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The Nebraska men’s gymnastics team scored a 215.375 to finish fourth in the team portion of the 2005 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships in Norman, Okla. on Friday, March 25. The Huskers, who have consistently finished fourth for the last four years, followed the top-three placers of Oklahoma (225.65), California (219.725) and Stanford (217.925).
“We just couldn’t get started tonight,” head coach Francis Allen said. “Looking at the last three meets, we were on pace to hit the 218-range and practice went really well yesterday, but when it came time to compete, it just wasn’t there.”
Nebraska was led by freshman Stephen T?trault who banked a 53.075 for NU’s highest all-around finish in third place. T?trault, along with Mace Patterson, Steven Friedman, Jason Wassung and Paul Chumreonlert will also advance to the individual event finals on Saturday, March 26, as one of the top eight competitors on select apparatuses.
“The all-arounders all did a nice job,” Allen said. “But that’s no surprise. We can always depend on them to perform no matter what the circumstances and today was no different.”
The Huskers started the meet on the high bar, notoriously a problematic apparatus for Nebraska. However, it was no problem for Patterson who marked a season-high 9.40 to finish out the rotation. Senior Josh Koopman also earned a season-high score with a score of 8.60.
On the floor exercise, junior Nic Matthews made his season debut with a strong score of 8.65. Senior Steven Friedman recorded Nebraska’s team-high floor score with an 8.95; however the rest of the rotation came in below par as the Huskers managed just a 35.20 team total. The score put Nebraska behind the pace of a highly competitive field, which the Huskers spent the rest of the meet trying to catch.
As NU moved on to the pommel horse, it was revived by a career-high shattering mark of 8.95 from junior Ray Hacker to jump start the event. The trio of Patterson, Wassung and T?trault took over from there and finished off with Patterson scoring a 9.10, Wassung a 9.25 and T?trault a 9.15 en route to a 36.45 team score.
After three rotations, Nebraska sat in fourth place (70.35) behind Stanford (71.40). Oklahoma led the pack with a 73.875, followed closely by 2004 MPSF Champs Cal with a 73.45.
Nebraska’s success continued as it moved to the still rings where senior Adam Tietze banked a career-high 8.75 to leadoff the lineup. Sophomore Paul Chumreonlert, Nebraska’s top ring competitor, followed with a stellar routine that earned him a 9.50.
Then it was Nebraska’s time to shine as it rotated to the vault, an event where the Huskers are currently ranked first in the nation. Friedman and T?trault led the event with scores of 9.35 and 9.45, respectively, while Wassung added a 9.15 and Chumreonlert a season-best tying 9.05 to finish off the event.
With one rotation to go, the Huskers were battling Stanford for third place, 180.525-180.15, and needed a solid parallel bars set to snag the lead. The event began with an outstanding performance from an outstanding senior leader as Friedman earned a career-high score of 9.15. Unfortunately, Nebraska’s remaining efforts weren’t enough to overcome the Cardinal and the Huskers missed out on an opportunity to break into a top-three spot.
“We botched three parallel bars routines right at the end of the meet and that really hurt us,” Allen said. “Now all we can do is re-group and do well tomorrow and try to advance [to the NCAA Championships].”
The 2005 MPSF Championships continue tomorrow, Saturday, March 26 at 2 p.m. with the individual event finals. The Huskers will then wait to find out if they qualify for the NCAA Championships in West Point, N.Y. beginning on Thursday, April 7.
Team Scoring
1. Oklahoma ? 225.65
2. California ? 219.725
3. Stanford ? 217.925
4. Nebraska ? 215.375
5. Air Force ? 197.20
All-Around Score
1. Jonathan Horton ? Oklahoma 56.475
2. Sho Nakamori ? Stanford 54.775
3. Stephen T?trault ? Nebraska 53.075
Nebraska Event Finals Qualifiers
Pommel Horse
Still Rings
Vault
Parallel Bars