A Closer Look

March 23, 2001

The Sooners surged past all comers to walk away with their third-straight Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) conference championship, scoring 217.725 and setting a new NCAA season high in the process, breaking their own 2001 scoring record (217.3, vs. Ohio State, March 10).

Taking the conference crown, OU finished almost three points ahead of host California (213.925) and more than ten points ahead of third-place Nebraska (205.325). Stanford, Air Force and Santa Barbara rounded out the MPSF line-up.

OU's assault began on parallel bars with outstanding performances by Brendan O'Neil (senior), Everette Bierker (junior) and Daniel Furney (sophomore). Anchor Furney punctuated the Sooners' effort with a stuck double pike dismount and team-high 9.3. The Sooners' first event total --35.825-- put them ahead of the pack, a spot they would never relinquish.

High bar was far from perfect for OU, but Bierker and senior Steve Van Etten came through for the Sooners with solid sets. Van Etten, currently ranked third in nation on this event, earned a 9.1 (Stalder, Tkatchev, both Endo and Stalder full turns, layout full-out dismount).

The Sooners struggled on floor, usually one of their best events, with three missed sets. Top-ranked O'Neil saved the team score with a 9.7 (2-1/2, punch front, front full), his highest mark of the season, to anchor the squad. Despite the errors their 36.8 team total kept them ahead of second-place Cal.

On horse, the Sooners turned in four fairly good routines before 2000 All-American Josh Landis (sophomore) anchored the squad with his best performance of the season (four circles on one to a two-pommel circle to Russian, a bonus sequence valued a .5 tenths).

Moving to rings, the Sooners put the title out of reach, scoring more than two and a half points better than any other squad. OU's strength fest was led by sophomores Brett Covey (9.6) and Shannon Carrion (9.45), alongside junior David Johnston (9.3), a 2000 All-American on this event. In fact, OU racked up the meet's top four scores on the still rings.

"I was blown away by the fact that were able to distance ourselves from Cal by 2-1/2 points and were more than 3-1/2 points ahead of Nebraska in third, just on this one event" head coach Mark Williams said. "To put it into perspective, last year we won this meet by a mere .05. So, to be more than two full points ahead on just one event is really unprecedented. It's a real testament to our strength program at OU and the work these guys put in during the off season."

With their massive lead the Sooners could have coasted through their final event, vault, which has been OU's lowest scoring event this season. Instead, they put forth one of their best efforts with Bierker debuting a new Kas-1/2 for 8.95. Freshman David Iammatteo, filling in for the injured Jock Stevens (see "News and Notes" for details), also performed a solid Kas-1/2 (8.85) and Van Etten stuck a Kas (9.1).

"I'm proud of these guys," Williams said. "They made this a three-peat and of those three titles this has been, by far, the most significant margin of victory. It really highlights the kind of dominance this team has had this season. I think it's a good omen for us to win the conference and break our own NCAA high score by almost five tenths.

"We finished very strong but I still areas that can be improved. If we're firing on all cylinders I think we can still improve upon that score. I'm excited about our chances at NCAAs and think this proves that we're definitely the team to beat."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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