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Gymnasts take 2nd in championship meet
Stanford upsets top-ranked NU
By Chuck Green
Senior Reporter
Nebraska’s best ever was only good
enough for second place in Friday
night’s NCAA Men’s Gymnastics team
championships at the Bob Dcvancy
Sports Center.
The top-rankod Comhuskcrs scored
288.95, which beat the Nebraska record
of 288.15 set in 1988, and the NCAA
record of 288.40 set earlier this sea
son by Stanford.
But No. 2 Stanford churned out a
289.575, shattering its own record by
more than one point to win the school’s
first national championship in gym
nastics in front of 5,059 fans.
The Cardinal was led by Jair Lynch,
yvho scored 59.025 in the all-around
competition. Lynch’s lowest score of
the night was a 9.675 on the rings.
Third-ranked Ohio Slate finished
third with 286.250.
Nebraska coach Franc is Allen was
impressed with the talent displayed
by the three teams, which were nar
rowed from an eight-team field in
Thursday night’s opening competi
tion.
“This is one of the best college
gymnastics meets I’ve been in,” Al
len said. “The most important thing,
from my perspective, is that Stanford
took the meet away from us. We
didn’t give it away.”
Nebraska’s second-place finish was
the filth time the Huskcrs have been
national runners-up. Nebraska has won
seven national titles.
Nebraska scored above 48 on ev
ery event but the rings. The Huskcrs
averaged 9.632 per event, while Stan
ford gymnasts averaged 9.6525 per
event.
Nebraska s 48.50 on the pommel
horse was good for a new school
record, and several Huskers turned in
career- and season-high scores Fri
day night, including Dennis Harrison
(9.85, parallel bars), Sumner Darling
(9.525, rings), Richard Grace (9.775,
parallel bars), Burkett Powell (9.65,
parallel bars) and Richard Kieffer
(9.825, high bar).
Harrison said he had no regrets
about finishing second in the team
race.
“This is the worst feeling I’ve ever
had after a gymnastics meet,” he said.
“Butwedidour best. I’m proud of the
whole team in general. We showed
our character out there tonight.”
Allen agreed.
“I couldn’t be much happier if we
won,” he said. “They gave me the
character I thought they had, and people
who were here tonight had to be pleased
with what they saw.”
Stanford coach Sadao Hamada said
the championship was a team effort,
and that the 289.575 was “pretty much
what the team projected” at the be
ginning of the season.
Cardinal senior Tim Ryan said he
thought the meet was one of the most
exciting ones he had ever been in
volved in.
“The team came together, and that’s
what makes it so sweet,” Ryan said.
“That and beating Nebraska in its
own gym.”
Ryan said Nebraska was very
consistent throughout the meet, and
that Stanford missed more often, but
picked up the slack with good indi
vidual performances.
_ “We missed a few routines (Friday
night), but when we hit, there’s noth
ing more to be said,” Ryan said.'
TEAM FINALS | 1
1. Stanford 289.575
2. Nebraska 288.95
3. Ohio State 286.250
EVENT CHAMPIONS
Pommel horse-Che Bowers, Nebraska
Floor exercise- Brian Winkler, Michigan
Rings-Scott Keswick, UCLA
Vault--Jason Hebert, Syracuse
Parallel bars--Dom Minicucci, Temple
High bar-*Jair Lynch, Stanford
Scott Maurer/DN
Shaun Sartn/DN
Nebraska gymnast Dennis Harrison performs on the parallel bars in Saturday’s all-around
competition at the NCAA championships at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Harrison finished
fifth in the competition, earning All-America honors.
Tired Husker claims 5th
in gymnastic competition
By Chuck Green
Senior Reporter
Dennis Harrison sal in the inter
view room Saturday afternoon,
sucking on his trademark post
competition lollipop.
Harrison, a sophomore who led
the Comhuskcr men’s gymnastics
team throughout the season, had
just finished fifth in the NCAA all
around championship competition
with a combined compulsory and
optional score of 113.950.
He was exhausted.
‘*1 tried pretty hard to give it
away,” Harrison said. ‘‘It was re
ally tough coming back today.”
It was the third lime Harrison
had competed in 42 hours, count
ing Thursday night’s team prelimi
naries and Friday night’s team
championships, in which Nebraska
competed against Stanford and Ohio
Slate.
”1 think everyone ran out of gas.
especially ihcones who were in ihe
learn competition last night,” Har
rison said. “Everyone comes in here
to pul everything they have into the
team title. This was very tiring.”
Minnesota’s John Rocthlisbcrgcr
won the all-around title with
116.075, capturing the champion
ship for the second consecutive
year. He is only the ninth gymnast
to win the all-around title more
than once.
Scott Keswick of UCLA was
second, while Stanford’s Tim Ryan
and Jair Lynch were third and fourth,
respectively.
Nebraska's Sumner Darling
finished 18lh in the competition
with a score of 109.750, while
Husker Richard Grace was 23rd
with a 55.975 in the oplionals only.
Lynch, who generated an all
around score of 59.025 during Fri
day night’s team finals, agreed that
the team race was a factor in Satur
day’s competition.
“Physically, I’m OK,” Lynch
said. “Menially, lhai was a prob
lem. I think it was because of the
pressure of last nighl.”
Rocthlisbcrgcr said this year’s
championship was better than last
year’s.
“Any lime you go up against
these guys, it’s lough, because
they’re great gymnasts,” Roelhlis
berger said. “I had a bit of an ad
vantage because I didn’t have to
compete in the team finals.”
Fred Rocthlisbcrgcr, Minnesota’s
coach and John’s father, said he
was proud of his son’s perform
ance.
“I noticed right away, as soon as
John got off the high bar and he
knew he had the award, he turned
to the team and pointed to them
like, ‘Hey, guys, this is for all of
us,”’ he said.
5 NU All-Americans
churned out at meet
By Chuck Green
Senior Reporter
Che Bowers saved his bcsl for Iasi.
Bowers, a sophomore Comhuskcr
gymnast, scored a school-record 9.90
to win the individual title in the pommel
horse Saturday night in the NCAA
individual championships at the Bob
Dcvancy Sports Center.
The mark broke Bowers’ previous
career-high of 9.85, which he scored
April 11 at the West Regional in
Albuquerque, N.M.
It also paved the way for four other
Huskers to cam All-America status
by finishing in the top six in their
respective events.
Bowers said he was pleased with
his performance in the three-day
championship meet at the sports cen
ter.
“Thursday, Friday and Saturday,
my scores went up,” he said. “I just
felt better each time. All the work has
paid off.”
Sumner Darling, Richard Kieffer
and Josh Saegert ail set career-high
scores Saturday night. Darling and
-44
Thursday, Friday and
Saturday, my scores
went up. I just felt
better each time. All
the work has paid off.
— Bowers, NU men s
gymnast
-f* -
Sacgcrt scored 9.825 and 9.80 on the
parallel bars, respectively.
Kieffer, Bowers and Dennis Harri
son became All-Americans on the
high bar, finishing second, fifth and
sixth respectively.
Darling’s second-place finish on
the parallel bars, coupled with Sacg
ert’s fourth-place finish, earned Ne
braska two All-Americans in the event.
Other individual champions in
cluded Michigan’s Brian Winkler
(floor exercise); Scott Keswick, UCLA
(rings); Jason Hebert, Syracuse (vault);
Dorn Minicucci, Temple (parallel bar);
and Jair Lynch, Stanford (high bar).
