NCAA Championships Begin in Norman

NORMAN, Okla. -- The No. 1 University of Oklahoma men's gymnastics team will look to complete its perfect season as the host team of this year's 2006 NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championship, April 6-8, in Norman, Okla.

The 21-0 Sooners are playing host of the championships for the second time in four years at the Lloyd Noble Center. Oklahoma hosted the event in 2002 and won the program's fourth national title. The 2006 event provides OU with the opportunity to win back-to-back national titles for the third time in program history.

The championships, which will showcase the nation's top 12 teams, kick off Thursday, April 6, with two sessions of NCAA Qualifier action. The qualifying sessions will feature six teams apiece with the top three from each session moving on to Friday night's team finals.

2006 NCAA Championships Central | Results

The first session will begin at 1 p.m. and the second, featuring host Oklahoma, at 7 p.m. Friday night will see the crowning of this year's NCAA National Championship squad in the NCAA Finals at 7 p.m. The event will end on Saturday, April 8, with the NCAA Event Finals, which crowns the NCAA individual event champions and All-Americans.

To qualify for Saturday's individual event finals, an individual must finish in the top ten on their respective apparatus in Friday night's competition with no more than three gymnast per school on each event.

The No. 1 Sooners enter the championships after winning their second consecutive and seventh overall Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship with a season-high 219.175 on March 25 in Colorado Springs, Colo.. Following the championships, OU head coach Mark Williams and sophomore Jonathan Horton were named MPSF Coach and Gymnast of the Year, respectively.

Oklahoma Weekly Release (PDF)

The Sooners also picked up three individual MPSF titles. Horton picked up titles on the floor exercise (9.6) and the still rings (9.65) while freshman Chris Brooks earned the high bar title with a 9.525. Horton also finished second on the parallel bars (9.5) and in the all-around (54.1).

The Sooners return to this year's championships with a completely different roster than 2005. After losing seven seniors from the 2005 NCAA title squad, OU head coach Mark Williams has reloaded with seven freshmen to complement the seven returnees from last year's record-setting team.

“We were able to build the team around four returning gymnasts--Jonathan (Horton), Taqiy (Abdullah-Simmons), Jacob (Messina) and Jamie (Henderson),” said Williams. “Having been a part of a national championship, the veterans understand what it takes to win a title and that experience is key in helping teach the newcomers what it takes to win a championship.”

The NCAA Championships will be shown tape-delayed on ESPN2 on April 11 at 1:30 CST.

For tickets please call the OU Athletics Ticket Office at (405) 325-2424 or toll-free at (800) 456-4668.

Looking Back: 2005 NCAA Championships
In 2005, the University of Oklahoma men's gymnastics team capped a tremendous 21-2 season with the program's sixth national title. OU narrowly edged Ohio State for the 2005 crown. The competition between Oklahoma and Ohio State came down to the very last rotation, with OU on the vault and the Buckeyes on the still rings. OU nailed a score of 37.275 to outdistance Ohio State. It came down to the very last attempt on the vault, where then-freshman Jonathan Horton stuck a title-clinching 9.5, tying his career high from the night before.

The following night, OU garnered a school-record 13 All-America honors to go along with the previous night's team title at the 2005 NCAA Men's Gymnastics National Championship in West Point, N.Y. The 13 honors gave the Oklahoma men's gymnastics program 141 All-America honors in its 39 years of existence and 56 under head coach Mark Williams. Horton led the way with five honors, picking up All-American distinction in the all-around and on the floor exercise, still rings, vault and high bar. Josh Gore and David Henderson both picked up two honors with Gore on the pommel horse and parallel bars and Henderson on the vault and still rings.

Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons earned two All-America accolades on the parallel bars and in the all-around. Jamie Henderson and Jacob Messina rounded out OU's last of All-Americans, picking up honors on the still rings and floor exercise, respectively.

Henderson Named Nissen-Emery Finalist
OU senior gymnast Jamie Henderson has been named one of seven finalists for the prestigious Nissen-Emery award. Considered to be the Heisman Trophy of collegiate gymnastics, the Nissen-Emery will be awarded at the 2006 NCAA Men's Gymnastics National Championships banquet on Wednesday, April 6.

Henderson, a Sooner co-captain and three-time All-American on the still rings, has posted 15 top-three finishes this year for the Oklahoma team. The Crosby, Texas native has OU's season-high, 9.2, on the pommel horse. Henderson, if awarded, would become OU's sixth Nissen-Emery winner. The last Sooner to be honored is current OU assistant coach, Daniel Furney, who received the award in 2003.

Other finalists include William & Mary's Ramon Jackson, Penn State's Chad Buczek, Michigan's Gerry Signorelli, Illinois' Justin Spring, Iowa's Michael Reavis and Stanford's Nate Downs.

The Williams Legacy
In 78 years of NCAA men's gymnastics, only eight other coaches have won three or more team titles. Should Mark Williams guide OU to the program's seventh national title, he will be one of six coaches to win four or more national titles. Among those on the elite list include Illinois' Hartley Price (six titles) and Charley Pond (four), Penn State's Gene Wettstone (nine), Nebraska's Francis Allen (eight), Michigan's Newton Loken (four) and Southern Illinois' Bill Meade (four).

Back-to-Back OU
On two previous occasions in the program's history, the Oklahoma gymnastics team has won back-to-back titles. The first feat was accomplished in 1978 after the Sooners won their first national title in program history in 1977 under head coach Paul Ziert. Mark Williams was the next coach in Sooner history to add the feat to his resume, winning consecutive titles in 2002 and 2003.

No. 1 Sooners Cruise to MPSF Title
The No.1 University of Oklahoma men's gymnastics team rolled to its second consecutive and seventh overall Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship with a season-high score of 219.175 at the MPSF Championships in Colorado Springs, Colo., on March 25.

The Sooners defeated No. 2 Stanford (217.075), No. 5 Cal (216.45), No. 11 Nebraska (209.725) and No. 17 Air Force (184.725). The Oklahoma team posted season highs and took team titles on the still rings (38.15), high bar (37.525) and floor exercise (37.3).

The Sooners also picked up three individual MPSF titles. Horton picked up individual titles on the floor exercise (9.6) and the still rings (9.65) while freshman Chris Brooks earned the high bar title with a 9.525. Horton also finished second on the parallel bars (9.5) and in the all-around (54.1).

Horton Named MPSF Gymnast of the Year
One of the main forces behind OU winning its seventh MPSF title was the accomplishments of sophomore co-captain Jonathan Horton. Following this year's championships, the Houston, Texas, native was rewarded by the conference and named the MPSF Gymnast of the Year.

The award comes after a successful regular-season which saw Horton take 11 first-place finishes (four-still rings, three-all-around, three-still rings and one-high bar) and 29 top-three finishes in just seven competitions. Horton also won the Tyson American Cup on March 4 in Philadelphia, Pa., and finished second in the Feb. 4 Winter Cup in Las Vegas, Nev.

Williams Named Co-MPSF Coach of the Year
For the second consecutive year and sixth time in his career, OU head coach Mark Williams was named the Co-MPSF Coach of the Year on March 25 following OU's first-place finish in the conference's championships. Williams shared the honor with Air Force's first-year head coach Kip Simons.

Prior to this year's award, Williams took the honor four years straight from 2000 to 2003 and won the award again in 2005. Williams' Oklahoma team won the MPSF conference title each year and complied an overall record of 114-9.

The Air Up There
While it is very uncommon to see a gymnast top the six-foot mark, the University of Oklahoma gymnastics team has three different gymnasts that accomplish the feat. Junior Brian Carr and freshmen Wesley Aderhold and Russell Czeschin all top the mark with Czeschin registering as the tallest gymnast at OU, measuring in at 6'3”.

While Aderhold has seen action in the all-around, Carr and Czeschin focus on individual events. Czeschin is on the Sooners top gymnasts on the floor exercise and vault, while Carr routinely contributes solid scores on the pommel horse, parallel bars and high bar.

Sooners Hold Steady At No. 1 Ranking
The University of Oklahoma men's gymnastics program enters the NCAA Championships at the top of the list in the new GymInfo poll released last Tuesday and has been there every week since claiming the top spot on Feb. 14, after defeating then-No. 5 Iowa. The Sooners originally took over the lead just three days after Oklahoma beat the Hawkeyes 212.0-206.65 in Iowa City, Iowa. Despite OU's recent success, it was the first time for the program to be ranked No. 1 in a regular-season poll since March 7, 2003.

OU began the 2006 season ranked No. 1 in the GymInfo pre-season coaches poll and then slipped to No. 3 after posting a season-low score of 208.85 at the Rocky Mountain Open. After defeating the Air Force Academy 210.15-171.65, OU moved up a spot to No. 2 before picking up its win over Iowa.

Prior to meeting the Hawkeyes, the Sooners posted the nation's then-highest score of 2006, 216.2, in its Jan. 27 win over current-No. 5 Michigan. OU followed that up by posting a score of 217.3 at the Aquafina Pacific Coast Collegiate Classic. Oklahoma ended the year to date with a season-high 219.175 at the MPSF Championships.

Not only do the Sooners remain the top team overall, but they are also the best team in the nation on the floor exercise, still rings and high bar with averages of 36.760, 37.990 and 37.090, respectively.

Individually, sophomore Jonathan Horton is the nation's top gymnast in the all-around with an average of 53.910 and on the still rings with an average of 9.670 on the apparatus.

Leading by Example
With the exception of head coach Mark Williams, this year's OU coaching staff had no previous collegiate coaching experience entering the 2006 season. However, the staff consisting of Williams and assistant coaches Rustam Sharipov and Daniel Furney, has had their share of success in collegiate and international competition.

During his collegiate career at Nebraska Williams was received All-America honors on the high bar in 1978 after winning the Big Eight individual title on the apparatus. Williams was also a member of two Husker national-title teams in 1979 and 1980.

Sharipov, a former parallel bars specialist, took gold on the event at the 1996 Olympics and also won top honors on the apparatus at the World and European Championships that same year. Sharipov garnered another Olympic gold medal as a member of the Unified Team in 1992.

Furney, a 2004 graduate of Oklahoma, was a member of two NCAA Championship teams (2002 & 2003) and was named the Nissen-Emery winner in 2003 after taking NCAA titles in the all-around and on the parallel bars. During his career at OU, Furney accumulated nine All-America honors, including four during the 2003 season.

Horton Named MPSF Gymnast Of The Week for Third Time
For the third time this season, University of Oklahoma gymnast Jonathan Horton was named the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Gymnast of the Week for the week of March 13. The award comes after the sophomore gymnast won the all-around title (54.5) against No. 2 Stanford and No. 9 Nebraska. Horton also placed second on the floor exercise (9.25) and still rings (9.65) while finishing third on the parallel bars (9.0) and high bar (9.2).

The award marked the third weekly honor that Horton has received from the MPSF this season. Horton received the award for the week of Feb. 20 after finishing first on the still rings with a career-high 9.85 and tied for first on the high bar (9.6) in Oklahoma's wins over No. 2 Ohio State and No. 7 Cal. Horton also placed second on the floor exercise (9.4) in OU's win. The sophomore also took the honor the week of Feb. 6 after finishing second in the Winter Cup.

Horton Named National Gymnast Of The Week for Third Time
For the third time this season, University of Oklahoma gymnast Jonathan Horton was named the College Gymnastics Association National Gymnast of the Week on March 9.

Horton was the unanimous choice after taking first in the all-around to claim the championship at the 2006 Tyson American Cup in Philadelphia, Pa., on Saturday, March 3. The sophomore's 92.5 in the all-around edged out second-place Hisashi Mizutori of Japan's 92.250.

Horton also took first on the still rings with a score of 15.6 and second on the floor exercise (15.5) and vault (16.4). The Houston, Texas native did not finish lower than fourth on any event at the competition held at Temple University.

Horton Wins American Cup
University of Oklahoma gymnast Jonathan Horton finished first in the all-around to claim the championship at the 2006 Tyson American Cup in Philadelphia, Pa., Saturday March 4. The sophomore's 92.5 in the all-around edged out second-place Hisashi Mizutori of Japan's 92.250.

Horton qualified for Saturday's finals after finishing second (91.4) in the all-around behind Mizutori (91.6) in Friday night's competition. Horton also finished first on the still rings (15.35) and floor exercise (15.65) in Friday's competition.

Taking It Higher
After posting a season high at the MPSF Championships, Oklahoma jumped conference rival Stanford for the No. 1 ranking on the high bar. OU's 37.575 was the competition's highest score on the apparatus and improved the team's average to 37.090 to top the Cardinal's 36.700.

Oklahoma remains the nation's best with five gymnasts in the top 20 of the apparatus' individual rankings. Leading the way is sophomore Jacob Messina who is ranked No. 9 on the event with an average of 9.270.

Captain Jamie Henderson follows Messina at No. 10 (9.260). Freshman Chris Brooks, the MPSF high bar champion, follows at No. 12 with an average of 9.2. Junior Brian Carr and senior James Myers round out the group, at No. 15 (9.16) and No. 18 (9.04), respectively.

Brooks (9.525) and Messina (9.45) finished one-two on the apparatus at the MPSF Championships. It was the third time that Brooks has taken first on the event and the fourth time for Messina to finish in the top three on the apparatus.

Flooring the Competition
After posting one of its lowest scores of the season the previous week, Oklahoma rebounded with a season-high 37.3 on the floor exercise and took first on the event at the MPSF Championships. The MPSF score gave OU an average of 36.76 and the No. 1 ranking, topping No. 2 Michigan.

OU was well represented on the event at the MPSF Championships with Jonathan Horton taking the conference title (9.6) and No. 3 ranking (average of 9.49) on the event. Reed Pitts finished third (9.45), followed by Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons at fourth (9.25). Pitts is currently ranked No. 11 on the event with an average of 9.240.

Still Ringing It In
Posting a season-high 38.15 on the still rings helped OU jump out to a early lead at the MPSF Championships and retain its No. 1 ranking on the apparatus. Individually, OU's lowest score of the four counting to the team total was Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons' 9.425. Jonathan Horton narrowly edged teammate Jamie Henderson for first on the event with a score of 9.65. Henderson's second-place 9.625 coupled with Jacob Messina's 9.45 gave OU four solid scores to win the event.

The quartet is a strong presence in the event's rankings as well. Currently, Horton is the nation's top-ranked gymnast on the event with a 9.670 average. Henderson follows with a No. 3 ranking and an average of 9.654 on the event. Henderson and Horton are joined in the top 10 of the event's rankings by No. 6 Abdullah-Simmons (9.440). Messina rounds out the Sooners in the top-20 at No. 11 with an average of 9.290.

Rhymes With Machine
One of the reasons that the OU floor and vault team have excelled in 2006 is the addition of freshman Russell Czeschin. The Independence, Mo., native is a power tumbling specialist who had placed on the floor or vault in every competition that he has competed in for the head coach Mark Williams prior to OU's competition with Stanford and Nebraska. The freshman just missed out placing on the floor exercise at the March 11 competition, finishing fourth with a 8.9. Czeschin is currently ranked No. 10 on the vault.

Czeschin opened the season with a third-place finish on the floor (8.85) at the Rocky Mountain Open. Then, after taking both the floor and vault title in OU's win over Air Force, he was named Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Gymnast of the Week. After receiving the MPSF honor, he picked up second the vault (9.15) and third on the floor (9.1) against Michigan before taking third on both the floor (9.2) and vault (9.35) against Ohio State and Cal. The freshman followed up that performance by taking the vault title (9.25) at the Pacific Coast Collegiate Classic and finishing third on the apparatus against Nebraska.

Sooner Notes
Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons- Set a career high on the floor exercise (9.25) in MPSF Championships
Wesley Aderhold- Posted a career-high 9.0 on the floor exercise at MPSF Championships
Chris Brooks- Won the MPSF high bar title with a 9.525
Brian Carr- Had a career-high 9.25 on the high bar at MPSF Championships
Garrett Carr- Tied teammate Russell Czeschin for sixth on the vault (9.25) at MPSF Championships
Russell Czeschin- Tied teammate Garrett Carr for sixth on the vault (9.25) at MPSF Championships
Jamie Henderson- Finished second on the still rings (9.625) in MPSF Championships
Jonathan Horton- Took MPSF titles on the floor exercise (9.6) and still rings (9.65)
Jason Laughton- Did not see action at MPSF Championships
Kyle McNamara- Did not see action at the MPSF Championships
Jacob Messina- Finished second on the high bar (9.45) at the MPSF Championships
James Myers- Saw action on the floor, rings, vault and high bar at MPSF Championships
Reed Pitts- Finished third on the floor exercise (9.45) at MPSF Championships
Joseph Weaver- Contributed scores on the still rings and parallel bars at MPSF Championships

Viva Las Vegas
Jonathan Horton's performance in the Winter Cup was not the first time that the sophomore has excelled in the city of lights. In 2005, as a freshman, Horton qualified for the U.S. National Team after finishing first on the floor (8.95) and fourth on the vault (8.975). The Houston, Texas native also finished eighth in the all-around with a score of 51.181. Following both occasions, Horton was named MPSF Gymnast of the Week.

Horton Receives National Honor
Just one day after being named Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Gymnast of the Week, University of Oklahoma gymnast Jonathan Horton garnered another honor when he was named the College Gymnastics Association National Gymnast of the Week on Feb. 8.

The award, which is a product of a national coaches poll, comes after a successful weekend that saw Horton being named to the U.S. Senior National Team after finishing second in the all-around at the 2006 Winter Cup.
The sophomore captain also finished third on the floor exercise, still rings and high bar at the event.

Oklahoma No. 1 in Preseason Poll
The Oklahoma men's gymnastics team, coming off its third national title in four years, was voted No. 1 in the GymInfo Coaches' poll.

The Sooners received five first place votes followed by Illinois (4), Ohio State (4) and Stanford (1). OU has been the preseason No. 1 team in each of the last five seasons and ranked in the top five of the preseason poll over each of the last nine seasons.

OU was voted No. 1 prior to last season and went on to win the program's sixth national title in West Point, N.Y.

Horton Named To U.S. National Team
On Feb. 4, OU's Jonathan Horton was named to the U.S. Senior National Team after finishing second in the all-around (177.5) at the Winter Cup finals in Las Vegas, Nev. Horton finished just two-tenths of a point behind champion David Durante's 177.7. The appointment marks Horton's third straight stint with the national team.

With Horton's finish in the all-around, the Houston, Texas, native was invited to represent the U.S. in the prestigious American Cup on March 4, in Philadelphia, Pa. The sophomore also finished third on the floor exercise, still rings and high bar with two-day combined scores of 30.05, 30.55 and 30.35, respectively.

Oklahoma's Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons and Jamie Henderson also competed in Saturday night's Winter Cup finals. Abdullah-Simmons finished eighth and Henderson 24th, despite not competing on the floor exercise or vault in Saturday night's competition. Abdullah-Simmons also finished fifth on the parallel bars with a two-day combined score of 29.55. Henderson finished sixth on the still rings (29.25).

Henderson And Czeschin Receive MPSF Honors
Senior Jamie Henderson and freshman Russell Czeschin were named Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Gymnasts of the Week on Tuesday when the conference announced the honor for the first three weeks of the 2006 season.

Henderson received this week's honor (Jan. 30) after posting season highs and taking first place honors on still rings (9.65) and high bar (9.5) in OU's win over then-No. 6 Michigan. Henderson helped the Sooner team post the nation's highest score of the 2006 season, 216.2, in its defeat of the Wolverines.

Czeschin received his honor for the week of January 23 after the Air Force meet in which he won the vault title with a career-high 9.25 and tied for first place on the floor exercise (9.05). That performance came one week after the Independence, Mo., native captured the floor exercise championship (8.85) at the Rocky Mountain Open in Colorado Springs, Colo.

40 Years
The beginning of the 2006 season marks the 40th anniversary for the University of Oklahoma men's gymnastics program. During that time period, the Sooners have excelled by winning six NCAA Championships, 18 NCAA Individual Championships, 141 All-America honors, 14 conference championships (7 in MPSF and 7 in Big Eight), 94 individual conference champions and five Nissen Emery awards.

Additionally, four coaches (Russ Porterfield, Paul Ziert, Greg Buwick and Mark Williams) accumulated an all-time record 436-160-1, a winning percentage of 73.1 percent in those 40 years. The Oklahoma program has been responsible for placing 15 gymnasts on the U.S. Senior National Team and sent two members of its program to the Olympics on four different occasions.

Williams Signs English
Oklahoma men's gymnastics coach Mark Williams announced the signing of Corey English on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2005. The Covington, La., native is a former club teammate of current Sooners Brian and Garrett Carr.

“We are excited to announce the addition of Corey English to the Oklahoma men's gymnastics program,” said Williams. “We feel like he'll be a good fit for our system and will be someone who can contribute to our recent success.”

English, who trains at the Mandeville Sports Complex under Alexandre Shostak, finished second in the all-around at the 2005 Louisiana Gymnastics State Championships. In 2004, English took the all-around title at the Louisiana State Championships. The past three years, English has qualified for the U.S. Junior Nationals Championships. English attends St. Paul's High School and is the son of Wayne and Sandra English.

Horton Leads U.S. to Pan-Am Gold
University of Oklahoma sophomore gymnast Jonathan Horton finished a team-best fifth in the all-around, with a score of 52.650, and helped lead the U.S. team to a gold medal in the 2005 Pan American Championships in the October 8th competition in Rio de Janeiro.

Along with helping the U.S. team establish the top team score of 159.825, Horton posted the night's top score on the vault with a 9.525.

The U.S. team, led by OU head coach Mark Williams and University of Minnesota coach Mike Burns, consisted of Horton, David Durante, Joseph Hagerty and Guillermo Alvarez. OU senior Jamie Henderson was the team's alternate.

In the following day's event finals, Horton placed eighth on the vault and high bar with scores of 8.675 and 8.175, respectively. Alvarez took silver on the floor exercise and Hagerty took bronze on the high bar.

The Pan Am Championships is a qualifying tournament for the 2007 Pan American Games, slated for July 13-29, in Rio de Janeiro. In 2003, Horton tied for fourth in the all-around and was a member of the U.S. team that finished third at the Pan American Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Men's Gymnastics in the Community
Despite classes of their own and training for the upcoming 2006 season, the members of the University of Oklahoma men's gymnastics team still find time in their busy schedule to make weekly visits to Cleveland Elementary in Norman, Okla.

Cleveland Elementary program coordinator Regina Bell along with OU head coach Mark Williams have instituted a program that works for both sides. Gymnasts are assigned to assist a specific teacher with day-to-day activities, which include reading, practicing grammar skills and math exercises.

“As the coordinator of the program I have witnessed some wonderful things happen in a very short time with the partnership,” said Bell. “Kids come to my room telling me they read with Jamie Henderson, saw Jonathan Horton's muscles, or played a math game with Wes Aderhold or Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons. These personal moments add up, the kids want to come to school to see their gymnast. The gymnasts are making these kids feel so special.”

On Friday, Sept. 23, students of Cleveland Elementary and the OU gymnastics team will participate in the school's only fund raiser. Survivor Jog-A-Thon 2005 is an event that all the students participate in by wearing race t-shirts and competing in various events to help raise funds for the school. The event will be a fund-raiser for the school's music and physical education departments. Additionally, the event will help fund teacher training and curriculum support. The gymnasts along with their head coach will all be competing in the event throughout the day.

“The guys really enjoy the interaction with the students and the kids are always excited to see them,” added OU coach Williams. “The kids really look up to them because of their position in OU athletics. It makes the guys on the team appreciate what they do and appreciate that they are important in another child's life by helping in the classroom and serving as a positive role model.”

The interest in the sport of gymnastics has also peaked at Cleveland Elementary. The gymnasts have been spreading their knowledge of the sport to the students. In a school-wide assembly, a video of past meets was shown to the students and in the future, the team will put on a gymnastics demonstration for the entire school.

“The gymnasts have opened their arms to the kids and the staff,” added Bell. “They have shared tons of information about themselves and the sport of gymnastics. This partnership proves that you can never be too young or too busy to volunteer.

“These student athletes have a full class schedule, workouts, and laundry and yet they still find time to come and visit a school and touch the life of a child. To me that is the best lesson that can be taught and it makes me proud to be an OU alum and coordinator of this program.”

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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