Ohio State
Arnold Classic Challenge
No. 3 Ohio State Posts School-Record 447.400 to Win Arnold Challenge – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/5/2016 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Gymnastics
March 5, 2016
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The third-ranked Ohio State men’s gymnastics team used a school-record team score of 447.400 to defeat No. 6 Iowa and No. 8 Nebraska at the annual Arnold Challenge at the Celeste Center Saturday afternoon.
THE SHORT STORY
Ohio State (9-2, 7-1 B1G) won five of six events against the Hawkeyes and Cornhuskers and scored 74.000 or higher on five events. The Buckeyes set a school record on parallel bars with a 75.150 team total and also posted season-best scores on high bar (74.500) and floor exercise (73.650). The team all-around total of 447.400 ranks third in the NCAA this season behind No. 1 Oklahoma (448.350) and No. 2 Stanford (447.700).
Individually, the Buckeyes were once again led by freshman Alec Yoder and redshirt sophomore Sean Melton. Yoder was victorious on pommel horse (15.850) and tied for first place on two events, joining Melton as high bar co-champion (15.150) and fellow freshman Tristan Burke as a winner on rings (15.200). Melton added a first-place finish on parallel bars with a season-best score of 15.900.
“I’m very happy with our performance today,” head coach Rustam Sharipov said after the meet. “Our guys have done a great job of making adjustments and improvements, and we are on the right track heading into the last few weeks of the regular season.
“I thought we did a great job of handling the first five up, five count meet of the year. We had a strong hit percentage, but can make some improvements on landings. Overall, I’m very pleased with the showing. We look forward to hosting Oklahoma and Air Force next Friday on Senior Day.”
TOP PERFORMERS
Yoder – Yoder, an Indianapolis product, scored 15 or higher on all three of his winning events, including collegiate-best scores of 15.850 on pommel horse and 15.150 on high bar. The 15.850 on pommel horse is tops in the nation this season and ranks third in the OSU record book, while the 15.150 on high bar ranks in the Top 10 in the NCAA this season.
Melton – A native of Orlando, Fla., Melton’s winning parallel bars score of 15.900 ranks No. 3 in the NCAA in 2016 and is just shy of his school-record total of 16.050 from 2014. He set a season-best total of 15.150 on high bar to earn a first-place tie with Yoder and turned in a runner-up and personal-best score of 15.350 on pommel horse – both marks rank in the Top 10 nationally this season.
Burke – The freshman from Royse City, Texas, tied for first on rings with a career-best 15.200 and was the top Buckeye on vault, tying for second place with a 15.200.
Jake Dastrup – Dastrup, a redshirt sophomore from Lindon, Utah, was a runner-up on parallel bars with a personal-best 15.400, a Top-10 score nationally and the fourth-best performance in school history.
Emeric Quade – Quade, from Tucson, Ariz., was the top Buckeye on floor exercise, turning in a personal-best routine that earned a 15.400 from the judges. Quade ranks fifth in the event in the OSU record book.
FINAL STANDINGS
1) No. 3 Ohio State – 447.400
2) No. 8 Nebraska – 437.300
3) No. 6 Iowa – 426.400
UP NEXT
Ohio State hosts top-ranked and defending national champion Oklahoma, along with No. 11 Air Force, in a Senior Day tri meet next Friday, March 11 at St. John Arena. Events begin at 5 p.m. ET.
