Sooners Earn MPSF Academic Honors

April 22, 2008

NORMAN, Okla. - The Mountain Pacific Sports Federation announced Tuesday that five members of the national champion Oklahoma men's gymnastics team have been selected as Academic All-MPSF honorees. The Sooners have placed at least five gymnasts on the Academic All-MPSF Team in each of the past four seasons.

Junior Jacob Messina, an environmental science major, earned his third consecutive conference honor, while classmates Chris Brooks (management) and Russell Czeschin (health and exercise science) earned their second straight MPSF awards.

Garnering their first Academic All-MPSF distinctions were sophomore Reed Pitts (health and exercise science) and senior Jonathan Horton (management).

Brooks (PB, HB), Czeschin (FX) and Pitts (FX) also earned All-America honors at the 2008 NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championships, April 17-19, as Oklahoma brought home its third title in the last four years in fifth in the last seven.

Horton, one of the Sooners' team co-captains, won an individual NCAA title on rings and was named All-American in the all-around and on rings and parallel bars. The Houston, Texas, native was also presented with the 2008 Nissen-Emery Award, recognizing the nation's top collegiate gymnast.

To be eligible for the Academic All-MPSF Team, student-athletes must carry a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better, be at least a sophomore academically and completed one full academic year at their institution and competed in 50 percent or more of their team's gymnastics competitions.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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