MPSF males’s gymnastics resumed after every week hiatus for Winter Cup, with all 4 MPSF groups returning to the competitors flooring in Week 9.
Cal hosted Stanford, Nebraska, and Air Pressure for a senior evening quad meet at Haas Pavilion whereas Oklahoma traveled to Ann Arbor for a head-to-head battle in opposition to the Michigan Wolverines.
#1 Oklahoma @ #4 Michigan
Remaining rating: Michigan: 416.300 – Oklahoma: 409.550
5 Sooners competed at Winter Cup final weekend. Notably, alum Yul Moldauer successful back-to-back all-around titles and freshman Colin Flores struggling a season-ending harm (torn ACL) on vault throughout Day 1.
The Sooners struggled of their return to staff competitors after the break. Pommel horse and rings had been the killers in opposition to Michigan, the place they tied their lowest pommel horse complete, regardless of being No. 1 within the nation on the occasion, and recorded a season low on rings by greater than two factors. On the flip facet, they did discover a lot enchancment on flooring and excessive bar in opposition to the Wolverines, bettering 3.35 factors to a 70.05 on flooring and seven.2 factors to a 69.3 on excessive bar. Whereas the Wolverines handed Oklahoma their second lack of the season, there are nonetheless positives to remove from their 409.550 efficiency.
Emre Dodanli was the one Sooner who claimed an occasion title, including one more flooring title to his resume this weekend with a stable 14.9; Dodanli continues to high the NCAA on flooring, with a stable six-tenth lead by 3-score common.
Whereas this was one of many first competitions this season that the Sooners didn’t cruise to a number of or all particular person titles, there have been nonetheless glorious performances that should be acknowledged. Nico Hamilton adopted intently behind Dodanli, claiming second place on flooring with a season-best 14.8. Leo Koike additionally scored a season and career-best 14.0 on flooring to tie for fifth. Jack Freeman claimed second on excessive bar with a career-high tying 14.500.
Because the common season attracts to an in depth and we head into convention and NCAA Championships, the Sooners might want to begin performing like they did close to the top of January in the event that they wish to keep their No. 1 rating and high the rostrum in Columbus, Ohio in April.
#2 Stanford, #5 Nebraska, Air Pressure @ #8 Cal
Remaining rating: Stanford: 410.850, Nebraska: 408.150, California: 394.850, Air Pressure: 386.800
Stanford
After having numerous gymnasts at Winter Cup and Khoi Younger, Colt Walker, and Asher Hong in Germany final weekend, the Cardinal returned to the NCAA with their full staff and, regardless of a handful of errors, reminded everybody that they wish to win their fifth consecutive NCAA Championship.
Their 410.85 was their third highest staff rating this season and the second highest staff rating of the weekend, behind solely Michigan’s 416.300. The Cardinal struggled on pommel horse and vault this weekend; a handful of falls on horse led to a season-worst 65.4, and regardless of some unrefined landings, the Cardinal nonetheless managed to interrupt 70 on vault (70.45). The spotlight of the weekend event-wise was simply excessive bar and rings, the place the Cardinal improved 3 factors on every occasion and scored a season-high 71.3 on rings.
Regardless of going through 4 opponents, the Cardinal nonetheless claimed a handful of occasion titles: Asher Hong gained rings (14.8) and vault (14.75), J.R. Chou gained parallel bars (14.2), and Jeremy Bischoff gained excessive bar (14.4).
We’ve but to see the Cardinal be as dominant as they’ve been lately. A staff that went above 420 a number of occasions final season, most notably their 422.458 at NCAA finals final season, has but to match that mark this season, with a excessive rating of 415.25. Different groups within the NCAA, most notably the Oklahoma Sooners, Illinois Illini, and Michigan Wolverines have been arduous at work and solidified themselves as worthy opponents and contenders to take down Stanford. The Cardinal will look to start out constructing momentum because the common season involves an in depth. The aim: changing into solely the second staff within the historical past of males’s NCAA gymnastics to win their fifth consecutive nationwide title.
California
The Bears hosted their senior evening in Haas Pavilion the place they honored 10 graduating seniors. Fast shoutout to the seniors: sixth-years Darren Wong and Yu-chen “Miles” Lee, fifth-year Noah Sano, and seniors Noah Newfeld, David Rauchwerger, Collin Cunane, Christopher Scales, Jelani Candy, Seth Ornelas, and Aidan Li, in addition to former gymnast and present staff supervisor Ron Israel. They’re a part of one of many, if not the most important, graduating lessons in program and NCAA historical past. Newfeld returned to the Bay Space after a profitable outing at Winter Cup final weekend in Kentucky.
Additionally claiming their third highest staff rating of the season, Cal’s 394.85 is first rate contemplating the variety of errors and falls all through the evening. Occasion-wise, the Bears put up a season-worst 62.00 on parallel bars, their finest occasion usually, attributable to a handful of falls from Sano, Newfeld and Brendan Strom. The Bears redeemed themselves on the finish of competitors with a season-best 66.25 on excessive bar, led by Wong’s 13.7. The Bears claimed an occasion title this weekend with Tyler Shimizu’s 14.1 on flooring. Celebrating his twenty third birthday and successful the Finest Bear award, Theodor Roald Gadderud competed 4 for the Bears, main the staff on rings and parallel bars with a 13.6 and 14.0, respectively.
The Bears have yet another common season meet again in Palo Alto in two weeks earlier than touring again to Oklahoma for the MPSF Championships in early April. At present holding on to the No. 8 rating, the Bears will look to proceed pushing and problem Penn State and Ohio State’s scores in hopes of creating it to Day 2 of nationals. In an effort to try this, they have to hit extra routines and proceed refining, needing to seek out themselves again within the 400s to have probability.
Air Pressure
The Falcons joined the social gathering in Berkeley this weekend for Cal’s quad meet. Their 386.800 was their lowest rating of the season to date. Current information of their meet with Oklahoma being invalidated made this their third counted staff competitors of the season.
The Falcons struggled, placing up season lows on flooring, pommel horse, and parallel bars, however they did handle to set season highs on rings (64.75) and excessive bar (62.1). Prime scorers for the Falcons included Garrett Braunton on flooring (13.15), rings (13.3), and excessive bar (13.25), Sam Brown on pommel horse (13.75), Erich Upton on vault (14.2), and Oliver Zavel on parallel bars (13.85) and within the all-around (77.2). The Falcons didn’t look as energetic and refined as they’ve in earlier weeks and might want to get that rhythm again for the remainder of season in the event that they wish to be aggressive with groups like Greenville and Navy, who occupy the 2 spots forward of them within the present nationwide rankings.
