2007 – A Year of Firsts for Ohio State Men’s Gymnastics – Ohio State Buckeyes
8/27/2007 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
Buckeyes register both academic and athletic accomplishments
In a surprising year of firsts, the 2007 Ohio State men’s gymnastics team will long be remembered for not only becoming the first squad in OSU history to extend the program’s run as Big Ten champion to three-consecutive seasons but for also becoming the first to garner the top national academic team honor from the College Gymnastics Association (CGA).
In recent years, the Buckeyes have found a recipe for success against their conference foes, collecting five of the last seven league titles under Miles Avery, Ohio Sate men’s gymnastics head coach. Since 2001, Ohio State bested its competition in 2001, ’02, ’05, ’06 and ’07 and in his 10-year tenure, Avery has yet to have a squad finish out of the Top 3 at the Big Ten finals.
With its third-straight Big Ten title win, the 2007 crown registered in as Ohio State’s first such run in program history. Previously, the Buckeyes had recorded back-to-back championships three times (1993-94, ’96-’97, 2000-’01) without being able to tack on a third.
But beyond its awards in the gym, the 2007 squad’s first national academic team accolade ranks highly in the minds of the Ohio State Department of Athletics along with the men’s gymnastics coaching staff and student-athletes.
In the 2006-07 academic year, the squad posted a 3.4 cumulative grade point average (GPA) to be named the 2007 National Academic Team Champion, bringing Stanford’s four-year streak to an end. Not only was the award a Buckeye first but it also logged a Big Ten Conference first. With the honor, Ohio State becomes just the fourth program to receive the title and joins the ranks of Stanford, MIT and William & Mary.
“Earning the men’s gymnastics CGA national academic team honor is an esteemed honor,” Heather Lyke, Ohio State Associate Athletics Director, said. “This honor shows the academic commitment of our coaches, student-athletes and academic staff. We are incredibly proud of our student-athletes for their ability to not only balance their athletic and academic responsibilities, but to also do better academically than any other team in the country is a significant accomplishment.”
For Ohio State, seven gymnasts secured a GPA of 3.5 or higher to be named first-team CGA All-America Scholar-Athletes, including Jake Bateman, Tony Duong, Kristopher Kline, Mike Marino, Andy Saurber, Shachar Tal and Jimmy Wickham. Tabbed as second-team selections were DJ Bucher, Eddie Hay and Willie Ito for earning a GPA between 3.2 and 3.499.
“I’m a proud coach,” Avery said. “As a team, we always strive to perform our best in both the gym and classroom. This is a tremendous accomplishment for Ohio State to be the top academic squad. I’m glad we can be in the company of programs like Stanford, MIT and William & Mary.”
Beyond displaying excellence in the classroom, Bateman, Bucher, Duong, Hay and Wickham all enter the 2008 as top returning scorers. A decorated group, Bateman was crowned the 2006 Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Bucher owns three Big Ten titles and six All-America distinctions, Hay captured the 2007 conference championship on floor while Wickham has two All-America accolades on vault.
In a season of great accomplishments, the 2007 Buckeye squad bridged the gap between succeeding in academics and athletics.
