Seven Huskers Hunt NCAA All-America Honors

Minneapolis, Minn. ? Seven Nebraska gymnasts will move on to compete for 2009 NCAA All-America honors at the Minnesota Sports Pavilion in Minneapolis on Friday, April 17, and Saturday, April 18.<?xml:namespace prefix="o" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"?>

 

Junior Kyle Shanahan competed in the all-around for the first time this season and earned a spot in Friday’s all-around finals to vie for All-America honors at 7 p.m. Central.

 

In addition, six Huskers will be representing Nebraska at the 2009 NCAA Individual Event Qualifier, which will be held on Saturday, April 18, at 7 p.m. Central. Seniors co-captains T.J. Schmidt and James Mauldin both earned spots in the pommel horse and parallel bars lineups, while freshman Josh Dilworth earned spots in the floor exercise and vault lineups. Junior John Robinson will compete Saturday on vault, while ringmen Tony Maras and Anthony Ingrelli will compete on still rings.

 

As a team, Nebraska made a tough push to make it into the top-three team qualifiers, which would have qualified them for the team finals. However, Nebraska scored a 346.800 as a team, which was not quite enough to make the top-six teams. Stanford topped the session with a team score of 361.100 and moves on to the team finals, while both Michigan (358.300) and California (357.550) will also vie for the 2009 NCAA team crown.

 

“We did a really good job today,” Nebraska Coach Francis Allen said. “This was really a turning point for us. We scored one of our highest team scores of the season. We struggled on parallel bars and really needed to help ourselves on that event, but we hung in there. Some of the judges were talking about how our team has really improved today. I’m proud of the team.”

 

NU began the 2009 NCAA Championships on still rings for the third-consecutive year. The Huskers pulled together one of their highest scores of the 2009 season with a 59.20. Shanahan started NU off on the right foot, posting a season-high score of 14.05. Robinson followed with a score of 14.55, his second highest score of the season. Senior co-captain T.J. Schmidt had an impressive showing on rings, notching a career-high score of 14.75, while junior Tony Maras wowed his home state crowd with a score of 14.95. Freshman Anthony Ingrelli rounded out the still rings lineup with another 14.95, his best showing since the NU dual against Minnesota on March 15. After the first rotation, Stanford led the competition with a 63.85, while Nebraska was second with a 59.20. California was third with a 58.70, while Penn State was fourth (57.45) and Michigan was fifth (56.65).

 

The Huskers moved to vault in the second rotation, earning a score of 61.30. Senior Jacob Ives notched one of his highest scores of the season with a 15.15. Shanahan competed on the event for the first time in the 2009 season, earning a score of 14.85. Despite several falters mid-lineup, Robinson pulled together for Nebraska posting a 15.60, his best score since NU’s meet against Minnesota on March 15. Freshman Josh Dilworth closed off the lineup with a score of 15.70, the highest of any Husker on vault at the 2009 Championships. After two rotations, Nebraska remained in second with a 120.50, while Stanford stayed in first (122.50), Penn State was in third (117.65) and Michigan moved to fourth (115.50). Both Navy and Cal had byes and held scores of 51.60 and 58.70, respectively.

 

Nebraska struggled on parallel bars in the third rotation, earning a score of 55.85. Junior Daniel Brule made an appearance on the apparatus for the first time in several meets after suffering an ankle injury. The Georgia native came out swinging with a score of 13.60, his second highest of the season, while Shanahan also posted a score of 13.60. Senior co-captain James Mauldin stepped up for the Huskers, capturing a season-high score of 14.40. Schmidt rounded out the lineup with a 14.25. After the third rotation, Stanford (181.40) and Nebraska (176.35) held on to the top-two slots.

 

The Huskers posted another score of 55.85 on high bar in the fourth rotation. Freshman Bear Danley started Nebraska off with a score of 14.00, his second-highest score of the 2009 season. Brule and junior Josh Rusler added scores of 13.85 a piece, while Dilworth contributed to the Nebraska team score with a 13.90. Shanahan earned Nebraska’s top score with a 14.10. Following the fourth rotation, Stanford stayed in first (242.40), Nebraska held on to second (232.20), Cal was in third (177.40), Michigan was in fourth place (175.90), Penn State was in fifth (173.20) and Navy remained in fifth (165.20). Although the Huskers held a score of 232.20, neither Nebraska nor Stanford had sat out in the bye rotation.

 

Nebraska notched a score of 58.25 on floor exercise in the fifth rotation, one of NU’s best scores on the event since the beginning of the season. Danley again began the rotation for NU, notching a season-high score of 13.20. Robinson posted his second-highest score of the season with a 14.50, while Schmidt earned a 14.10 for the second competition in a row. Shanahan earned a score of 14.60, his second-best score of the 2008 season. Dilworth finished up the fifth rotation for NU, capturing a team-best score of 15.00. Following the fifth rotation, Nebraska took the lead with a score of 290.40.  

 

After resting in the sixth rotation with a bye, NU moved to pommel horse in the seventh and final rotation. Nebraska earned one of its highest pommel horse scores of the season with a 56.25. Rusler stepped up for the Huskers, earning a career-high score of 13.60. Robinson followed suit, producing one of his top scores of the season with a 13.15. Shanahan posted a 13.90, his second-best score of the year, while Mauldin earned a 13.80. Schmidt rounded out the pommel horse lineup with a team-best 14.95, his second-best score of the 2009 season.

 

Despite leading throughout most of the competition, Nebraska was unable to stay among the top-three teams and fell to fifth in the first qualifying round with a score of 346.800. While Stanford, California and Michigan move on to tomorrow night’s team finals, six other teams will compete tonight at 7 p.m. to determine the last three qualifiers. The final six teams will compete on Friday, April 17, at 7 p.m. to determine the 2009 NCAA team champion, while the NCAA all-around champion will also be crowed tomorrow night. Individual event champions and All-American honors will be awarded Saturday, April 18, at 7 p.m.

 

Final Team Results

1)       Stanford ? 361.100

2)       Michigan ? 358.300

3)       California ? 357.550

4)       Penn State ? 352.150

5)       Nebraska ? 346.800

6)       Navy ? 327.000

 

Gymnast	FX	PH	SR	V	PB	HB	AA
Cory Baumgarten				14.35
Daniel Brule					13.60	13.85
Bear Danley	13.20	11.85			12.95	14.00
Josh Dilworth	15.00			15.70		13.90
Anthony Ingrelli			14.95
Jacob Ives				15.15
Tony Maras			14.95	14.15
James Mauldin		13.80	14.40		14.40
John Robinson	14.50	13.15	14.55	15.60	13.10	12.80	83.70
Josh Rusler	14.15	13.60				13.85
T.J. Schmidt	14.10	14.95	14.75		14.25
Kyle Shanahan	14.60	13.90	14.05	14.85	13.60	14.10	85.10

NU Event Scores
Still Rings: 59.20
Vault: 61.30
Parallel Bars: 55.85
High Bar: 55.85
Floor Exercise: 58.25
Pommel Horse: 56.25