Nebraska Heads West for Stanford Open

No. 9 Nebraska at the Stanford Open
Jan. 28, 9 p.m. CT (7 p.m. PT)
Stanford, Calif. (Burnham Pavilion)
Teams Participating: Nebraska, Stanford, California

The No. 9 Nebraska men's gymnastics team (3-2) will head to the west coast this weekend for a top ten matchup with No. 5 California and No. 6 Stanford at the Stanford Open on Saturday. The meet will begin at 7 p.m. PT (9 p.m. CT) and will take place at Burnham Pavilion in Stanford, Calif.

The meet will not have live stats available, but fans can follow the team on Twitter
(@NebraskaMGym) for live updates on scoring during the meet.

Nebraska in the National Rankings
The Huskers rose one spot to No. 9 in this week's GymInfo poll, released on Monday, Jan. 23. Nebraska also maintained their sixth place position among Big Ten teams while moving up to fourth in the West region. Oklahoma moved back into the No. 1 position of the latest poll, which is calculated by average team score. In individual events, NU is ranked 12th on floor exercise (54.400), fifth on pommel horse (55.225), tenth on still rings (55.775), seventh on vault (57.750), ninth on parallel bars (56.100) and ninth on high bar (54.675).

The Huskers also had five individuals ranked nationally in the latest polls, including three on pommel horse. Sophomore Eric Schryver leads the Huskers on that event, coming in at seventh (14.450). Sophomore Wyatt Aycock is tenth (14.225), while senior Andreas Hofer is 18th (13.950). NU added two athletes on vault, with Wyatt Baier eighth nationally (14.800) and Aycock 17th overall (14.500). Senior David Jacobs is 19th on high bar (14.025), and Hofer came in at 13th in all-around (82.200).

Scouting the Stanford Cardinal
Head Coach: Thom Glielmi
2012 Record: 1-1
2012 High Score: 345.200 (vs. California, 1/21/12)

No. 6 Stanford has faced No. 5 California two times to begin 2012, going 1-1 so far in those meets with both teams winning on their home floors. The Cardinal lost six All-Americans from last season's national championship team that posted an overall record of 24-3.

Stanford is led this season by junior Eddie Penev, who is ranked third nationally in all-around (88.550). Penev has won the all-around title in both of Stanford's meets this season.

Stanford's strength so far this season has been on vault, where they are ranked second nationally (58.675). Redshirt freshman Sean Senters is ranked first nationally on vault (15.250) and Penev is sixth (14.900). The Cardinal is also fifth as a team on both floor exercise (58.325) and still rings (57.425).

Scouting the California Golden Bears
Head Coach: Tim McNeill
2012 Record: 1-1
2012 High Score: 340.900 (vs. Stanford, 1/13/12)

No. 5 California is in its second season under former Cal standout Tim McNeill. McNeill guided the Golden Bears to a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships last season and is looking for similar success this year.

The Golden Bears are led by junior Dennis Mannhart, who holds a fifth place national ranking on parallel bars (14.800) and third place ranking on high bar (15.100).

California has been excellent thus far in 2012 on pommel horse, holding a national ranking of second (56.525). The Golden Bears are led on horse by senior Glen Ishino, who is first in the nation (15.300). Sophomore Matthew del Junco is also ninth nationally for Cal (14.300). Additionally, California is third nationally on parallel bars (56.700) and fourth on high bar (56.550).

Looking Ahead
The Huskers will have two weeks off from team competition until Feb. 11, when the Big Red will hit the road for Iowa City, Iowa in their first conference meet of the year. Nebraska will take on No. 13 Iowa and No. 8 Minnesota at 7 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Last Time Out: Nebraska Upends Air Force in Lincoln
The Nebraska men's gymnastics team defeated Air Force 336.55-331.75 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Sunday, Jan. 21. The victory came just one week after the Falcons edged the Huskers at the Rocky Mountain Open.

Nebraska captured five event titles on the day, led by senior all-arounder Andreas Hofer. Hofer posted a total score of 82.20, including a 14.75 on vault and a 14.00 on still rings. NU was also powered by strong performances from several freshmen. Gabriel Jolley exploded for a 14.85 on vault, the highest mark by any athlete on the day and the best vault mark for the Huskers so far this season. Freshman Grant Perdue added his first event title with a 14.15 on vault, while sophomore Eric Schryver picked up the pommel horse event title with a mark of 14.70. Senior David Jacobs snagged NU's final event title on the day, posting a 14.45 on high bar.

The Huskers started the afternoon on floor, led by Perdue's mark of 14.15. Senior Will Eastman contributed a 13.55, leading NU to a team total of 54.60 after one rotation.

Nebraska moved to pommel horse, tallying a team score of 56.95 that included Schryver's 14.70. Sophomore Wyatt Aycock garnered a career-high mark on horse, picking up a score of 14.65.

The Huskers moved to rings, where Wyatt Baier led the Big Red with a career-high score of 14.15. Hofer added a 14.00 as the Huskers totaled 54.75 on the event.

The Huskers had a strong team performance on vault, posting a score of 58.90. Jolley's top mark of 14.85 was the highest vault score by Nebraska this season. Junior Wyatt Baier (14.80) and senior Andreas Hofer (14.75) recorded the second and third place performances, respectively.

With two events remaining, NU continued to lead the Falcons, 225.20-219.00. Nebraska moved to parallel bars, where Aycock led the Huskers with a mark of 14.25, good for second overall.

Nebraska wrapped up its victory on high bar, powered by Jacobs' performance. Eastman also contributed a 14.25 to help the Huskers to an event score of 55.25 and the dual victory.

Nebraska Joins Top Men's Gymnastics Programs in Big Ten
The 2012 campaign will mark the beginning of a new era for NU men's gymnastics, as the team begins its first season as competitors in the Big Ten in January. The traditional strength of the conference in men's gymnastics points toward a competitive season for the Big Red.

The No. 9 Huskers were picked to finish sixth in the Big Ten Men's Gymnastics Preseason Coaches' Poll, illustrating the top-to-bottom strength of the conference. Three-time defending conference champion Illinois topped the poll, while Michigan and Penn State rounded out the top three.

Two Huskers were named to the Big Ten's 2012 Gymnasts to Watch list in the preseason. Senior Andreas Hofer and sophomore Wyatt Aycock were listed among the 14 conference gymnasts. Hofer has competed in the individual all-around finals at the NCAA Championships two times and finished in a tie for 11th at the 2011 NCAA Championships. Aycock will be looking to improve on his freshman campaign in which he posted a school record mark of 88.60 in all-around competition against Iowa and Minnesota.