Huskers Fall to No. 2 Oklahoma in Norman

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Norman, Okla. ?The No. 9 Nebraska men’s gymnastics team scored a team mark of 342.400 in front nearly 600 fans at the Howard McCasland Field House in Norman, Okla., against the No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday night. Despite strong team efforts, NU was unable to top OU, which posted a score of 358.300 for the win.

“We hit 85 percent of our routines,” Nebraska Coach Francis Allen said. “We were just a little sloppy here and there just enough to let OU run away with it. We’ll take the 85 percent though. We have two weeks to prepare for our next meet. The guys just need to clean up a little. We had a few errors with some of our big hitters and just weren’t sharp, but we have two weeks to prepare for our next home meet.”

Junior John Robinson placed second in the all-around with a score of 82.50 behind Sooner all-arounder Steven Legendre. Junior Daniel Br?l? was the only Husker to crack the top three on the individual events with a third-place finish on high bar.

Nebraska opened the dual on pommel horse with a score of 53.25 behind strong performances by seniors T.J. Schmidt and James Mauldin. Schmidt pulled together a score of 13.65, while Mauldin scored a 13.60. Junior Josh Rusler, a native of Norman, Okla., impressed his hometown crowd with his second-highest pommel horse score of the season with a 13.15. After the first rotation, Nebraska trailed Oklahoma, 58.75-53.25.

The Huskers continued on to floor exercise in the second rotation, tallying a score of 56.65. Br?l? started NU off on the right foot, posting a season-high score of 14.00. Freshman Josh Dilworth led the way for the Huskers with a team-best score of 14.40. The Huskers continued to follow the Sooners after the second rotation, 117.50-109.90.

NU shook the nerves in the third rotation, posting a new team-high on vault with a score of 62.20. Several Huskers held career- and season-high scores on vault, including senior Jacob Ives, who posted a career-high score of 15.15. Sophomore Cory Baumgarten also notched a career-high with a score of 15.40, while Robinson posted a season-high of 15.60 and Dilworth tied his career-high of 15.85. After three rotations, Oklahoma led Nebraska, 177.15-168.35.

Keeping the momentum in the fourth rotation, Nebraska put together a score of 58.45 on still rings. Baumgarten posted another career-high score with a 13.55, while Schmidt posted a career-high score of 14.60. Sophomore Anthony Ingrelli held NU’s top score of with a 14.75. As Nebraska wrapped up its fourth rotation, Oklahoma spread its lead, 241.65-230.55.

The Huskers got off to a good start on high bar in the fifth rotation, as Baumgarten notched yet another career-high score of 13.35. Rusler posted a season-high of 13.90, while junior Kyle Shanahan posted a season-high score of 14.40. Br?l? rounded out the lineup with a score of 14.45 for third place, helping NU to a score of 56.25. After five rotations, Oklahoma held a score of 300.75, while Nebraska held a 286.80.

Nebraska wrapped up the meet on parallel bars, with a score of 55.60. Junior Tony Maras tried his hand at parallel bars for the first time this season, posting a score of 12.55. Junior Stefan Wallof earned a career-high score of 13.25, while Schmidt and Mauldin held the team’s highest scores of 14.50 and 14.30, respectively.

The Huskers will have a two-week break before hosting their last home meet against Minnesota and Arizona State at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Sunday, March 15, at 2 p.m. Husker seniors T.J. Schmidt, James Mauldin and Jacob Ives will be honored during the senior day celebration following the competition.

Team Results Score
1. Oklahoma 358.300
2. Nebraska 342.400

All-Around Results Score

1. Steven Legendre, Oklahoma 90.75

2. John Robinson, Nebraska 82.50

Individual Event Results

Floor Exercise Score

1. Steven Legendre, Oklahoma 15.80

2. Russell Czeschin, Oklahoma 15.10

3. Pat Piscitelli, Oklahoma 14.75

Pommel Horse Score

1. Jason Laughton, Oklahoma 15.00

2. Anthony Naddour, Oklahoma 14.35

3. Steven Legendre, Oklahoma 14.25

Still Rings Score

1. Steven Legendre, Oklahoma 15.15

2T. Kyle McNamara, Oklahoma 14.95

Jacob Messina, Oklahoma 14.95

Vault Score

1. Steven Legendre, Oklahoma 16.50

2. Russell Czeschin, Oklahoma 16.10
3. Bobby Shortle, Oklahoma 16.00

Parallel Bars Score

1. Steven Legendre, Oklahoma 15.15

2. Corey English, Oklahoma 14.85

3. Kyle McNamara, Oklahoma 14.70

High Bar Score

1. Steven Legendre, Oklahoma 15.15

2. Jason Laughton, Oklahoma 14.60

3. Daniel Br?l?, Nebraska 14.45