls. However, Schmidt was able to lead the bottom half of the rotation to better luck, as he tied for first with a score of 14.35. In addition to Schmidt’s stellar performance, T?trault and sophomore Kyle Shanahan each tallied career-high scores of 13.85 and 13.60, respectively.

NU continued on to floor exercise in the second rotation, where the Huskers notched a team score of 56.40. Floor exercise was full of highs for Nebraska, as junior Eric Daigle first posted a career-high score of 13.80 before sophomore Josh Rusler, a native of Norman, Okla., wowed his hometown crowd with another career-high score of 13.70. T?trault also tied his career high with a mark of 13.90. Despite the record-breaking scores, Nebraska was unable to crack the top-three in the event.

Nebraska struggled on vault for the second week in a row, tallying a team mark of 60.86. Sophomore John Robinson had a breakthrough performance though, carrying the Huskers in the third rotation with a career-high 15.70 on the vault, which blew his previous high of 15.00 out of the water. After three rotations, Nebraska fell slightly behind Oklahoma, 176.10-171.15.

NU kept swinging on the still rings in the fourth rotation, tallying a team mark of 56.80. Although Huskers were not able to crack the top-three on still rings, two Huskers claimed career-highs on the event. In just his first try on still rings this season, Shanahan scored a 14.35, while junior James Mauldin notched a career-high score of 14.35. As Nebraska wrapped up its fourth rotation, Oklahoma spread its lead, 239.30-227.95.

The Huskers had a rocky fifth rotation, as it scored a 53.35 on the event. Again, Nebraska was unable to crack the top-three and the Sooners kept forging ahead, 297.30-281.30.

Despite several rough rotations, Nebraska finished strong on parallel bars with a score of 56.46. Schmidt earned a second-place finish with a score of 14.70.