Photo by Morgan Givens
University of Oklahoma
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Oklahoma men’s gymnastics team advanced to its 26th consecutive NCAA Championship finals, posting a team total of 322.825 in the afternoon qualifying session Friday at the University of Illinois’ State Farm Center.
The top-seeded Sooners placed first in the session and will be joined in the finals by No. 5 Ohio State (320.294) and No. 4 Nebraska (320.059). The top three teams from each qualifying session advance to the NCAA finals. The second qualifier, featuring No. 2 Michigan, No. 3 Stanford, No. 6 Penn State, No. 7 Illinois, No. 10 Navy and No. 11 Army, is set for at 7 p.m. CT Friday.
The NCAA Championship finals will be held at 6 p.m. CT Saturday and will be televised on ESPN2, with apparatus streams available on ESPN+.
A pair of freshmen claimed individual event titles, as Sasha Bogonosiuk won vault with a stuck 14.500 and Nathan Roman took parallel bars with a 14.366. Oklahoma notched a season-high 56.498 on vault and also recorded the top team scores of the meet on still rings (53.399) and parallel bars (53.732).
“We did what we had to do,” said head coach Mark Williams. “One of our goals was to qualify in the top six, but our other goal was to win the session, and we did that. It wasn’t always our best and we weren’t putting our top lineup out there. We’ll make some adjustments for tomorrow and come out stronger, have a great day and battle for a championship.”
Senior Ignacio Yockers posted a 13.933 to finish second on pommel horse, while redshirt freshman Colby Aranda followed with a 13.900 to tie for third and junior Tyler Flores tied for fifth with a 13.700. Sophomore Francisco Velez Belendez stuck his dismount for a 14.100 to place second on still rings, while redshirt junior Mac Seyler finished fifth (13.500) and redshirt senior Brigham Frentheway placed sixth (13.466).
Flores added a stuck vault for a 14.366 to earn a runner-up finish on the event, and fifth-year senior Fuzzy Benas placed seventh (13.966). Benas also finished fourth on floor exercise with a season-high 13.766. Redshirt sophomore Brandon Zepeda-Orth recorded a 13.666 to take second on horizontal bar, while junior Nico Hamilton placed fourth with a 13.533.
Saturday evening’s NCAA Championship finals will determine team, all-around and individual event champions.
Team Scores
- Oklahoma – 322.825
- Ohio State – 320.059
- Nebraska – 320.059
- California – 312.026
- Greenville – 307.059
- Springfield – 306.426
Read more including individual scores, final results, and highlights HERE
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