Completed Event: Women's Gymnastics versus Rutgers on April 3, 2026 , Win , 197.875, to, 196.300
Final
Women's Gymnastics
197.875
vs Rutgers
196.300
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Photo by: TBD
Ball, Haley Earn National Recognition
April 29, 2020 | Women's Gymnastics
NORMAN – Oklahoma women's gymnastics associate head coaches Lou Ball and Tom Haley were named the National Assistant Coaches of the Year, the Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) announced Wednesday. Florida's Jenny Rowland was named the National Head Coach of the Year.
This is the second such honor for Ball and Haley at Oklahoma after first earning the award in 2010. That year, the pair led the Sooners to the program's first-ever Super Six appearance and a runner-up finish. Ball also recieved the honor in 2005 as an assistant coach at Iowa State.
"To be recognized by their peers is such an honor," head coach K.J. Kindler said. "I know this will mean a great deal to them. They have been together so long they could finish each other's sentences. Tom and Lou work collaboratively and respect each other's strengths. There is always a problem to attack met by an imaginative solution. Together we shaped the expectation of Oklahoma gymnastics. The only option is for the bar to go up and for us to continue to reach toward it. That challenge is invigorating."
The WCGA also announced Florida head coach Jenny Rowland as the National Coach of the Year.
After a national championship winning season in 2019, Ball and Haley were tasked with replacing crucial components in their respective lineups. As co-coaches on bars, they replaced 50 percent of their competitive line-up and their alternate competitor by preparing senior Jade Degouveia and sophomore Olivia Trautman to compete bars for the first times in their careers. Freshmen Ragan Smith and Vanessa Deniz earned the third vacancy and alternate position, respectively. Ball was responsible for replacing two 10.0 valued vaults for 2020 and Haley had the identical task in front of him on floor with Brenna Dowell's graduation and Olivia Trautman out for the season.
"We embark into our 15th season as a staff," Kindler said. "That is an unusual statistic. It says a great deal about our cohesiveness, yet at the same time shows loyalty and commitment. These are attributes we are looking for in our athletes and seeing them firsthand is an exceptional example. It's nice to show that there can be career longevity in one location and professional growth."
Tasked with replacing half their lineup on bars, Ball and Haley led first-time competitor Degouveia to All-Big 12 and All-America honors in 2020. The senior earned a career-high 9.975 on the event and was ranked No. 7 in the nation. The duo also coached Smith to All-Big 12 and All-America honors in her freshman campaign as she finished the year with 10 scores of 9.9 or higher on the event, including a career-high 9.95 in her debut meet.
Deniz and Trautman also saw success in their first season competing bars with matching career-highs of 9.9. Ball and Haley coached Maggie Nichols to a perfect 10 on the apparatus and a No. 2 ranking to end her career. As a team, the Sooners were ranked No. 1 on the event all season and earned 10 event wins in 11 meets. Fourteen times a Sooner claimed the individual event title at a meet. OU posted the nation's best score on the apparatus with a 49.675, the third best mark in program history.
The primary coach on vault, Ball led a trio of gymnasts to top-10 rankings on the apparatus in 2020. Maggie Nichols and Anastasia Webb finished the year ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, while Jade Degouveia was ranked No. 7. The Sooners were the only team to debut a lineup with six 10.0 start value vaults, earning a program-record 49.775 in 2020.
Ranked No. 1 on vault as a team, six Sooners recorded a 9.95 or higher on the apparatus at least once during the season. Under Ball, Nichols and Olivia Trautman combined for six perfect scores on the event. Degouveia, Webb and Allie Stern all tallied career-best 9.975s, while Evy Schoepfer learned a new vault and notched a career-best 9.95.
In 11 meets, the Sooners earned a 49.400 or better nine times on vault with five scores of 49.600 or higher and two scores of 49.700 or better. Eleven times a Sooner won the event title while the team had 10 event wins in 11 tries. Four Sooners earned All-America honors on the apparatus, with a pair earning All-Big 12 honors.
The primary floor coach, Haley was not only replacing high-scoring routines in Dowell and Trautman, but Nichols as well when injury struck early in the season. When Nichols needed to be replaced last minute, Deniz stepped in to fill the void seamlessly, earning a 9.900 in her first appearance. It was a testament to Haley's coaching that his athletes can step in and succeed at moment's notice.
Haley coached the Sooners to a No. 3 national ranking on floor in 2020. Nichols and Webb were both nationally ranked at No. 4 and No. 11, respectively, as both earned All-America honors on the event. The Sooners posted a season-high 49.575 on the event and earned 10 team event titles.
Webb (9.95), Vanessa Deniz (9.925), Emma LaPinta (9.9) and Ragan Smith (9.975) all recorded career-highs under Haley's coaching in 2020. Nichols also nearly reached perfection twice, recording a pair of 9.975s. Haley's floor squad earned 13 individual titles on floor.
"Year after year Lou and Tom teach," Kindler said. "It is amazing the way they continue to develop an athlete's skill inventory once they arrive at Oklahoma. Not only is their technical knowledge extraordinary, but the connections they have with the athletes and their ability to inspire and motivate plays a big role. I am a firm believer in the power of passion. I can see passion at work every day in our gym and it is contagious."
This is the second such honor for Ball and Haley at Oklahoma after first earning the award in 2010. That year, the pair led the Sooners to the program's first-ever Super Six appearance and a runner-up finish. Ball also recieved the honor in 2005 as an assistant coach at Iowa State.
"To be recognized by their peers is such an honor," head coach K.J. Kindler said. "I know this will mean a great deal to them. They have been together so long they could finish each other's sentences. Tom and Lou work collaboratively and respect each other's strengths. There is always a problem to attack met by an imaginative solution. Together we shaped the expectation of Oklahoma gymnastics. The only option is for the bar to go up and for us to continue to reach toward it. That challenge is invigorating."
The WCGA also announced Florida head coach Jenny Rowland as the National Coach of the Year.
After a national championship winning season in 2019, Ball and Haley were tasked with replacing crucial components in their respective lineups. As co-coaches on bars, they replaced 50 percent of their competitive line-up and their alternate competitor by preparing senior Jade Degouveia and sophomore Olivia Trautman to compete bars for the first times in their careers. Freshmen Ragan Smith and Vanessa Deniz earned the third vacancy and alternate position, respectively. Ball was responsible for replacing two 10.0 valued vaults for 2020 and Haley had the identical task in front of him on floor with Brenna Dowell's graduation and Olivia Trautman out for the season.
"We embark into our 15th season as a staff," Kindler said. "That is an unusual statistic. It says a great deal about our cohesiveness, yet at the same time shows loyalty and commitment. These are attributes we are looking for in our athletes and seeing them firsthand is an exceptional example. It's nice to show that there can be career longevity in one location and professional growth."
Tasked with replacing half their lineup on bars, Ball and Haley led first-time competitor Degouveia to All-Big 12 and All-America honors in 2020. The senior earned a career-high 9.975 on the event and was ranked No. 7 in the nation. The duo also coached Smith to All-Big 12 and All-America honors in her freshman campaign as she finished the year with 10 scores of 9.9 or higher on the event, including a career-high 9.95 in her debut meet.
Deniz and Trautman also saw success in their first season competing bars with matching career-highs of 9.9. Ball and Haley coached Maggie Nichols to a perfect 10 on the apparatus and a No. 2 ranking to end her career. As a team, the Sooners were ranked No. 1 on the event all season and earned 10 event wins in 11 meets. Fourteen times a Sooner claimed the individual event title at a meet. OU posted the nation's best score on the apparatus with a 49.675, the third best mark in program history.
The primary coach on vault, Ball led a trio of gymnasts to top-10 rankings on the apparatus in 2020. Maggie Nichols and Anastasia Webb finished the year ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, while Jade Degouveia was ranked No. 7. The Sooners were the only team to debut a lineup with six 10.0 start value vaults, earning a program-record 49.775 in 2020.
Ranked No. 1 on vault as a team, six Sooners recorded a 9.95 or higher on the apparatus at least once during the season. Under Ball, Nichols and Olivia Trautman combined for six perfect scores on the event. Degouveia, Webb and Allie Stern all tallied career-best 9.975s, while Evy Schoepfer learned a new vault and notched a career-best 9.95.
In 11 meets, the Sooners earned a 49.400 or better nine times on vault with five scores of 49.600 or higher and two scores of 49.700 or better. Eleven times a Sooner won the event title while the team had 10 event wins in 11 tries. Four Sooners earned All-America honors on the apparatus, with a pair earning All-Big 12 honors.
The primary floor coach, Haley was not only replacing high-scoring routines in Dowell and Trautman, but Nichols as well when injury struck early in the season. When Nichols needed to be replaced last minute, Deniz stepped in to fill the void seamlessly, earning a 9.900 in her first appearance. It was a testament to Haley's coaching that his athletes can step in and succeed at moment's notice.
Haley coached the Sooners to a No. 3 national ranking on floor in 2020. Nichols and Webb were both nationally ranked at No. 4 and No. 11, respectively, as both earned All-America honors on the event. The Sooners posted a season-high 49.575 on the event and earned 10 team event titles.
Webb (9.95), Vanessa Deniz (9.925), Emma LaPinta (9.9) and Ragan Smith (9.975) all recorded career-highs under Haley's coaching in 2020. Nichols also nearly reached perfection twice, recording a pair of 9.975s. Haley's floor squad earned 13 individual titles on floor.
"Year after year Lou and Tom teach," Kindler said. "It is amazing the way they continue to develop an athlete's skill inventory once they arrive at Oklahoma. Not only is their technical knowledge extraordinary, but the connections they have with the athletes and their ability to inspire and motivate plays a big role. I am a firm believer in the power of passion. I can see passion at work every day in our gym and it is contagious."
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