Bucher, Ballard Win Ohio State Gymnastics Mixed Pairs Crown – Ohio State Buckeyes
12/2/2007 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Buckeyes open season with co-ed exhibition
COLUMBUS, Ohio DJ Bucher and Beth Ann Ballard claimed the Mixed Pairs crown at Ohio State gymnastics’ annual exhibition to open the season Sunday at St. John Arena. The duo’s winning total of 73.4 secured the victory. Finishing in second were Jake Bateman and partner Jessica Staton (72.625) while Shachar Tal and Alyssa Meyer nabbed third with total score of 72.3.
Featuring pairs and trios of male and female gymnasts, the Buckeyes created a competitive atmosphere as the groups challenged each other for the Mixed Pairs title. Each group had a male and female representative compete on three events. Bucher grabbed two first-place finishes on pommel horse (13.8) and parallel bars (15.9) while finishing third on rings (14.5). Ballard’s best finish came on vault where the gymnast scored a 9.825 for second place and noted a 9.65 on bars and a 9.725 on beam.
“The meet was a lot of fun and we are happy to make it through healthy,” Miles Avery, Ohio State men’s gymnastics head coach, said. “The guys did better than expected. It’s good to see DJ (Bucher) and Jake (Bateman) doing an excellent job for us.”
“I am really happy with where we are,” Carey Fagan, Ohio State women’s head coach, said. “It’s only early December and we still have a full month of training. It was the first time in a competition setting and the girls handled the nerves and pressure well. There were no unpleasant surprises today. If anything, there were pleasant surprises. Now, we know what we need to work on from now until January.”
Coming in second, Bateman tallied a 14.9 on rings, 14.8 on vault and a 15.05 on high bar while Staton scored a 9.65 on vault and 9.5 on bars. Rounding out the Top 3, Tal had a 14.3 on floor and 14.75 on parallel bars with partner Meyer notching impressive scores on bars (9.725), beam (9.775) and floor (9.75).
“Today was a great start to the year,” Bateman said. “We are about a month away from the start of the regular season and we are already a lot further along than last year.”
UP NEXT
The women’s team will open its regular season at Maryland at 7 p.m. Jan. 11 at Comcast Center Gymnasium. The Buckeyes lead the series 6-0. The squad last defeated the Terrapins 192.850-190.850 Feb. 11, 2007, at Pittsburgh.
Next up for the men’s team, the upperclassman will travel to Hawaii Dec. 11-16 to promote gymnastics and compete in an exhibition.
