Feb. 17, 2009
IOWA CITY-
THIS WEEK
The No. 10 ranked University of Iowa men’s gymnastics team will travel to Norman, OK, Saturday to face the 2008 national champion Oklahoma Sooners. Competition will be held at the McCasland Field House and is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
TEAM RANKINGS
The Hawkeyes head into the weekend ranked 10th, according to the GymInfo weekly poll, released Feb. 16. Oklahoma is currently ranked first in the nation.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hawkeyes fell to Nebraska (343.50) and Big Ten opponent Minnesota (345.90) Saturday in Iowa City placing third with a 341.60. Iowa garnered five season bests throughout the meet. Senior Geoff Reins dominated in his last home appearance with first place finishes in floor exercise (15.40) and vault (15.95). Sophomore Mike Jiang earned a big first place finish for Iowa on pommel horse with a 14.50, and Reid Urbain scored a 14.80 to place third on rings.
LAST YEAR AGAINST OKLAHOMA
Iowa fell to Oklahoma in Iowa City 338.05 to 357.75. Reid Urbain scored an event high at that point in the season on rings with a 14.70 to place fourth. Geoff Reins placed fifth on vault with a 15.70 and Ben Ketelsen placed fifth on floor exercise with a 14.90.
HEAD COACH Tom Dunn
In his 30th year at Iowa, Head Coach Tom Dunn, has recorded a 213-112-2 record at Iowa. In 1998 and 2006, Dunn was named Big Ten Coach of the Year and College Gymnastics Association Central Region Coach of the Year. He has led the Hawkeyes to 17 top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships. Iowa has competed at the NCAA meet 17 of the past 22 seasons. Dunn has also coached 32 individuals to 64 all-America honors and 20 gymnasts to 32 Big Ten titles.
QUOTING COACH DUNN
“I am very pleased with the team’s progress during the last two weeks. It will get tougher on the road against the No. 1 team in the nation, but our goal is to continue to improve for the next six and a half weeks leading up to the Big Ten Championships.”