Oklahoma Set To Battle Stanford, Nebraska

March 4, 2010

No. 2 Oklahoma @ No. 9 Nebraska \| No. 2 Stanford
Date	Sunday, March 7 \| 2 p.m. (CT)
Location	Lincoln, Neb. \| Devaney Center
Tickets	Order Online \| 402-472-3111, 800-8BIGRED
Live Stats	Huskers.com
Online	Husker Nside
Meet Info.	Sooners

NORMAN, Okla. --The No. 1 Oklahoma men's gymnastics team travels to Lincoln, Neb. to battle conference rival No. 2 Stanford and host team No. 9 Nebraska on Saturday, March 7. The event will start at 2 p.m. in the Devaney Center at the University of Nebraska.

Oklahoma enters the meet after claiming its fifth victory over a top 10 opponent, a 359.450-344.850 victory over No. 6 Minnesota. OU's team total was the second highest this season in the NCAA.

Last season, the Sooners met the Cardinal in the regular season for a top-two showdown with OU finishing on top 357.850- 356.400. The last time Oklahoma and Stanford met was at the 2009 National Championship were Stanford finished first to claim the national title.

This weekend marks the third time that OU has faced the Huskers this year, with the Sooners winning the two previous meet at the Rocky Mountain Open (347.400-337.050) and in Norman (356.500-335.450).

OPPONENT PREVIEW
STANFORD -- This past weekend, the Cardinal posted the nation's top score, 361.40, to defeat then-ranked No. 1 Michigan (352.15).

NEBRASKA -- The Huskers are coming off a season-high team mark of 348.250 to upset No. 6 Ohio State, No. 11 University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC) and No. 13 Air Force and improve their record to 7-3.

UP NEXT
The Sooners will face a rival from the Big Ten conference on the road with a trip to the Penn State on March 13.
Since 2000, the Sooners and Nittany Lions and have combined to win the last eight NCAA titles. OU leads the pack with five national championships while Penn State has claimed three championship (2000, 2004, 2007).

Oklahoma Roster | 2010 Schedule and Results | 2010 Media Guide

A LOOK BACK AT LAST WEEK
OU (8-0 overall, 3-0 MPSF) posted the highest score in the NCAA this season (359.450) en route to its victory over Minnesota (344.850) and the Texas All Star Team (310.650). Leading the Sooners was junior Steven Legendre, claiming his first all-around title of the season with a score of 89.500. The U. S. National Team member also took home individual event titles on floor (16.100) and parallel bars (14.900). OKLAHOMA vs. MINNESOTA, TEXAS

INDIVIDUAL TITLES
All-Around: Jacob Dalton
Floor Exercise: Steven Legendre
Pommel Horse: Corey English
Rings: Ian Jackson
Vault: Jacob Dalton
Parallel Bars: Steven Legendre

FIRST TIME
Freshman Jacob Dalton posted a 16.150 in his event title on vault last weekend, unveiling a Kasamatsu double full. Dalton is the only gymnasts in the United State that attempts the 17.0 start-value vault and it was the first time that the vault had been attempted in NCAA competition. The Reno, Nev., native is currently the top rated gymnast on vault with an average score of 16.167 and is also ranked No. 1 in the all-around.

NO. 1 VS NO. 2
This weekend No. 1 Oklahoma takes on MPSF Conference foes No. 2 Stanford and No. 9 Nebraska on March 7 in Lincoln, Neb.

Last season, the Sooners met the Cardinal in the regular season for a top-two showdown with OU finishing on top 357.850-356.400.

The OU women's gymnastics team has also held the top spot in two different weeks this season. The No. 2 Sooner women returns to Norman for its most anticipated home meet in program history in a battle with No. 1 Alabama on Friday, March 5, at 7 p.m.

BROOKS AT AMERICAN CUP
This weekend, 2010 Winter Cup Challenge champion and OU volunteer assistant coach Chris Brooks of will join former University of Oklahoma teammate Jonathan Horton as the second American male competing in the 2010 Tyson American Cup.

The Tyson American Cup, one of the most prestigious all-around international invitational, features some of the world's top gymnasts in an all-around format. The 2010 Tyson Ameri¬can Cup will be LIVE on Universal Sports and NBC Sports. Check local listings.

AGAINST THE TOP 10
OU has started the 2010 season 8-0, including a 3-0 mark against conference opponents. Five of OU's six opponents have been ranked in the top 10. Last season, the Sooners went undefeated against their top 10 opponents in the regular season.

GYMNASTS TO WATCH

Steven Legendre | Jr. | All-Around -- The junior claimed his first all-around title of the season with a score of 89.500 vs. Minnesota, while claiming individual event titles on floor (16.100) and parallel bars (14.900).

Jake Dalton | Fr. | All-Around -- Against Minnesota, the freshman posted a 16.150 in his event title on vault, unveiling a Kasamatsu double full, the first attempted in a NCAA competition.

BACK ON TOP
The OU men's gymnastics team is back atop the polls with this week's No. 1 ranking as re¬leased on Tuesday morning. It marks the first time this year that the Sooners have held the top spot after being ranked fourth in the preseason and as high as No. 2 the past two weeks. OU has been ranked No. 1 in each of the last six seasons and in eight out of Mark Williams' 10 years at the helm.

HOLDING THEIR OWN
This week's ranking marks the first week that OU has held the top spot. The Sooners began the year ranked No. 4 in the preseason and held the number two spot last week.

TOP OF THE CLASS
Oklahoma currently owns the top spot on floor (61.633) and is second behind No. 2 Stanford on rings (59.267) and vault (63.750).

Individually, freshman Jacob Dalton is the nation's top all-around gymnast with an average of 88.633 and junior Steven Legendre is the fourth with an average of 87.850.

In addition, the Sooners also currently hold the top spot on two apparatuses with Steven Legendre on floor (16.033) and Jacob Dalton on vault (16.167).

AN ALL-AROUND TEAM
This season OU has been ranked in the top three in the nation on all six events while holding the top spot on three events (floor, vault, parallel bars). Individually, the Sooners have been the top-ranked gymnast on four events.
(Floor: Legendre, Pommel Horse: Alex Naddour, Vault: Dalton, All-Around: Dalton)

CONFERENCE LEADERS
Oklahoma is currently ranked in the top three on four separate events (floor, pommel horse, rings, high bar). The only other team in the MPSF to be ranked in top-three on multiple events is Stanford (4).

ONE TOUGH CONFERENCE
The MPSF Conference has consistently been the top-ranked conference in the NCAA the past 10 years. This season seems to be no different with three teams holding the top ranking in four of the six events (OKLAHOMA, Stanford and California).

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Oklahoma Set To Battle Stanford, Nebraska

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