No. 4 Ohio State Men’s Gymnastics Travels to No. 5 Illinois for Dual Meet – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/23/2007 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Jan. 23, 2007
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – After a week off from competition, the No. 4 Ohio State men’s gymnastics team (3-2; 0-0 Big Ten) will head to Champaign, Ill., for the 66th meeting against the No. 5 Fighting Illini (4-2; 0-1 Big Ten) at 8 p.m. EST in Huff Hall.
“This weekend we want to do better than we did at Windy City,” Miles Avery, Ohio State head coach, said. “It is important for us to get a little better each week of competition so we are ready to hit in March and April when it counts.”
A LOOK BACK AT WINDY CITY
In Ohio State’s 27th-consecutive trip to the Windy City Invitational, the Buckeyes garnered a third-place finish with a score of 209.5. No. 8 Michigan won the invite with a 212.75 and No. 6 Illinois bested Ohio State with a score of 209.75. In ten years at the helm of the men’s program, head coach Miles Avery has led his squads to Top 3 finishes nine times at the invite. The 2002 squad was the only team under Avery to finish below this mark in fourth place.
SEARCY NOTCHES HIGHEST MARK
In the opening weekend of collegiate gymnastics, Senior Nicholaus Searcy earned the highest mark in the nation with a score of 9.55 on parallel bars at the Windy City Invitational. Searcy’s first-place finish on the event gave him the top score in the country. Last season, the Buckeye ranked nationally in the Top 5 on parallel bars eight of nine weeks and spent three-consecutive weeks in the third spot in GymInfo national rankings. BIG TEN SQUADS IN THE RANKINGS
After two weeks of competition, all six Big Ten men’s teams have remained in the Top 10, four of which hold Top 5 averages. After finishing third at the Windy City Invitational, Ohio State remains a Top 5 squad landing in fourth with a 209.5. Michigan, undefeated after two weeks of competition, grabbed the No. 1 spot in the country with an average team total of 215.275 and Penn State moved into second with a 212.212. Rounding out the national rankings for Big Ten squads are No. 5 Illinois (207.25), No. 6 Minnesota (206.4) and No. 8 Iowa (203.2).
BUCKEYES VS. FIGHTING ILLINI
Ohio State trails Illinois, 24-40-1, in the all-time series, but the Buckeyes hold an 8-1-1 advantage over the Fighting Illini in dual meet action, dating back to 1998. In total, the Orange and Blue have claimed 23 Big Ten Championships titles and last won the league crown in 2004. Coming off back-to-back conference championships, the team now owns 11 Big Ten titles.
ON ILLINOIS
The Illini outscored the Buckeyes in their first meeting this season at the Windy City Invitational, 209.75-209.5. Preseason All-Big Ten selection Wes Haagensen helped give the Orange and Blue the edge by capturing the invite’s all-around title with a score of 52.7. At the meet, Haagensen noted a first-place finish on floor (9.35) and finished in the Top 10 on pommel horse, vault and parallel bars to earn the conference’s first gymnast of the week award. Freshman Chad Weist also noted a title win on vault for the Illini with an 8.95.
Last week, Illinois dropped its first conference dual to Minnesota, 207.15-204.75. In the fall to the Gophers, Weist noted a first-place finish on floor with a score of 9.45 and junior Jon Drollinger topped competition on rings with a 9.5.
UP NEXT FOR OHIO STATE
The Buckeyes return to Columbus, Ohio, for the first of two home meets against Temple at 7 p.m. Feb. 3 at St. John Arena. Avery welcomes his alma mater for only the second all-time dual meet between the two programs.
