No. 2 Men’s Gymnastics On The Road Again – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/14/2001 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Feb. 14, 2001
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State travels to Minneapolis, Minn., Feb. 16 to battle No. 8 Minnesota. The Buckeyes then face No. 7 Iowa Feb. 17
Buckeyes Leaving the Tree
The Buckeyes have an overall record of 5-3 when they compete away from St. John Arena this season. Two of the three defeats occurred during the Windy City Invitational Jan. 13, where they finished third behind Michigan and Illinois. The Wolverines bested Ohio State again in Ann Arbor Jan. 20, but the Buckeyes avenged their earlier loss at the hands of the Ilini Feb. 3 when they traveled to Champaign, Ill.
The Buckeyes also travel to California March 2 to face No. 19 UC Santa Barbara, and are on the road against top-ranked Oklahoma March 10.
Checking Out The Gophers
Minnesota enters the week ranked No. 8 behind the strong leadership of several key young gymnasts. Clay Strother is the highest ranked male gymnast in the nation on pommel horse and is No. 2 on floor and all-around. The Gophers also own four of the Top 8 positions on vault. Eric Steele and Justin Conner are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 respectively. Strother and Bill Callahan are ranked No. 7 and No. 8 respectively. Buckeye junior Michael Evans (Jr., Houston, Texas) is ranked No. 4 and co-captains Earnest Nelson (Jr., Rowlett, Texas) and Jamie Natalie (Sr., Hockessin, Del.) are tied for the fifth spot.
Minnesota is currently 3-6 overall and 2-6 in the Big Ten. The Gophers placed fifth in the Windy City Invitational Jan. 13, beating Illinois-Chicago and Penn State. Minnesota also defeated Michigan State Feb. 3 for their first Big Ten dual-meet victory since 1997.
The Opposing Coach
Fred Roethlisberger has been the coach of the Minnesota Gophers men’s gymnastics team for 29 years. His teams have captured 11 Big Ten titles, produced 20 All-Americans, 48 individual Big Ten champions and two Nissen Award winners. Roethlisberger has been named Big Ten Coach of the Year four times, Mideast Region Coach of the Year five times, and United States Gymnastics Federation Coach of the Year four times. He was inducted into the U.S. Gymnastics Hall of Fame and the University of Wisconsin Hall of Fame in 1990. Roethlisberger’s 2001 team is 3-6
About The Teams
Ohio State last competed Feb. 9 against the Michigan State, defeating the Spartans 216.450-212.950. The victory marked a season high score for the Buckeyes, topping their previous high by almost four full points. Minnesota defeated Michigan State 209.785-208.825 Feb. 3 in Minneapolis. The win was the first Big Ten dual-meet victory for the Gophers since 1997. The Gophers did not compete last weekend.
Meet Miles Avery
Miles Avery is in his fourth season as the head coach of the Buckeyes. Last year, he led OSU to a sixth place finish at the NCAA Championships and a runner-up spot in the Big Ten Tournament. Before being named head coach, Avery had been an assistant coach at OSU for nine years. In addition to coaching at the collegiate level, Avery has also been on the coaching staff for many international competitions, including the 1998 Goodwill Games, the 1996 Olympic Games and the 1994 World Championship.
The Team Rankings
Ohio State moved back up to No. 2 in the nation this week, trailing Oklahoma by .045 points. Michigan held the top spot until last week, when they were ousted by Oklahoma. The Wolverines now rest at No. 3. Michigan State jumped up two spots to No. 4 this week after losing to Ohio State over the weekend. Iowa and Minnesota remain at No. 7 and No. 8 respectively. Big Ten teams continue to dominate the Top 10, claiming seven of the 10 positions.
In the individual events, Ohio State leads the nation on parallel bar and high bar. Ohio State is also second on floor and vault and third on still rings.
Scouting The Hawkeyes
The Iowa Hawkeyes are ranked No. 7 in the lastest GymInfo weekly poll, the same position they held last week. The Hawkeyes are 4-4 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten. Iowa was defeated by Oklahoma Feb. 3 and beat Minnesota Jan. 27. The team traveled to the U.S.A.G. Winter Cup in Las Vegas, Nev., last weekend, advancing three gymnasts to the finals. Iowa was among the seven Big Ten teams participating in the Windy City Invitational, finishing fourth.
Meet Iowa’s Coach
Tom Dunn has coached the Iowa Hawkeyes for the past 21 years, amassing a record of 161-59-2. Dunn’s Hawkeye teams have finished in the Top 4 in the conference 19 of his 20 years and won conference titles in 1986 and 1998. Dunn won the Big Ten Coach of the Year and College Gymnastics Association Central Region Coach of the Year in 1998. He also earned Big Ten co-Coach of the Year honors in 1997.
Understanding the Rankings
Win-loss records count for very little in collegiate gymnastics. Instead, the highest scores for each individual team carry the most weight. Early in the season, weekly rankings are determined using the single highest team scores. In February, the highest home score and highest away score are averaged together to produce the rankings. By March, rankings are determined using the top two away scores and possibly the highest home score. The average of the three scores determines which teams will top the rankings. Ohio State sits at No. 3 in the nation with a high score of 210.400. Only Michigan and Oklahoma have posted higher total scores this season.
Hosting Championship
The men’s gymnastics team will have the honor of hosting the 2001 NCAA Championships in historic St. John Arena. The National Qualifier will be held April 5, with the National Finals April 6-7. The 13,276-seat venue will give many Columbus residents the opportunity to see top-level NCAA men’s gymnastics.
