No. 11 Air Force Travels to Top-Ranked Oklahoma
3/15/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
March 15, 2012
The regular season comes to a close this weekend for the 11th-ranked Air Force men's gymnastics team. The Falcons will travel to Norman, Okla., on Saturday, March 17, to face top-ranked Oklahoma and No. 9 Nebraska. Action is slated to begin at 7 p.m. (CST) at McCasland Field House on the OU campus.
Meet Notes 09: at Oklahoma, with Nebraska 
IF YOU CAN'T MAKE IT TO THE MEET
The Sooners will have a webcast available at www.SoonerSports.com.
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
For the eighth straight week, Oklahoma leads the GymInfo National Rankings. The Sooners hold a three-score average of 356.267 ... a mark nearly two points higher than the rest of the field. Jake Dalton is ranked first in the nation on the floor exercise, vault, parallel bars and all-around, as well as second on the high bar, third on the vault and fifth on the still rings. Chris Stehl (third, still rings) and Jacoby Rubin (fifth, high bar) are also ranked among the nation's top five for the Sooners. Nebraska is ranked ninth in the team standings with an average of 341.950. Five different Cornhuskers are ranked among the nation's top 20, highlighted by Wyatt Baier's No. 13 rankings on the vault and Andreas Hofer's No. 14 mark on the high bar.
IN THE RANKINGS
Three Falcons are ranked among the nation's top 20, including Devin Menefee, who is tied for ninth on the still rings with a three-score average of 15.133. Josh Ramos is tied for 15th on the parallel bars with a three-score mark of 14.733, while James Okamoto is ranked 18th with a 14.633 average. As a team, Air Force is ranked among the top 10 on the still rings (fifth, 58.533) and high bar (10th, 56.333).
FALCONS EARN EASY WIN AT ARIZONA STATE
Backed by five of the six event titles, Air Force defeated Arizona State by a 14-point margin (335.600-321.600) on March 9 in Tempe. The Falcons' score of 335.700 is their highest road total of the season. In addition, five Falcons set or matched career-best marks at ASU. Patrick Duffy improved his score on the floor exercise by nearly two points to 14.400, while Tory Brown set a vault mark of 14.300 and Skyler Awisus tallied a 13.700 on the high bar. In addition, Nick Gaudlip (parallel bars, 13.800) and Gared Chapman (floor exercise, 13.800) each matched their personal-best scores.
TAKING FIVE OF SIX
Air Force claimed five of the six event titles at Arizona State, including a sweep of the first three events. Josh Ramos and Patrick Duffy shared the top spot on the floor exercise (14.400), while James Okamoto won the pommel horse (13.800) and Tyler Huebner took first on the still rings with a score of 14.500. In the final three events, Ben Zaiser scored a 14.500 to win the vault, while Tory Brown took first on the high bar with a score of 14.200.
WHAT'S AHEAD FOR THE FALCONS
Air Force is off from competition until March 30-31, when it returns to the Academy to host the 2012 USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships. The two-time defending champion Falcons will host varsity teams from William & Mary, Springfield and Navy, as well as club programs from Arizona State, Brockport and Washington.
Players Mentioned
