Columbus, Ohio- The Nebraska men’s gymnastics team advanced to the NCAA Finals after finishing second with a score of 413.123 behind Stanford in first (417.389) during Session I of the qualifying round on Friday afternoon. Stanford and Illinois will join Nebraska from Session I to compete in championship finals tomorrow evening, alongside the top-three teams from Session II.

The Huskers performance was highlighted by four Huskers in the top-three on three events including Luke James in second (14.366) and Chase Mondi in third on floor (14.30), Taylor Christopulos in second on vault (14.70), and Max Odden in second on high bar (13.833).

Floor
The Huskers began on floor for the qualifying round, where they scored a 69.965, as a team. Toby Liang led the lineup where he put up a 13.533. Luke James scored a huge 14.366 for the Big Red, good for second overall. Chase Mondi matched the energy with a solid 14.30, landing in third. Sam Phillips registered a 13.80, while Taylor Christopulos anchored with a 13.966 in seventh, respectively. 

Pommel Horse
Nebraska earned a team score of 68.032 on pommel horse. York collected a 13.30 as lead off for the squad. Travis Wong followed where he earned an impressive 14.266 for NU and landed in seventh. Yanni Chronopoulos scored a 12.133 following a fall. Cooper Giles showed out with a big 14.533, good for fourth overall. Christopulos anchored with a 13.80 for Nebraska.

Rings
On the third rotation, NU collected a 67.699 team score on still rings. James Friedman opened the rotation with a score of 13.433. Wong put up a 13.00, while Asher Cohen collected a 13.966 and fourth place finish, respectively. Chris Hiser earned a 13.60. Phillips capped the rotation with a score of 13.70 in eighth position.

Vault
Nebraska launched into the vault rotation where they notched a team score of 72.231. The Cornhuskers were led by Mondi who earned a strong 14.433 and 10th place finish for Nebraska. James posted a 14.366, while Nathan York collected a 14.066, respectively. Zac Tiderman impressed with strength after scoring a 14.166 and tying in fourth. Christopulos rounded off the rotation with a huge 14.70 for NU, tying for second place.

Parallel Bars
The Huskers combined for a team score of 67.832 on parallel bars. Friedman made way for the squad, notching a 13.50. Cole Partridge registered a 13.766 for Nebraska. Cohen put up a 13.40, while Phillips posted a 13.766, respectively. Christopulos anchored the event with a score of 13.40.

High Bar
NU closed the meet on high bar where they rallied to earn a 67.364 team score. Led by Max Odden with the stick, the freshman tallied a personal-best 13.833 and took second place on the event. Partridge collected a 13.533, good for seventh. Tiderman took 10th after registering a 13.366 for Nebraska, while Phillips earned a 12.966, respectively. Christopulos closed out the final event of the afternoon in fifth with a score of 13.666.

Up Next
The Huskers are set to compete in the NCAA Finals Saturday, April 20, at 5:00 p.m. (CT) at the Covelli Center. The meet will be streamed on https://www.ncaa.com/liveschedule. The Huskers will face No. 1 Stanford, No. 4 Illinois and the top three teams from Session II. Fans can follow @HuskerMGym on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter for live updates during the meet.

VAVROVA LEADS HUSKERS IN OPENING ROUND AT BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP

Michaela Vavrova shot a solid 74 in the opening round to lead Nebraska in the first round of the Big Ten Women's Golf Championship in Havre de Grace, Md., on Friday.

Vavrova, a senior from Bojnice, Slovakia, carded a pair of birdies to go with 13 pars, while adding two bogeys and a double-bogey to finish at two-over-par on the 6,314-yard, par-72 layout of the Bulle Rock Golf Course. She enters Saturday's second round tied for 25th among the 84 golfers in the 14-team championship field. 

Arden Louchheim contributed Nebraska's second-best score in the six-count-four format with a 75 (+3). The freshman from Park City, Utah opened her first championship appearance five-over through the first three holes and slipped to six-over through seven holes after starting on No. 9. However, Louchheim turned the tide starting with a birdie on No. 17 before closing the back with a par. She added two more pars on No. 1 and No. 2 before getting birdies on No. 3 and No. 5. She closed out her round with four straight pars. Louchheim sits in a tie for 33rd entering the second round.

Kelli Ann Strand and Miu Takahashi pitched in rounds of 76 to complete Nebraska's 301 (+13) team total on Friday. Strand, who missed Nebraska's final regular-season tournament with an injury, opened on No. 10 and completed the back nine at one-over-par, before playing the front at three-over.

Takahashi started three-over on the back nine, before recording pars on eight of the nine holes on the front nine. She finished with 14 pars and four bogeys on the day to join Strand in a tie for 44th at the end of the round.

Lindsey Thiele (80) and Lena Hassert (81) rounded out Nebraska's first-round individual scores. Thiele is tied for 71st, while Hassert is tied for 74th.

Michigan State posted the best team round of the day with a 279 (-9), led by a 67 (-5) from Paula Balanzategui, who enters the second round in a tie atop the individual leader board with Northwestern's Lauryn Nguyen. The Wildcats (287) sit eight shots behind the Spartans, while Michigan and Indiana are tied for third at even-par 288.

The second round of the Big Ten Championship is scheduled to begin with tee times off No. 1 (7:30 a.m. CT) and No. 10 (8:09 a.m. CT) on Saturday. Live scoring will be available on Huskers.com from GolfStat.

Big Ten Championship
April 19-21, 2024
Havre de Grace, Maryland
Bulle Rock Golf Course (Par 72, 6,314 Yards)

Team Standings (First Round)
1. Michigan State - 279 (-9)
2. Northwestern - 287 (-1)
T3. Michigan - 288 (E)
T3. Indiana - 288 (E)
5. Purdue - 292 (+4)
6. Wisconsin - 295 (+7)
T7. Maryland - 298 (+10)
T7. Ohio State - 298 (+10)
9. Iowa - 300 (+12)
T10. Minnesota - 301 (+13)
T10. Nebraska - 301 (+13)
T10. Illinois - 301 (+13)
13. Rutgers - 305 (+17)
14. Penn State - 310 (+22)

Individual Standings (First Round)
T1. Lauryn Nguyen, Northwestern - 67 (-5)
T1. Paula Balanzategui, Michigan State - 67 (-5)
3. Caroline Craig, Indiana - 69 (-3)
T4. Isabel Sy, Illinois - 70 (-2)
T4. Katie Lu, Michigan State - 70 (-2)
T6. Momo Sugiyama, Purdue - 71 (-1)
T6. Nicha Kanpai, Maryland - 71 (-1)
T6. Hailey Borja, Michigan - 71 (-1)
T6. Leila Raines, Michigan State - 71 (-1)
T6. Valentina Rossi, Michigan State - 71 (-1)
T6. Alexia Siehl, Wisconsin - 71 (-1)
T6. Mara Janess, Michigan - 71 (-1)

Nebraska Individuals
T25. Michaela Vavrova - 74 (+2)
T33. Arden Louchheim - 75 (+3)
T44. Kelli Ann Strand - 76 (+4)
T44. Miu Takahashi - 76 (+4)
T71. Lindsey Thiele - 80 (+8)
T74. Lena Hassert - 81 (+9)

HUSKERS COLLECT 11 TOP-FIVE FINISHES ON FRIDAY

Nebraska track and field swept the hammer throw on the opening day of the Michael Johnson Invitational, taking the top-two spots on the men’s and the women’s side. The Huskers tallied 11 total top-five finishes at the Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium on Friday.

Hillevi Carlsson and Cammy Garabian took over the top-two spots in the women’s hammer throw, with Carlsson hitting 203-7 (62.05m) to win it and Garabian taking second with a 202-4 (61.68m). That mark moved Garabian up to seventh on the all-time list. On the men’s side, the Big Red put three in the top five, led by Henry Zimmerman winning the title with a 222-7 (67.86m). Seth Schnakenberg placed second with a personal-best 203-8 (62.08m) and Max Herman went a personal-best 201-3 (61.35m) to finish fifth. Rounding out the final, Josh Marcy went 198-7 (60.53m) to take sixth and Brett Schwartz went 192-9 (58.77m) to take eighth.

In the women’s discus, Kalynn Meyer threw for 179-1 (54.60m) to finish as runner-up. Amelia Flynt placed seventh with a distance of 167-0 (50.92m). Tyler Brown (185-3, 56.48m) and Cade Moran (185-0, 56.40m) provided top-five finishes in the men’s discus, placing fourth and fifth.

Velecia Williams secured third in the women’s long jump with a 20-11 ¾ (6.39m), nearing her personal-best of 21-0 ¾ (6.42m). Lishanna Ilves took fifth with a 20-6 ¼ (6.25m) and Ashley McElmurry finished ninth with a 19-7 (5.97m). On the men’s side, Kavian Kerr placed third in the long jump with a 24-4 ½ (7.43m) and Micaylon Moore finished eighth with a 23-8 ¼ (7.22m).

Joseph Clifford was 10th overall and fifth among collegiate runners in the men’s 400m hurdles, clocking a 52.63. Cory Berg added a 15th-place finish with a 53.26. Karlie Moore (1:01.65) and Abrielle Artley (1:01.75) placed 13th and 14th in the women’s 400m hurdles. They were seventh and eighth among collegiate runners.

In the women’s pole vault, Jessica Gardner and Kylie Clark tied for 10th with a clearance of 12-3 ¾ (3.75m). In the men’s pole vault, Matthias Algarin and Kolby Heinerikson each cleared 15-3 (4.65m) to place 14th and 15th. 

Bariborve Deebom was NU’s top finisher in the women’s 200m, clocking a 24.58 to take 27th.

Events pick up tomorrow at 11 a.m. (CT) for field events and 1:30 p.m. (CT) for running events.