2008 Woodie Awards
Men's gymnastics duo satisfied with performances at "All-Sstar" meet
Tyler Bassinger
Issue date: 2/11/08 Section: Sports
Two of the Cornhuskers' best men's gymnasts benefited from competing at the equivalent of a gymnastics All-Star meet on Thursday, which was sandwiched between two off weeks for the Nebraska team as a whole.
NU All-Americans Stephen Tétrault and T.J. Schmidt were selected to compete at the Winter Cup in Las Vegas, Nev. In order to qualify for the USA Gymnastics-sponsored event, a gymnast has to finish in the top 15 in any event in the previous year's NCAA Championships. Once that is accomplished, the gymnast submits a video tape to a panel of judges for review. If the judges deem the videotaped routines worthy, the gymnast earns an invitation to the three-day event. About 84 athletes are invited annually.
Tétrault, who finished sixth on pommel horse and seventh in the all-around in last year's NCAA Championships, earned his fourth consecutive invitation. The lone Nebraska senior finished 59th overall in the event's first session with a cumulative score of 53.25.
The Husker captain had his highest finish on the vault, placing 42nd with a 14.70 score. He finished with scores of 12.50 on pommel horse, 13.10 on parallel bars and 12.95 on high bar.
Taking the advice from Nebraska assistant Coach Chuck Chmelka, Tétrault decided to withdraw from the floor exercises and still rings as a safety precaution.
"It was a last-minute decision," Tétrault said. "We just decided that it would be best if I left a couple of events out and made sure that I didn't hurt myself for the bigger team competitions in the future. So I kind of played it safe."
Schmidt, who finished fifth on pommel horse in last season's NCAA Championships, tied for 12th on parallel bars with a score of 14.50. He scored a 13.45 on pommel horse and a 14.00 on still rings. In his second year of competition at the Winter Cup, Schmidt's 41.95 total score was good for 67th in the first session.
Although both gymnasts were unable to advance to the event finals, they said they were pleased with their performances. Tétrault and Schmidt both said the competition was the best that they had seen all year. Former Olympic gymnasts and other college graduates were also competing.
NU All-Americans Stephen Tétrault and T.J. Schmidt were selected to compete at the Winter Cup in Las Vegas, Nev. In order to qualify for the USA Gymnastics-sponsored event, a gymnast has to finish in the top 15 in any event in the previous year's NCAA Championships. Once that is accomplished, the gymnast submits a video tape to a panel of judges for review. If the judges deem the videotaped routines worthy, the gymnast earns an invitation to the three-day event. About 84 athletes are invited annually.
Tétrault, who finished sixth on pommel horse and seventh in the all-around in last year's NCAA Championships, earned his fourth consecutive invitation. The lone Nebraska senior finished 59th overall in the event's first session with a cumulative score of 53.25.
The Husker captain had his highest finish on the vault, placing 42nd with a 14.70 score. He finished with scores of 12.50 on pommel horse, 13.10 on parallel bars and 12.95 on high bar.
Taking the advice from Nebraska assistant Coach Chuck Chmelka, Tétrault decided to withdraw from the floor exercises and still rings as a safety precaution.
"It was a last-minute decision," Tétrault said. "We just decided that it would be best if I left a couple of events out and made sure that I didn't hurt myself for the bigger team competitions in the future. So I kind of played it safe."
Schmidt, who finished fifth on pommel horse in last season's NCAA Championships, tied for 12th on parallel bars with a score of 14.50. He scored a 13.45 on pommel horse and a 14.00 on still rings. In his second year of competition at the Winter Cup, Schmidt's 41.95 total score was good for 67th in the first session.
Although both gymnasts were unable to advance to the event finals, they said they were pleased with their performances. Tétrault and Schmidt both said the competition was the best that they had seen all year. Former Olympic gymnasts and other college graduates were also competing.
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