OU Travels for Top-Five Matchup at Michigan

Saturday, March 2

Ann Arbor, Mich.

Noon

University of Oklahoma

Michigan

Photo by: Peyton Martin/University of Oklahoma

OU Travels for Top-Five Matchup at Michigan

March 01, 2024 | Men's Gymnastics

Watch $Live Scoring Meet Notes

THE MEET

No. 1 Oklahoma seeks its second straight road victory when it travels to Ann Arbor, Mich., this weekend to take on No. 4 Michigan. The meet is set for a noon CT start in Cliff Keen Arena.

This will be the first meeting between the Sooners and the Wolverines this season. OU defeated Michigan twice during last year's regular season, as well as in the NCAA Qualifier before finishing behind the Wolverines in the NCAA Finals. Oklahoma topped Michigan at the Rocky Mountain Open (411.850 to 398.900), in Norman (414.550 to 410.400) and in the NCAA Qualifier (415.491 to 413.992), but UofM outscored OU 419.889 to 414.024 in the NCAA Finals.

The teams will compete head-to-head on each event this weekend, beginning on floor exercise and rotating in Olympic order.

WATCH/FOLLOW

The meet will be streamed via Big Ten Network+ and live scoring can be found via Virti.us.

STICKS

• Following Saturday's meet, the Sooners return home to McCasland Field House for their final home regular season meet of the season against Navy. The meet will begin at 5:45 p.m. It will be Senior Night and Alumni Night. Fans will have the opportunity to take photos with OU's national championship trophies, and the first 500 fans can receive a collectible Cup for Champions. OU legend and newly-elected CGA Hall of Famer Jonathan Horton will be on hand signing autographs for fans prior to the meet.

• Redshirt sophomore Fuzzy Benas was named the CGA and MPSF Gymnast of the Week and fifth-year senior Jack Freeman was named MPSF Specialist of the Week after their performances last weekend at Winter Cup.

• Benas registered the highest finish among collegiate gymnasts in the all-around standings at Winter Cup, tying for fifth place and earning a spot on the U.S. Men's Senior National Team. His total all-around score of 163.600 was comprised of an 82.950 on Sunday and an 80.650 on Friday. He climbed the standings on Sunday with the second-highest all-around score in the finals to finish in a fifth-place tie after entering the day in eighth following Friday's round of competition.

• Freeman placed fourth in the high bar competition at Winter Cup, registering a combined score of 27.450. He notched a 13.950 in the opening round on Friday and followed with a 13.500 in the finals on Sunday to earn a fourth-place finish on the event.

• Following OU's meet at Simpson, senior Zach Nunez was named the MPSF Gymnast of the Week and sophomore Kelton Christiansen was named the MPSF Specialist of the Week. Nunez won the parallel bars title and scored 14-plus on his two other events, registering a combined 42.300 on his three events. He set a season high with his 13.850 parallel bars routine to claim the event title. He also notched a 14.450 on his first vault of the season and posted a 14.000 on pommel horse, placing second on both events. Christiansen won the high bar event title and scored a combined 27.600 on his two events for the Sooners. He supplied his second straight 14-plus routine on high bar by scoring 14.200 and was the only gymnast to score a 14 or above on the event Saturday. Christiansen also led off the Sooners on pommel horse, notching a 13.400, which was his second-highest pommels score of the season.

• Against Simpson, Oklahoma registered its fourth straight 72-plus on vault, scoring a 72.400, as all five gymnasts hit in the 14s. Oklahoma scored a season-high 72.850 on vault on Feb. 10 vs. California, setting a new season best on the event for the third straight meet.

• Oklahoma's 70.950 on high bar vs. Cal was its highest score on the event since posting a 71.150 on March 9, 2019, and its first 70-plus score on high bar since March 16, 2019 (70.100). Christiansen notched a career- and team-season high 14.700, which was OU's highest individual score on high bar since the 2019 season.

• Junior Emre Dodanli has recorded the two highest floor exercise scores in the nation this season (15.250 at Rocky Mountain Open and 15.050 vs. Cal), and is the first gymnast nationally to register a 15-plus score on floor since the 2021 season. His 15.250 was the highest floor score nationally since the 2021 NCAA Finals (15.266 by OU's Gage Dyer). Benas' 85.200 all-around score at the Rocky Mountain Open is the highest in the nation so far this season.

• The Sooners posted 420.350 team all-around score at the Rocky Mountain Open on Jan. 20 in Colorado Springs, Colo., which remains the highest score nationally this season, sitting ahead of the 417.800 score that OU posted on Feb. 10 vs. Cal. Oklahoma's 420.350 on Jan. 20 was not only the highest in the nation this season, but was the program's highest team score since the 2019 campaign. The last time OU scored higher than 420.350 was April 6, 2019 at the MPSF Championships (420.500). Benas' 85.200 individual all-around score was the highest by a Sooner since Yul Moldauer scored 88.300, also in 2019.

• Oklahoma has scored better than 410.000 in 11 of its last 14 meets, dating back to Feb. 11, 2023, including last season's NCAA Qualifier and NCAA Finals. OU has scored 411 or higher in four of its six competitions, and at least 400 in every meet this season.

NATIONAL RANKINGS NOTES

•   Oklahoma ranks first nationally as a team on floor exercise (69.817), pommel horse (69.867), and high bar (69.483) as well as the all-around (416.550). The Sooners rank second on vault (72.483), third on parallel bars (68.950) and fifth on still rings (67.383).

•   Junior Emre Dodanli ranks first nationally in floor exercise with his 15.017 three-score average. Fifth-year Jack Freeman's 14.050 three-score average is tied for eighth.

•   Sophomore Ignacio Yockers ranks first on pommel horse with his 15.083 average and senior Zach Nunez follows in fourth with his 14.567 average.

•   Freshman Tas Hajdu ranks fourth nationally on still rings with his 14.033 average and sophomore Adriel Perales-Valencia ranks 10th with his 13.817 average.

•   Dodanli's 14.783 average ranks as fifth on vault while freshman Max Bereznev follows in seventh with his 14.717 average. Redshirt sophomore Fuzzy Benas ranks ninth with his 14.700 average.

•   Benas' 14.483 parallel bars average ranks second nationally, while freshman Colin Flores ranks seventh (14.067). On high bar, sophomore Kelton Christiansen ranks second with his 14.300 average, Freeman ranks fifth with his 14.167 average, and Dodanli ranks sixth with his 14.133 average.

LAST TIME OUT

Oklahoma won every event and six different gymnasts won event titles as the Sooners claimed a 400.600 to 360.950 road victory at Simpson College on Feb. 17 in Indianola, Iowa.

Leo Koike won the vault title with a career- and meet-high 14.900. Ignacio Yockers notched a 14.850 to win pommel horse, Kelton Christiansen won high bar with a 14.200 and Zach Nunez won parallel bars with a 13.850. Matt Burgoyne started OU's floor exercise rotation with a 13.750 and won the event, while Adriel Perales-Valencia won the still rings title with his 13.450.

Burgoyne started the meet for OU with his 13.750 on floor. Nunez and Yockers capped Oklahoma's pommels rotation with their respective 14.000 and 14.850 scores after Christiansen started the event with a 13.400, his second-highest score of the season on pommel horse. Max Bereznev led off for OU on still rings, notching a career-high 13.350 in his second career rings routine. Perales-Valencia claimed the event title with his 13.450.

Oklahoma gymnasts claimed the top five spots in the vault standings. The 72.400 was OU's second-highest score on the event this season (second to its 72.850 on Feb. 10) and its fourth straight 72-plus on vault.

Nunez began the parallel bars rotation with his event-winning 13.850 routine, and Yockers matched his career high on p-bars with a 13.650 score. Christiansen hit strong high bar routine for the second straight week, claiming the title with his 14.200.