No. 2 Sooners Battle No. 9 Nebraska

Feb. 27, 2009

No. 2 Men's Gymnastics vs. No. 9 Nebraska
Date	Saturday, Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. (CT)
Location	Norman, Okla. \| Howard McCasland Field House
Notes	2009 Men's Gymnastics Notes
Tickets	OU Athletics Ticket Office \| Call (800) 456-GoOU
Online	Live Webcast on Oklahoma All-Access \| Live Stats
Promotions	Men's Gymnastics

NORMAN, Okla.--The No. 2 Oklahoma men's gymnastics team hosts its third opponent of the season on Saturday, Feb. 28, against the University of Nebraska. The matchup between the Sooners and No. 9 Huskers is slated for a 7 p.m. start at Howard McCasland Field House.

The Sooners are coming off their third top 10 win this past weekend against then-No. 10 Iowa. This weekend marks the third time that OU has faced the Huskers this year, with Oklahoma winning the two previous meet at the Rocky Mountain Open (355.000-332.400) and in Lincoln, Neb. (354.300-337.600).

“Nebraska has moved up in the rankings since the last time we competed against them and we are looking forward to the meet Saturday,” said head coach Mark Williams.”

Schedule & Results | Roster | 2009 Season Preveiw

This weekend will be the third home meet of five scheduled for Oklahoma, with the University of Texas club team and Iowa already having visited. Big Ten conference foes Ohio State and Penn State mark the final two remaining meets before the MPSF Conference Championships on April 4 in Palo Alto, Calif.

“This is the first in several home meets before the conference championships,” added Williams. “This meet will be good preparation for upcoming meets and the postseason.”

The first 250 fans on Saturday will receive an OU Stocking Cap. Fans will also have an opportunity to see Aim High Academy from Tulsa perform prior to the meet and Norman Shock Cheer from Norman perform immediately following the meet.

Everyone in attendance will receive a free OU men's gymnastics poster while supplies last and the team will sign autographs in the lobby following the competition.

This will be the last time that the Sooners will be available for autographs this season.

Coming up next...
After hosting the No. 9 Huskers on Feb. 28, Oklahoma travels to the site of the 2009 NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championship in Minneapolis, Minn. to compete against No.6 Minnesota and conference rival No.3 Stanford.

Another Top-Ten Goes Down…
Last weekend marked the third top-10 victory for the Oklahoma Men's Gymnastics team this year after Sooners defeated then-No. 10 Iowa. Oklahoma men's gymnastics team claimed all six event titles en route to its fourth straight victory with a victory over the Hawkeyes.

Oklahoma will go for its fourth victory of the season over a top ten foe when it battles No.9 Nebraska Feb. 28.

Cleveland Night a Success…
The Sooners scored a 354.250 to beat the Hawkeyes (336.000) in front of 779 fans, many of them being students and parents from Cleveland Elementary in Norman, Okla.

“It was nice to see the students and parents from Cleveland Elementary come and support us tonight,” said OU head coach Mark Williams. “They really add energy to our team and the way we compete.”

The annual Cleveland Elementary event is part of a "Partners in Education" program developed by Oklahoma Head Coach Mark Williams and Cleveland Elementary music teacher Regina Bell. OU gymnasts make weekly visits to the school to assist teachers with class activities and to help tutor students in math, grammar and reading.

Trio of National Team Members...

The University of Oklahoma men's gymnastics program posted another impressive feat at the Winter Cup Challenge in Las Vegas, Nev. on Feb. 7. Following strong performances by senior co-captain Chris Brooks and sophomore Steven Legendre, the Sooners now have three members on the U. S. Senior National Team. The two current Sooners are joined by Olympian Jonathan Horton.

No other NCAA Division I men's gymnastics program has more members on Senior National Team than Oklahoma and it marks most National Team members that the Sooners have had since 1994 (4).

Brooks finished fifth in the weekend competition and recorded a two-day total of 173.500. Posting an all-around score of 87.100 for the final night, the Houston, Texas, native improved on rings (14.300), vault (15.700), and parallel bars (14.800) to help his average.

After posting stronger scores in the final night of competition, Legendre finished seventh in the weekend competition and recorded a two-day total of 172.050. The Port Jefferson, N. Y., native improved his routine scores on floor (15.550), rings (14.750), and parallel bars (14.400) to finish the night with an all-around score of 87.650.

Sooners Promote Cleveland Night...
The Oklahoma men's gymnastics team took a break from workouts Friday morning to participate in an exhibition for students at Norman's Cleveland Elementary School. The OU coaches and gymnasts made their annual visit prior to "Cleveland Elementary Night."

As a special treat for Cleveland's students, the team performed a gymnastics demonstration at a school assembly. The Sooners showed off some of their skills on floor exercise and parallel bars for a packed audience in the Cleveland Elementary gymnasium.

Legendre Impresses...
Oklahoma sophomore Steven Legendre was named the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Gymnast of the week on Jan. 21.

The honor was the first of the season for Legendre and the third of his career.

Oklahoma gymnasts claimed all of the individual titles at the Rocky Mountain Open with the help of the Port Jefferson, N.Y., native winning event titles on floor (15.350), vault (15.900), parallel bars (14.950), and high bar (14.700). Legendre also claimed his second Rocky Mountain Open all-around title with an 89.400.

Legendre claimed two event titles (vault and still rings) against conference rival Nebraska on Sunday and upped his season total to seven. The U.S. Senior National team member also finished second in the all-around behind teammate Chris Brooks.

Fresh New Faces...
The Sooners added five freshman for the 2009 season in Chad Crumley, David Finning, Ben Mayer, Troy Nitzky and Pat Piscitelli. This years signing class reaches far across the country. Form Illinois, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Oklahoma this group looks to have an impact to the 2009 season for the Sooners.

Horton the Sixth...
The program's most decorated gymnast, Horton was the 2008 Nissen-Emery recipient in one of the strongest fields in the award's history.Considered the Heisman Trophy of gymnastics, the Nissen-Emery Award, founded by trampoline inventor George Nissen, has been handed out to the nation's top senior collegiate gymnast annually since 1966. Since the award's inception, Oklahoma has claimed a nation-leading six Nissen honorees: Bart Conner (1981), Jarrod Hanks (1991), Dan Fink (1998), Todd Bishop (1999), Daniel Furney (2003) and Jonathan Horton (2008).

All-Americans Back For More...
The Sooners roster is filled with five All-Americans from last year's squad. In total, Oklahoma gymnasts earned 11 All-America honors in 2008, the second-highest total in the nation. Seniors Russell Czeschin (FX), Chris Brooks (PB, HB), Jason Laughton (PH), Reed Pitts (FX) and sophomore Steven Legendre (FX, V, HB), received national distinction.

Williams Names Captains...
Seniors Jacob Messina and Chris Brooks were named co-captains for the 2009 season by head coach Mark Williams.
Both have been apart of several of the Sooners national championship squads and have received national honors for their effort. Brooks was a two-time All-American last year on high bar and parallel bars while Messina

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