No. 1 OU men’s gymnastics (6-0) defeated No. 10 Greenville (0-1) 320.000-305.650 on Sunday.
The Sooners extended their unbeaten streak to six behind their depth and experience. OU scored above 50 on all six events and pulled away with a dominant vault rotation to secure the win.
Here are three takeaways from Sunday’s meet:
OU establishes control early
OU set the tone from the first rotation, using precision and consistent routines to build an early lead.
On floor, junior Nico Hamilton scored 13.650 with redshirt sophomore Arthur Ballon contributing 13.700 and redshirt junior Leo Koike adding 13.650 to bring the team total to 53.700. The Sooners extended their lead on pommel horse with senior Ignacio Yockers posting a team-high 14.350, and they maintained steady scoring on rings with fifth-year senior Brigham Frentheway leading the rotation at 13.350.
By executing well in the opening rotations, OU created separation from Greenville and established momentum that carried into the decisive vault rotation.
Vault gives OU decisive advantage
Vault proved to be the turning point in the meet, giving OU a clear edge that Greenville could not overcome.
The Sooners posted a meet-high 55.300, with junior Tyler Flores leading the rotation with a 14.250, Koike following with a 14.150, junior Colin Flores adding 13.650 and Ballon contributing 13.250. Each gymnast delivered clean landings and solid execution, allowing OU to extend its lead and maintain confidence across the lineup.
The event also showcased the depth of the roster. Of this vault lineup, only redshirt senior Fuzzy Benas competed on vault in last week’s win against No. 4 Michigan (5-1), but OU experimented with lineup positions against Greenville without sacrificing performance.
This flexibility not only helped the team handle pressure in the moment but also gave head coach Mark Williams confidence in the group’s ability to rotate gymnasts effectively in future meets.
“We’ve got a lot more depth than we've had in the last three or four years,” Williams said. “Today, we put together a whole different lineup than we had even a week ago and almost scored the same.”
By controlling vault, the Sooners created separation going into the parallel bars and high bar events, keeping Greenville from gaining momentum.
Strong finish builds confidence for nationals
OU is using the midseason meets to build consistency before the postseason and closed this meet with 52.650 on parallel bars and 53.200 on high bar.
“We almost hit 100%,we had one stumble on the floor, but from there, we went 23-for-23 routines,” Williams said. “That kind of consistency wins championships.… We want to carry that through and see if we can do the same thing at the conference and nationals”
Benas led the high bar lineup with a 14.050, while Koike scored 13.100. Hamilton also added 13.450, and Colin Flores contributed 12.600. Greenville struggled on high bar, posting 46.300 and sealing the Sooners’ victory.
Williams emphasized that the win is as much about preparation as it is about the score.
“We're No. 1, but the meat of our season really happens in March and April,” Williams said. “This is setting the table and getting comfortable with who's going to really perform at the end of the year. I had a lot of different guys in the lineup today, … and I'm pretty happy with the results.”
Next, the Sooners host No. 5 Ohio State (1-0) at 6 p.m. on Saturday at McCasland Fieldhouse on ESPN+.
This story was edited by Joshua McDaniel.
