OU to Defend NCAA Crown Tonight

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. Second-ranked Oklahoma is one step closer to a third straight national title, finishing second in the second preliminary session at the 2007 NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championships. Oklahoma recorded a 218.600 team score at Recreation Hall on the campus of Penn State University. The home team finished first with a 218.900 and Minnesota also qualified with a 216.900.

OU will be the No. 2 seed in tonight's championship round.

“We're happy to advance,” said OU head coach Mark Williams. “There are certainly some areas where we can improve but overall I was pleased with our performance. We're looking forward to a great competition.”

Scoring event wins for Oklahoma were Jonathan Horton (FX, SR) and Chris Brooks (HB). Horton also finished second in the all-around standings with a 54.35 total.

Final Scores | Session One Results | Postseason Guide

The Sooners started on parallel bars, one of the team's strongest events. Sophomore Chris Brooks scored a solid 8.9, his best score on the apparatus since undergoing shoulder surgery early in the season, while classmate Jason Laughton counted a 9.05, Junior Taqiy Abdullah-Simmons added a 9.35 and junior co-captain Jonathan Horton finished up the event with an 8.9.

On the high bar, sophomore Kyle McNamara opened with a 9.2, his second-best score of the year. Laughton counted an 8.95, while Brooks scored a season-high 9.4 on the apparatus. Senior co-captain Brian Carr contributed an 8.75 to give the Sooners a team total of 36.300 on the event.

On floor, freshman Ian Jackson, a Harrisburg, Pa. native, earned his second-highest score of the season with a 9.25. Russell Czeschin followed with a 9.5, tying his second-best score of the year and Brooks added a 9.3. Horton was OU's final floor competitor, scoring a 9.65.

Because of an added rotation for individual qualifiers, OU had a bye before moving on to the pommel horse. Garrett Carr led off with a season-high 8.45 with Jackson following with a career-best 8.3. Laughton scored an 8.7 before Abdullah-Simmons added a season-high 8.75 and Horton finished with an 8.55. The Sooners finished with a team total of 34.500, their fourth-best of the year.

Moving to rings, Oklahoma opened with a 9.2 from Laughton. Pennsylvania natives Jackson and Abdullah-Simmons each scored career bests with a 9.5 and 9.7, respectively. Horton stuck the Sooners' final routine, earning a 9.8. Though they did not count towards the OU's season-high team total of 38.200, both Joseph Weaver (8.95) and McNamara (9.15) also set new career marks on rings.

On vault, OU's final event of the night, Brooks started with an 8.7, followed by McNamara's 8.85. Jackson scored an 8.95, while Garrett Carr scored a season-high 9.0 and Horton added an 8.9 to close out the event.

“We're definitely excited,” Horton said. “I'm proud of the way our guys performed tonight and tomorrow is going to be an exciting, intense competition.”

Advancing to the team finals from Session One were Stanford (216.350), Illinois (216.300) and Michigan (215.350). Top-ranked Ohio State missed qualifying for the finals for a second consecutive year.

The team finals are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. (CT) from Recreation Hall. Live scores will be available on SoonerSports.com, as well as GoPSUSports.com. ESPN2 will air the championoship meet on Tuesday, April 17 at 12:30 p.m. (CT).

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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