Battle of the Titans

March 5, 2003

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GymInfo NCAA Rankings

Battle Of The Titans
The Oklahoma men's gymnastics team has returned to the top spot in the GymInfo NCAA weekly poll for the first time since the preseason poll was released. During the collegiate gymnastics season GymInfo releases 11 weekly polls leading up to the NCAA Championships. Since the beginning of the 2001 season, a span of 29 polls, OU has been the top-ranked team 16 times. OU faces its biggest test of the season when No. 3 Ohio State visits the Lloyd Noble Center, along with Stanford, Friday at 7 p.m.

The Oklahoma and Ohio State rivalry began in 2001, when the Buckeyes edged the Sooners for the NCAA title. OU had its revenge by beating the Buckeyes in the Lloyd Noble Center last season and claiming the program's fourth national title.

"The last three years have been a battle with Ohio State," said OU Head Coach Mark Williams. "It's like two titans going after each other. Neither team wants to relinquish any ground. We expect to defend our home turf, like we did at the NCAA's last season. I am definitely looking forward to the challenge they will present. We hope to send a message that we are the No. 1 team and will be when all is said and done."

OU enters the triangular meet in the midst of a number of streaks, most notably the nation's longest current winning streak against collegiate opponents, which stands at 25. OU has won 20 of their last 21 in Norman and hold the nation's longest home winning streak at 13. The Sooners have also improved their team score in every competition this season. OU has defeated the Buckeyes in two straight meetings, both during 2002, when OU also took two of three from Stanford.

The departing senior class of Josh Landis, Daniel Furney, Brett Covey and Shannon Carrion will be honored prior to the meet. The senior class boasts eight All-America honors, six of the seven school records, two current or former national team members (USA and Canada), three team Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships, four individual conference champions and one NCAA National Championship.

OU closes out the regular season with a non-conference dual against Illinois, March 15, at 7 p.m., inside Huff Hall on the Champagne campus. OU then has a week off to prepare for the MPSF Championships, which are hosted by Nebraska and will take place March 28-29, inside the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Admission to Senior Night is $5 for adults and $2 for children. The first 250 fans in attendance will receive free thunder sticks. For more information on tickets, call (800) 456-GoOU.

Weekly Notes
- Last weekend's victory at Minnesota was OU's third over the Gophers in the last two seasons.

- For the second time under the current scoring system (FIG), OU topped the 220 plateau with a score of 220.075 at Minnesota. Ironically, the school record stands at 220.650 and was set by the Sooners in a home meet with Stanford (on of Friday's opponents) and Minnesota last March. OU scored 219.300 to win the national championship last season.

- Just a week after Ohio State skipped Penn State and claimed the top spot in the national polls, the Sooners jumped both squads and moved up to No. 1 from their previous position at No. 3. The key for OU was posting its season-high score on the road, giving OU a two-score average of 218.062, well above Penn State (217.250) and Ohio State (216.362). The rankings are based on top home score, top two away scores and then averaged after dropping the highest score of the three. Individual team event rankings also determine the rotation order at NCAA's.

- A look at the NCAA individual rankings shows why OU is the top ranked team in the country. OU has 24 gymnasts ranked in the top 25 on individual events (including all-around), while Ohio State has 19 and Penn State has 18. Looking just at the top 10, OU has 14, Penn State has 11 and Ohio State has eight.

- OU is currently riding a streak of 25 victories over collegiate opponents. OU's last loss came at Stanford, last March and just a weekend after the Sooners had defeated Stanford inside the Lloyd Noble Center.

- OU has improved its team score in every meet this season.

- OU defeated every opponent remaining on its 2003 schedule during the 2002 regular season.

Sooner Notes
Shannon Carrion - Senior continues to improve on still rings. Has scored 9.300 or higher in last three meets.

Brett Covey - Senior has taken first place on still rings in six of seven meets this season.

Daniel Furney - Senior is finalist for the Nissen Emery Award, given to the NCAA's top gymnast.

Michael Gehart - Scored above 9.0 threshold on vault in six of seven meets this season.

Josh Gore - Consistent sophomore finished third on pommel horse and high bar against Minnesota.

David Henderson - Coach acknowledged his steady improvement and high scores against Minnesota.

Jamie Henderson - Scored impressive 9.150 on pommels and 9.525 on rings against Minnesota.

Josh Landis - Senior has three first place finishes this season and nine top three event finishes.

Heath Mueller - Outstanding on high bar against Minnesota, with 9.275 and second place finish.

James Myers - Freshman has not competed since the Rocky Mountain Open.

Curtis O'Rorke - Did not compete for the first time since season opener when he missed Minnesota meet.

Quinn Rowell - 2002 All-American on high bar has excelled on p-bars this season.

Jock Stevens - Has not competed since Rocky Mountain Open team finals.

Brian Trause - Has put off surgery to repair his torn ACL and will compete on parallel bars and pommel horse this season.

Oklahoma - Ohio State History
- OU has won three of the last four meetings between the schools, including the last two head to head matchups.

- During the last two NCAA championships, the margin of difference between the teams was an average of 0.5 points. The last two regular season contests haven't been as close, with OU winning by an average of 2.06 points.

- During the collegiate gymnastics season GymInfo releases 11 weekly polls leading up to the NCAA's. Since the beginning of the 2001 season, a span of 29 polls, OU has been the top ranked team 16 times, while Ohio State has held the top spot twice. OU has been the preseason No. 1 the last two seasons, while Michigan was the coaches pick in 2001.

- Last week Ohio State and OU were tied with 24 individual competitors ranked in the Top 25 on individual events.

- OU has the most All-Americans over the last two seasons with 19, while Ohio State is second with 14. The All-America honors were spread out between 11 OU gymnasts, while OSU's were given to 7.

- Of the top 10 all time scores under the current scoring system, OU owns six, Ohio State own two and Penn State owns two.

Coach's Points
Coach Williams on his team's rivalry with Ohio State- "The guys have a friendly rivalry because they respect what Ohio State did by winning the title in 2001. Ohio State Head Coach Miles Avery said after the 2002 National Championship that this year's championships will be the rubber match. Our goal is to get a win, which I really feel will give our team a psychological advantage going into NCAA's."

On the departing seniors- "If we acknowledge all of the accomplishments of this class we probably won't be able to fit the meet in Friday. In my 16 years at Oklahoma, this is the most special group we have had. The only class that could compare is the 1991 team that won a national championship, but they weren't as successful from beginning to end. It will be an emotional farewell to their home crowd but they are far from finished. They really want to end their Sooner careers like the 1991 class did.... as NCAA champions."

On senior Daniel Furney- "Daniel Furney has exceeded every expectation I had for him as a Sooner. As a leader, as a student-athlete and as an example to his teammates he has been exemplary. The expectations for him as recruit were as high as anyone in the country. He has lived up to and beyond those standards since the first day he stepped into the gym. He is the leader of my first recruiting class as OU head coach and I couldn't be more pleased with his results as a member of the Oklahoma gymnastics program."

Furney Making A Run At Nissen Award
Senior Daniel Furney has been one of the favorites for the 2003 Nissen Award since the Sooners won the National Championship last season. Furney has only solidified himself among the nation's best since the start of the season. The Senior from New Braunfels, Texas, is currently ranked No. 1 in the all-around, No. 1 on vault, No. 2 on parallel bars and No. 3 on high bar. Furney is the only NCAA gymnast to be ranked in the Top 15 on all six events, including the all-around.

Sooner Streaks
Defending the home floor is the mark of any good team. The Sooners have been exceptional since 1999 both home and away. OU has won 13 consecutive home meets and 20 of 21 in Norman since the beginning of the 1999 season. The Sooners aren't too shabby on the road either, winning 17 of 26 (excluding NCAA Championships) since 1999. Currently, OU had defeated its last 25 collegiate opponents, the nation's longest current streak. OU defeated every opponent remaining on the 2003 schedule during their National Championship run in 2002.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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