Ohio State
vs. Oklahoma, Air Force
Melton Wins All-Around, Buckeyes Score 446.700 Against No. 1 – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/11/2016 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
March 11, 2016
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Led by all-around champion Sean Melton, the third-ranked Ohio State men’s gymnastics team scored a 446.700 – the second-highest score in school history – in a triangular meet with No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 11 Air Force Friday at St. John Arena. The Sooners used the fourth-highest score in NCAA history – a 451.250 – to win the competition, followed by the Buckeyes and Falcons (425.850).
THE SHORT STORY
Melton and freshman Alec Yoder finished 1-2 for the Buckeyes in the all-around, as both athletes broke the previous school record.
A redshirt sophomore from Orlando, Fla., Melton posted a winning all-around total of 91.600, the top score in the NCAA this season. In the process, he won four event titles: rings (personal-best 15.850), parallel bars (15.800), high bar (personal-best 15.550) and floor exercise (personal-best 15.450). Melton’s score on rings is third on the all-time performance list at Ohio State and equals the top score in the NCAA this season, while the score on high bar ranks him fourth on the all-time performers list and No. 2 in the NCAA this season. The winning total on floor ranks fifth on the OSU performers list and among the Top-10 scores nationally in 2016.
Yoder, a freshman from Indianapolis, was equally impressive for the Buckeyes with a six-event total of 90.150, the fourth-best score in the NCAA this season. He won pommel horse with a score of 15.750 and set personal bests on floor exercise (second, 15.200) and vault (fifth, 15.000).
As a team, Ohio State (10-3, 7-1 B1G) won high bar with a school-record score of 75.750, the top mark in the NCAA this season. The Buckeyes also set a school record on rings (76.050, No. 3 in the NCAA this season) and a season best on floor exercise (74.050).
“This was a good senior night performance for our team,” head coach Rustam Sharipov said after the meet. “We made a few mistakes, but we fought and competed on every event and finished very strong on high bar.
“After tonight, we know where we stand. I’m very confident in this group. We can do some great things as we close the regular season next week and enter the championship season.”
Following the meet, Ohio State recognized seniors Emeric Quade, Alex Johnson, Jake Crnkovich, Evan Eigner, Donald Yeager and Andrew Teal for their contributions to the program.
OTHER TOP PERFORMERS
Jake Dastrup – Dastrup, a redshirt sophomore from Lindon, Utah, was runner-up on pommel horse (15.100) and fourth on floor (15.150), scoring season bests in the process. He added a sixth-place performance on parallel bars (14.800) for the Scarlet and Gray.
Andrew Rickly – The junior from Lewis Center, Ohio, set a new personal best on high bar (15.250) and equaled his career best on parallel bars (14.700), finishing third and ninth, respectively.
FINAL STANDINGS
1) No. 1 Oklahoma – 451.550
2) No. 3 Ohio State – 446.700
3) No. 11 Air Force – 425.850
UP NEXT
Ohio State travels to Williamsburg, Va., for a tri meet with No. 14 William & Mary and No. 17 Temple to close the regular season on Sunday, March 20.
