Men’s Gymnastics Defeats Illinois In Close Contest – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/4/2001 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Feb. 4, 2001
COLUMBUS, Ohio— The Ohio State Buckeyes walked away with a close win over the fifth-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini 211.800-211.350 in Champaign, Ill. Saturday. The meet marked the highest total scores of the season for both teams, with Ohio State eclipsing the 210.400 they scored Jan. 22 against Michigan. Several Buckeyes led the team, including Daren Lynch (Sr., Londonderry, N.H.), Jamie Natalie (Sr., Hockessin, Del.), Jay Nardelli (Sr., Centerville, Va.), Earnest Nelson (Jr., Rowlett, Texas), Raj Bhavsar (So., Houston, Texas) and Eric Van Sickle (Fr., Hilliard, Ohio). Ohio State placed first in five of the six events, but had to rely on a stunning comeback to seal the victory.
The Buckeyes played catch-up from the beginning, trailing by .500 points at the end of the first two rotations. Ohio State whittled away at the Illinois lead throughout the meet however, paced by two first place finishes by Lynch on still rings and vault. Lynch’s 9.800 on rings is the highest single event score for the Buckeyes this season. Nelson tied for first place with Lynch on vault, while Bhavsar pulled a 9.500 on still rings to claim second place in that event. Nardelli took first on high bar with a score of 9.350 and Natalie tied for first on parellel bars with a score of 9.000. Natalie also took second on high bar and pommel horse, behind Van Sickle. Bhavsar’s 52.100 was good enough for second place in the all-around competition behind Illinois’ Leo Oka. Natalie took third in the all-around.
The steadily improving Buckeyes required a total team effort to overcome the Fighting Illini, with big scores coming from each of the tri-captains, as well as last season’s Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Bhavsar. Freshman Jamey Houle recorded personal best scores on floor exercises and parellel bars. Fellow freshman Van Sickle’s 8.900 on pommel horse was also a personal best. The Buckeye’s next test comes Feb. 9 when Michigan State comes to St. John Arena. OHIO STATE RESULTS
Floor Exercise
1 – Leo Oka, Ill. (9.150)
2(tied) – Michael Evans (8.900)
8 – Raj Bhavsar (8.550)
Pommel Horse
1 – Eric Van Sickle (8.900)
2 – Jamie Natalie (8.800)
6 – Ryan Schwarzkopf (8.200)
Vault
1(tied) – Daren Lynch (9.150)
1(tied) – Earnest Nelson (9.150)
5(tied) – Raj Bhavsar (8.950)
High Bar
1 – Jay Nardelli (9.350)
2 – Jamie Natalie (9.100)
5(tied) – Jamey Houle (8.800)
Still Rings
1 – Daren Lynch (9.800)
2 – Raj Bhavsar (9.500)
8 – Jay Nardelli (8.800)
Parallel Bars
1(tied) – Jamie Natalie (9.000)
4 – Jamey Houle (8.650)
5 – Dick Huntwork (8.600)
