M e e t Tw o a t O h i o S t a t e S t. J o h n A r e n a (Co l u m b u s, O h i o ) J a n. 2 1, 2 0 1 2 3 P. M. C T M E N S G Y M N A S T I C S Ben Coldagelli, Communications Student Assistant McClendon Center for Intercollegiate Athletics 180 W. Brooks, Suite 2525, Norman, OK 73019 O: (405) 325-8231 C: (262) 501-9999 E: bcoldagelli@ou.edu www.soonersports.com Twitter: @SoonerGymnasts E I G H T N A T I O N A L T I T L E S S E V E N N I S S E N - E M E R Y A W A R D W I N N E R S 2 1 9 A L L - A M E R I C A N S 3 5 I N D I V I D U A L T I T L E S 2012 SCHEDULE DATE OPPONENT TIME (CT) Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open$ (1/5) 343.700 Jan. 21 at Ohio State 3:00 p.m. Jan. 28 at Illinois & Michigan# 5:00 p.m. Feb. 2-4 Winter Cup Challenge+ All Day Feb. 12 at California & Stanford% 2:00 p.m. Feb. 25 IOWA 7:00 p.m. March 3 STANFORD 7:00 p.m. March 10 MICHIGAN* March 17 AIR FORCE & NEBRASKA March 24 7:00 p.m. 7:00 p.m. at Minnesota & Ohio State^ 7:00 p.m. April 7 MPSF Championships$ 6:00 p.m. April 19 NCAA QUALIFIER* All Day April 20 NCAA TEAM FINALS* 7:00 p.m. April 21 NCAA EVENT FINALS* 7:00 p.m. All times are Central and subject to change. Home meets are indicated by BOLD CAPS and held at the Howard McCasland Field House. *Held at the Lloyd Noble Center, $ Colorado Springs, Colo., # Champaign, Ill., + Las Vegas, Nev., % Berkeley, Calif., ^ Minneapolis, Minn. Be sure to like the Sooners on Facebook by logging onto Facebook.com/SoonerGymnasts and Facebook.com/OklahomaSooners. For all of the latest information on the OU men s gymnastics team, follow @SoonerGymnasts on Twitter. For news from OU s entire athletics department, follow @SoonerSportsCom. GYMINFO 3 Oklahoma (4-0, 1-0 MPSF) SOONERS AT A GLANCE Date:......... Saturday, Jan. 21 Time:................ 3 p.m. CT Location:....... Columbus, Ohio Venue:.......... St. John Arena Live Stats: OhioStateBuckeyes.com Webcast:. OhioStateBuckeyes.com Ohio State (5-0, 4-0 Big Ten) BUCKEYES The Matchup The Sooners, ranked No. 3 in the latest GymInfo Rankings, face their first top-five opponent of the 2012 season when they travel to Columbus, Ohio, to take on No. 2 Ohio State. Both teams enter the meet undefeated after posting victories at their respected season-opening events. Oklahoma claimed its 13th-straight Rocky Mountain Open title over Air Force, Nebraska, Arizona State and Washington while Ohio State won the Windy City Invitational over Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois-Chicago and Iowa. Ohio State will face the Sooners for the first time under former OU assistant Rustam Sharipov. The Buckeyes first-year head coach spent six seasons in Norman as an assistant coach from 2005-2011. Sharipov helped coach the Sooners to NCAA titles in 2006 and 2008 and was named the National Co-Assistant Coach of the Year in both of those seasons. Oklahoma and Ohio State last faced off on Jan. 22, 2011 at a dual meet in Norman. OU knocked off the Buckeyes 358.350-340.350 and claimed all six team event titles and five individual event titles. On The Web Live scoring for the meet will be available on OhioStateBuckeyes.com. The link will be available on Ohio State s men s gymnastics schedule page. Live video streaming will be available through Ohio State s Buckeye Vision. In order to view the stream, fans will need to purchase a one-month subscription of Buckeye Vision for $9.95. OU men s gymnastics Twitter feed (@SoonerGymnasts) will provide up-to-date scores and facts throughout the meet. Next Up Oklahoma: The Sooners head to Champaign, Ill., for a tri-meet against No. 4 Illinois and No. 6 Michigan on Jan. 28. The Sooners, Illini and Wolverines began the season as the top three teams in the GymInfo Preseason Coaches Poll. Ohio State: The Buckeyes have a week off to prepare for the 2012 Winter Cup Challenge Feb. 2-4 in Las Vegas, Nev. G Y M N A S T S T O W A T C H GYMINFO 2 The official site of OU Athletics supplies Sooner fans worldwide with the latest news and features on Oklahoma athletics direct from Norman. The site provides the latest press releases, rosters, bios, schedules, statistics, notes, quotes, athlete blogs, photo galleries and audio and video available to both Sooner fans and the media. Chris Stehl Junior The reigning MPSF Gymnast of the Week, Stehl is coming off a career performance at the Rocky Mountain Open, where he won titles in all-around, rings and parallel bars. Patrick Piscitelli Senior One of three OU captains, Piscitelli took home event titles on both floor (14.300) and vault (15.000) at the Rocky Mountain Open.
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 2 NAME CLASS HEIGHT EVENTS HOMETOWN HIGH SCHOOL CLUB Dylan Akers FR 5-9 All-Around Kingwood, Texas Kingwood HS Cypress Academy of Gymnastics Danny Berardini FR 5-8 All-Around Lake Forest, Ill. Lake Forest HS Buffalo Grove Gymnastics Center William Clement FR 5-10 All-Around San Jose, Calif. Valley Christian HS California Sports Center Chad Crumley SR 5-11 FX, SR, HB Long Grove, Ill. Stevenson HS Buffalo Grove Gymnastics Center Jacob Dalton JR 5-5 All-Around Reno, Nev. Spanish Springs HS Gymnastics Nevada Presten Ellsworth SO 5-10 All-Around Allen, Texas Allen HS World Olympic Gymnastics Academy Michael Heredia SR 5-11 Fx, V, HB Reno, Nev. Bishop Manogue Catholic HS Gymnastics Nevada Ethan Jose RS FR 5-7 All-Around Fremont, Calif. Mission San Jose HS West Coast Olympic Gymnastics Academy Troy Nitzky RS JR 5-6 PH, SR Philadelphia, Pa William Tennent HS Temple Boys Gymnastics Patrick Piscitelli SR 5-11 FX, SR, PB, HB Charlotte, N.C. Charlotte Catholic HS G & J Speedway Stanton Rehkemper RS FR 5-7 FX, HB Plano, Texas Plano Senior HS World Olympic Gymnastics Academy Michael Reid FR 5-6 Pommel Horse Killeen, Texas Killeen HS Crenshaw s Athletic Club Sergey Resnick FR 5-4 PH, PB Houston, Texas G.W. Carver HS Houston Gymnastics Academy Alec Robin FR 5-6 All-Around Calabasas, Calif. Calabasas HS Victory Gymnastics Academy Jacoby Rubin FR 5-3 All-Around Buffalo Grove, Ill. Stevenson HS Buffalo Grove Gymnastics Center Michael Squires FR 5-2 SR Edmond, Okla. Edmond North HS Oklahoma Gold Gymnastics Chris Stehl JR 5-5 All-Around Houston, Texas William B. Travis HS Cypress Academy Raymond White SO 5-4 All-Around Austin, Texas John B. Connally HS Crenshaw s Athletic Club COACHING STAFF Head Coach Mark Williams 13th Season Nebraska, 1980 Assistant Coach Guard Young Sixth Season Brigham Young, 2001 Assistant Coach Norimasa Iwai First Season Nihon University, 1995 DYLAN AKERS DANNY BERARDINI WILLIAM CLEMENT CHAD CRUMLEY JAKE DALTON PRESTEN ELLSWORTH MICHAEL HEREDIA ETHAN JOSE TROY NITZKY PATRICK PISCITELLI STANTON REHKEMPER MICHAEL REID SERGEY RESNICK ALEC ROBIN JACOBY RUBIN MICHAEL SQUIRES CHRIS STEHL RAYMOND WHITE
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 3 GENERAL INFORMATION Location... Norman, Okla. Enrollment...30,303 Founded...1890 President... David L. Boren Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics/AD... Joe Castiglione Nickname... Sooners Colors...Crimson & Cream Conference...Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Arena...Howard McCasland Field House (2,300) OU All-Time Record...592-174-1 (.772) TEAM INFORMATION 2011 Overall Record... 24-2 (.923) High Score... 366.400, March 19 vs. Penn State & Illinois MPSF Finish... Second NCAA Finish... Second Letterwinners Returning/Lost... 7/6 All-Americans Returning/Lost... 5/7 COACHING STAFF Head Coach... Mark Williams Year... 13th Season Alma Mater... Nebraska, 1980 Record at OU... 294-27 (.916) Career Record... 294-27 (.916) Assistant Coach...Guard Young Year...Sixth Season Alma Mater... Brigham Young, 2001 Assistant Coach... Norimasa Iwai Year... First Season Alma Mater... Nihon University, 1995 Men s Gymnastics Office Phone... (405) 325-8349 Men s Gymnastics Office Fax... (405) 325-7485 ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS Men s Gymnastics Contact... Ben Coldagelli Office Phone... (405) 325-8349 Cell Phone... (262) 501-9999 Fax... (405) 325-7623 E-mail...bcoldagelli@ou.edu Web Site... www.soonersports.com Twitter...@SoonerSportscom, @SoonerGymnasts Facebook... Facebook.com/OklahomaSooners Mailing Address... 180 West Brooks St., Suite 2525,... Norman, OK 73019 2012 GYMINFO RANKINGS - WEEK ONE Season average scores in parenthesis 1. Penn State (349.800) 2. Ohio State (344.500) 3. OKLAHOMA (343.700) 4. Illinois (341.900) 5. California (340.900) 6. Michigan (338.700) 7. Minnesota (338.100) CHRIS STEHL NAMED MPSF GYMNAST OF THE WEEK Oklahoma gymnast Chris Stehl was named the MPSF Gymnast of the Week Tuesday after claiming the all-around title at this past weekend s Rocky Mountain Open. The Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) is the hybrid conference that OU men s gymnastics competes in with Air Force, California and Stanford. Stehl, a junior, took home event titles on both rings (15.700) and parallel bars (14.500), along with winning the meet s all-around title with an 83.000. Stehl s career-high 15.700 on rings set an event record for the Rocky Mountain Open. The junior s performance also marked his first allaround and rings titles. The weekly honor is his first award from the MPSF. ROCKY MOUNTAIN DOMINANCE The Sooners clinched their 13th-straight Rocky Mountain Open title at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. The Sooners, ranked No. 1 in the GymInfo Preseason Coaches Poll, posted a team score of 343.700, edging out second-place Air Force (333.300) by 10.400 points. Nebraska took third place with a 331.300 followed by club teams from Arizona State (314.100) and Washington (248.100). Members of the U.S. Olympic Training Center also competed but their results are not official. As a team, Oklahoma claimed the top score on floor, pommel horse, rings, vault and high bar. Individually, four Sooners took home a combined six event titles: Chris Stehl (rings, parallel bars), Patrick Piscitelli (floor, vault), Dalton (high bar) and Michael Reid (pommel horse). Since 2000, Oklahoma has won at least two individual event titles in each year of the Rocky Mountain and has swept the individual titles five times (2001, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2012). Oklahoma is encouraged by its 343.700 total, which under last year s point system would have been 1.200 points higher than its 2011 score at the season opener. PRESEASON NO. 1 Oklahoma has been awarded the No. 1 preseason ranking five previous times under Head Coach Mark Williams. In four of those seasons, OU went on to win the NCAA title (2001, 2002, 2005, 2006). 2012 GYMINFO PRESEASON POLL 1. OKLAHOMA (5) 2. Illinois (7) 3. Michigan (2) 4. Stanford (3) 5. California 6. Penn State 7. Ohio State 8. Minnesota 8. Stanford (334.800) 9. Air Force (333.300) 10. Nebraska (331.300) 11. Illinois-Chicago (327.200) 12. Army (321.600) 13. Iowa (316.800) 9. Nebraska 10. Iowa 11. Air Force 12. UIC 13. Temple 14. Army 15. William and Mary *First place votes in parenthesis
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 4 HEAD COACH MARK WILLIAMS 13th Year at OU: 294-27 (.923) Alma Mater: Nebraska, 1980 Five National Championships 10 Conference Championships Five-Time National Coach of the Year Eight-Time MPSF Coach of the Year Career Coaching Highlights 2011 World Championship Assistant Team Coach 2010 World Championship Personal Coach 2009 World Championship Personal Coach 2008 U.S. Olympic Personal Coach 2008 NCAA National Champions 2008 MPSF Coach of the Year 2008 National Coach of the Year 2007 MPSF Coach of the Year 2006 U.S. World Championships Head Coach 2006 USA Gymnastics Coach of the Year 2006 NCAA National Champions 2006 National Coach of the Year 2006 MPSF Coach of the Year 2005 NCAA National Champions 2005 National Coach of the Year 2005 MPSF Coach of the Year 2004 U.S. Olympic Personal Coach 2003 NCAA National Champions 2003 National Coach of the Year 2003 MPSF Coach of the Year 2003 World Championship Personal Coach 2002 World Championship Personal Coach 2002 NCAA National Champions 2002 National Coach of the Year 2002 MPSF Coach of the Year 2001 MPSF Coach of the Year 2001 West Region NCAA Coach of the Year 2001 World Championship Personal Coach 2000 MPSF Coach of the Year 1999 Pan American Games Head Coach 1996 Assistant Olympic Coach 1995 Assistant World Championship Coach 1994 World Championship Personal Coach 1994 USA Gymnastics Coach of the Year 1994 NCAA Assistant Coach of the Year 11-time USA International Team Coach Coaching Accomplishments Two Athletes on U.S. Olympic Team Three athletes on World Championship Teams Athlete on Pan American Games Team Athlete on Pan American Championship Team Athlete on World University Games Team Nine athletes on USA Senior National Team Eight athletes on Junior National Team 103 NCAA All-America Athletes 17 NCAA National Champions Two USA Junior National All-Around Champions Gymnastics Activities NCAA Rules Committee Chair, 2005 NCAA Rules Committee, 2002-2005, 2009 - Present NGJA Nationally Certified Judge, 1984-2001 F.I.G. Certified Judge, 1998-2004 USAG Men s Program Committee Member, 1994-2000 U.S. Men s Elite Coaches Association Sec./Treas. & V.P., 1991-98 USAG Board of Directors Sr. Rep, 1996-98 Coached on seven NCAA National Championship Teams (1981, 1991, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008) 2012 TEAM CAPTAINS With 10 freshman on the roster, Williams believes that upperclassman leadership will be essential to his team s success in 2012. Williams has chosen senior Patrick Piscitelli, redshirt junior Troy Nitzky and junior Jake Dalton as Oklahoma s captains for the 2012 season. Piscitelli, a native of Charlotte, N.C., has posted solid scores for the Sooners on floor, rings, vault, parallel bars and high bar. In 2010, he claimed fifth place on rings at the MPSF Championships. Troy Nitzky was a 2011 All-American on rings after posting a 15.200 at the 2011 NCAA Championships. Nitzky has also contributed scores on pommel horse and parallel bars. Dalton, a seven-time All-American, claimed the floor and vault individual titles at the 2011 NCAA Championships. The junior is also a current member of the U.S. Senior National Team and competed alongside three former OU gymnasts at the 2011 World Championships, helping Team USA take third place. PLENTY OF NEW FACES The Sooners are preparing to defend their No. 1 ranking with a lineup filled with newcomers. Ten of the 18 gymnasts on the OU roster are freshmen. Williams says the young Sooners are developing quickly to the collegiate level of competition and believes freshmen like Dylan Akers, Danny Beradini and Jacoby Rubin will be essential to the Sooners success in the coming season. RETURNING ALL-AMERICANS Jake Dalton leads the returning Sooners with seven All-American honors in just two seasons of competition. The Reno, Nev., native earned All-America status on floor, vault, parallel bars and high bar in 2011 and all-around, floor and vault in 2010. In addition to Dalton s seven All-America honors, the Sooner lineup also returns junior Troy Nitzky, who earned All-American status on rings after posting a 15.200 at the 2011 NCAA Championships. CRIMSON, CREAM AND BLUE The U.S. Men s Gymnastics Team, which featured four current and former OU gymnasts in its six-man lineup, claimed third place in the team finals of the 2011 World Championships this past October in Tokyo, Japan. The United States bronze medal showing guaranteed it a berth in the team portion of the 2012 Olympic Games in London. It also marked the first time in eight years and fourth time overall that the U.S. squad won a team medal at the World Championships. The USA s previous team medals came in 1979 (bronze), 2001 (silver) and 2003 (silver). Oklahoma junior Jake Dalton and OU letterwinners Steven Legendre, Jonathan Horton and Alex Naddour were featured in the United States six-man World Championship lineup. OU letterwinner Chris Brooks was the team s one alternate. China won the team title with a total of 275.161 and Japan took silver with a 273.093, a mere 0.010 points ahead of Team USA s 273.083.
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 5 2012 INDIVIDUAL EVENT TITLES 2012 TEAM EVENT TITLES Chris Stehl (3) All-Around (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 83.000 Rings (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 15.700 Parallel Bars (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 14.500 Floor (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 57.300 Rings (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 57.600 Patrick Piscitelli (2) Floor (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 14.300 Vault (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 15.000 Jake Dalton (1) High Bar (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 14.700 Vault (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 58.400 Pommel Horse (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 57.400 High Bar (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 55.600 Michael Reid (1) Pommel Horse (1): Jan. 14 Rocky Mountain Open 14.400
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 6 2012 MEET-BY-MEET RESULTS at Rocky Mountain Open (Jan. 14) FX PH SR V PB HB Total No. 1 OKLAHOMA... 55.400...55.600...61.900... 58.400... 55.600...56.800... 343.700 No. 11 Air Force... 54.100... 52.900... 59.200... 56.000... 56.600... 54.500... 333.300 No. 9 Nebraska... 54.200... 53.500... 56.800... 56.600... 56.100... 54.100... 331.300 Arizona State... 50.300... 49.300... 55.700... 54.100... 52.900... 51.800... 314.100 Washington... 47.000... 31.300... 45.900... 51.600... 38.200... 34.100... 248.100
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 7 DYLAN AKERS 13.900 13.700-14.400 11.800 - - 13.900 13.700-14.400 11.800 - - DANNY BERARDINI 12.600 - - 14.400-13.400-12.600 - - 14.400-13.400 - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open 13.900 13.700-14.400 11.800 - - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open 12.600 - - 14.400-13.400 - WILLIAM CLEMENT - - - 14.300-14.000 - - - - 14.300-14.000 - CHAD CRUMLEY 14.150 - - - - 13.600 - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open - - - 14.300-14.000 - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 8 JAKE DALTON 16.250 14.350 15.500 16.800 15.650 15.350 90.900-13.400 15.500 - - 14.700 - PRESTEN ELLSWORTH 14.400 12.850 14.400 15.800 14.600 14.400 84.100 DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open - 13.400 15.500 - - 14.700 - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open MICHAEL HEREDIA 14.450 - - 15.750 - - - 13.500 - - 13.800 - - - ETHAN JOSE DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open 13.500 - - 13.800 - - - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 9 TROY NITZKY - 14.450 15.700-13.900 - - - 13.900 15.400-12.800 - - PATRICK PISCITELLI 15.350-15.300 16.200 14.700 14.500-14.300-15.300 15.000 12.500 13.300 - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open - 13.900 15.400-12.800 - - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open 14.300-15.300 15.000 12.500 13.300 - STANTON REHKEMPER MICHAEL REID - 14.400 - - - - - - 14.400 - - - - - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open - 14.400 - - - - -
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 1 0 SERGEY RESNICK ALEC ROBIN 13.500 - - 14.600 - - - 13.500 - - 14.600 - - - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open 13.500 - - 14.600 - - - JACOBY RUBIN - 13.600 15.000-14.400 14.500 - - 13.600 15.000-14.400 14.500 - MICHAEL SQUIRES - - 14.800 - - - - - - 14.800 - - - - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open - 13.600 15.000-14.400 14.500 - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open - - 14.800 - - - -
O k l a h o m a M e n s G y m n a s t i c s N o t e s 1 1 CHRIS STEHL 14.500 14.400 15.700 14.800 14.750 14.400 85.200 13.700 12.100 15.700 13.400 14.500 13.600 83.000 RAYMOND WHITE 15.100 14.500-15.880 - - - DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open 13.700 12.100 15.700 13.400 14.500 13.600 83.000 DATE MEET 1.14 Rocky Mountain Open