No. 1 OU Tops Nebraska, Air Force

NORMAN, Okla. -- The top-ranked Oklahoma men's gymnastics team defeated Nebraska and Air Force for the second time in as many weeks, scoring a 213.200 team total to win its home opener at McCasland Field House.

The Sooners easily outpaced the No. 10 Cornhuskers (203.300) and Falcons (180.950), and had gymnasts win four of the six events.

"We had a lot of improvements," OU head coach Mark Williams said. "We struggled a little bit on pommel horse, but we were just dynamite on floor. The guys just rocked our first event. We're still getting ourselves in a position to feel comfortable in the competition season. It's still early enough that there were some mistakes, but overall I was very happy."

Final Statistics | Schedule | 2007 Stats

Eight Oklahoma gymnasts either set or tied career highs Saturday afternoon. Sophomore Chris Brooks took the floor title with a career-high 9.65, while Jason Laughton set new career marks on pommel horse (8.4) and rings (8.85) and tied for third on the horse.

Other Sooners who set career highs were Ian Jackson (FX, V and HB), Russell Czeschin (FX), Wes Aderhold (FX, tied PB), Joseph Weaver (SR), Corey English (PB) and Garrett Carr (tied HB).

Oklahoma swept the top four spots on floor (Brooks, Jonathan Horton, Czeschin and Aderhold) and high bar (Jackson, Brian Carr, Aderhold and Horton), and also had the still rings and vault champions in Brooks and Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons.

Jackson, competing in just his second collegiate competition, shared the high bar title with teammate Brian Carr (8.75), and was second to Abdullah-Simmons on the rings.

Nebraska senior Jason Wassung took the all-around title with a 50.35. OU did not have an athlete compete. Horton, the 2006 NCAA all-around champion, recently returned from Japan with the U.S. Senior National Team and did not participate on the rings.

"Jonathan's got to get a little bit more time in training," Williams said. "He's still transitioning from being in Japan, so he looked a little bit tired."

Oklahoma will face both Nebraska and Air Force again prior to the 2007 MPSF Championships in Berkeley, Calif. The Sooners travel to Lincoln, Neb. for a Feb. 3 double dual with the women's teams, and will see the Falcons at the Pacific Coast Classic on Feb. 24.

Up next for OU is a Jan. 27 date at No. 8 Michigan. That meet is scheduled for a 6 p.m. (CST) start from Ann Arbor. The Sooners return home to the McCasland Field House on Feb. 16 to take on club teams from the University of Texas and the University of Washington. Contact the OU Ticket Office at (405) 325-2424 for ticket information.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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