Huskers Post Season-High Mark in Final Regular-Season Meet

Lincoln, Neb. - Four Huskers combined for five event titles as ninth-ranked Nebraska earned a season-high team score of 350.550 for second place on Saturday night in front of 600 fans for Senior Night at the Devaney Sports Center in Lincoln, Neb. No. 6 Minnesota took top honors with a team score of 352.150, while Iowa finished third with a score of  345.700.

"We had a really good meet," Nebraska Coach Chuck Chmelka said. "We broke 350 for the first time this season. We went five for five on high bar and didn't count a miss tonight. We gave Minnesota a good run, but they did just a little better than we did. Our practice went really well last week, so we just need to show the guys that if we do good in practice then we'll do good at meets."

Senior Kyle Shanahan had a solid showing in his final regular-season competition, earning first-place finishes on pommel horse and high bar for Nebraska. Junior Anthony Ingrelli notched his third title on the 2010 season with a season-high and team-high score of 15.40 on still rings, while senior Daniel Brûlé earned his first-career parallel bars title with a score of 14.65. Freshman Andreas Hofer also notched his first-career all-around title with a score of 88.40, the best all-around score in Nebraska gymnastics history.

Three Huskers also earned top-three finishes on the night, as Hofer posted second-place finishes on pommel horse, vault and parallel bars and senior Tony Maras notched a third-place finish on still rings.

The Huskers began the meet on floor exercise, while Iowa took to rings and Minnesota was on pommel horse. NU posted a score of 58.25 on floor, as Bear Danley started Nebraska off on floor exercise with a career-high score of 14.50. In his first meet since NU competed against Ohio State nearly one month ago, Brûlé earned a solid score of 14.45 on the event. Sophomore Josh Dilworth also returned to the floor lineup after battling an injury and posted a score 14.40, his second-highest score of the 2010 season. Hofer put together a strong routine, earning scores of 14.90 on the event. After the first rotation, Nebraska led the standings with a 58.25, while Iowa was in second with a score of 58.10 and Minnesota was in third with a score of 54.80.  

 Nebraska posted a season-high mark on pommel horse in the second rotation with a score of 54.60. Shanahan and Hofer earned the top-two scores on the event, respectively. Senior Josh Rusler earned his second-highest score of the 2010 season with a 13.45, while Hofer notched a career-high score of 13.85 for second on the event. Shanahan placed first with a score of 13.95, while sophomore David Jacobs also counted top-four for NU with a 13.35 on the event. After two rotations, Iowa took the lead with a score of 118.05, while Nebraska move to second (112.85) and Minnesota remained in third (112.50).

Behind a first-place showing by still rings specialist Ingrelli, NU notched a season-high team score on rings in the third rotation with a 59.25. Stefan Wallof, who took to the rings for just the second time this season, notched a career-high score of 13.75 on the event, while junior Cory Baumgarten tied his career-high with a score of 14.40. Hofer continued with the Huskers' solid rings routines, posting his second-highest score of the season with a 14.50. Seniors Tony Maras and Shanahan also posted their second-highest scores of the 2010 season with marks of 14.75 and 14.70, respectively. Ingrelli rounded out the lineup with a season-high and 2010 team-high score of 15.30 for first place on the apparatus. A tight team race ensued heading into the fourth rotation, as Minnesota took the lead with a team score of 173.65, Nebraska remained in second with a score of 172.10 and Iowa moved down to third with a score of 170.30.

The Huskers moved on to vault in the fourth rotation, posting a solid team score of 62.55. Hofer led the way for NU, earning a career-high mark of 15.95 on the event for second place. Maras also had a strong showing with a score of 15.65, while Baumgarten posted a score of 15.50. Dilworth rounded out the top-four Nebraska finishers with a score of 15.45. After the fourth rotation, Nebraska regained the lead with a total of 234.65, while Minnesota moved down to second with a score of 230.80 and Iowa remained in third with a team mark of 227.95.

NU kept the momentum in the fifth rotation, posting a team mark on 57.30 on the event.  Brûlé led the way for Nebraska on parallel bars, earning a season-high score of 14.65 on the event for first place. Hofer also put up a solid score for the Huskers with a 14.55, while Wallof and Shanahan earned matching scores of 14.05. Following the fifth rotation, Nebraska kept the lead with a score of 291.95, while Iowa moved up to second with a 290.50 and Minnesota was in third with a score of 288.80.

As the race for first place heated up, the Huskers moved to high bar in the fifth rotation. Danley posted a solid mark of 14.25, while Rusler tied his career-high with a score of 14.50. Brûlé tied his season-high score of 14.35, while Hofer earned a score of 14.65. Shanahan, who had not warmed up on the event, captured his second high bar title of the year with a score of 15.10 for first place. Nebraska earned a score of 58.60 on high bar, however, Minnesota's vault score of 53.35 was too much for the Huskers and the Gophers took first place.

Nebraska will have a two-week break before traveling to Norman, Okla., for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships on Saturday, April 3.