Schmidt Grabs Parallel Bars Title at Stanford Open

Palo Alto, Calif. ? Nebraska sophomore T.J. Schmidt, the reigning MPSF Gymnast of the Week, grabbed his fourth event title in three weeks as he earned the parallel bars crown with a score of 9.10 at the Stanford Open in Palo Alto, Calif., on Saturday. The title is Schmidt’s second on the parallel bars, in addition to the pair he owns on the pommel horse this season.

 

“T.J. is reaping the harvest of all the hard work he’s been doing the last few years,” Allen said. “And he’s going to continue to reap those rewards because he’s willing to do the work.”

 

As a team, Nebraska finished third (202.90) of four NCAA squads, with meet-host No. 7 Stanford taking the top spot (209.65) followed by No. 13 California in second (207.50) and Washington in fourth (85.15).

 

Nebraska led the meet through the first three rotations, but struggled through the second half of the meet and dropped to third. The Huskers fell to series history of 0-5 against Stanford and 1-3 against Cal.

 

“Our last three events definitely weren’t our best tonight,” Head Coach Francis Allen said. “We started off looking really sharp and it sort of went downhill after rings. We’re using a lot of freshmen and they probably aren’t in the best routine shape, but we’re going to get there and we’re hoping to do it by next Friday.”

 

Nebraska started on the floor exercise for the first time this season, posting a meet-high team score of 35.25 behind an individual and team season-high mark of 9.35 from freshman Kyle Shanahan. The Monument, Colo., native, who returned to the Husker floor lineup for the Stanford Open after a one-meet absence, scored NU’s highest floor score in over two years and earned his first trip to the podium in third place.

 

Also contributing to Nebraska’s team score were a pair of high scores from freshman Daniel Br?l? and sophomore T.J. Schmidt. Br?l?’s mark of 8.65 was a season-high, while Schmidt notched a career-high of 8.60 over his previous best of 8.20. Schmidt has now bettered his top career mark in every event this season.

 

The Huskers followed up on an outstanding floor performance with a solid team score of 33.40 on the pommel horse. NU was led by Schmidt (8.70), who is currently ranked 13th in the nation on the event. Shanahan and Wassung added season-high marks of 8.30 and 8.05, respectively.

 

Nebraska’s freshmen contingent continued to provide some of its strongest competitors in the still rings, including a season- and team- high performance from freshman Tony Maras for a score of 9.10. Junior Stephen T?trault added a season-high score of 8.55 and the Huskers finished the rings with a team score of 34.45. Through three rotations, Nebraska owned a score of 103.10, leading the meet by more than two points and on track to take the top team spot at the Stanford Open for the first time in Husker history.

 

But the second half of the meet saw Nebraska lose some of the momentum from the first three events, starting with a score of just 32.90 on the vault, its lowest event score of the meet. The Huskers did see a strong performance from sophomore Eric Daigle, who led with a season-high score of 8.40, a major leap over his previous best of 7.90.

 

The momentum NU lost on the vault would continue to plague the Huskers, who posted a team score of 33.15 on the parallel bars just one week after notching a meet-best 35.15 on the event. By the fifth rotation, it seemed that fatigue had taken its toll on Nebraska, with several Huskers struggling to finish their parallel bars routines and stick landings.

 

After getting a break during the vaulting rotation for NU though, Schmidt returned to dominate the parallel bars for the third consecutive week. The Blair, Neb., native pounded out a spectacular performance against Oklahoma and Air Force last week for a career-high score of 9.35 and followed with another solid routine at the Stanford Open for a score of 9.10.

 

Schmidt’s performance reinvigorated Nebraska in the final rotation, which started with a season-high score of 8.35 on the high bar from freshman Adrion Hernandez and ended on a high note with a season-high score of 8.75 from junior Stephen T?trault.

 

But the late surge wouldn’t be enough to catch the two California squads and the Huskers fell to third place in the team standings at the Stanford Open for the second straight season.

                                                                                                                     

After three weeks on the road, the Huskers return to Lincoln next Friday, Feb. 2 for its home-opener against Oklahoma at 7:30 p.m. at the DevaneySportsCenter. The meet is the first of four home duals for the Huskers this season and one of three also featuring the Nebraska women, who will take on the Sooner women this Friday.

 

 

Team Results (NCAA Only)                    Score

1. Stanford                                            209.65                                     

2. California                                           207.50

3. Nebraska                                          202.90 

4. Washington                                       85.15

 

All-Around Results                     Score

1. David Sender, Stanford           53.40

2. Jason Wassung, Nebraska   49.80

3. C.J. Maestas, Gold Cup*        48.85

*Level 10 competitor