Ohio State excellence is not exclusive to the football field or basketball court. Around the Oval is our way of keeping you informed about the amazing achievements of the other 34 varsity teams on campus.
Melton Wins Gymnastics Championship, Buckeyes Take Team Fourth
Senior gymnastic Sean Melton of Orlando, Florida won his third-consecutive all-around title at Big Ten Championships on Friday night. Scoring 84.450, Melton finished just ahead of teammate and silver medalist Alec Yoder, who scored 84.300.
Melton added to his impressive resume with his third title on the parallel bars and an additional title on rings. His exceptional performance earned him honors as the Big Ten Gymnast of the Championships. Melton has won that title in back-to-back championships.
Congrats to your two-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Championships, @MeltonSean!#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/DP7nmFyHJd
— Ohio State Men's Gym (@OhioState_MGYM) April 8, 2018
While it was a strong day for the Buckeyes in individual competition, the group struggled in the team competition. The third-ranked Buckeyes finished fourth.
"It was a rough start for us on the first three events," said coach Rustam Sharipov. "We're disappointed in our performance as a team, but it's great for us to have the top two all-arounders. I'm proud of the new guys, the freshman stepped up, but we have to improve for the NCAA Championships."
The men's gymnastic team will compete in NCAA Championships April 20th and 21st in Chicago.
Looking forward to showing out at the NCAA Championships (April 20-21) in Chicago! Hope to see you there! pic.twitter.com/NVoY7qry4C
— Ohio State Men's Gym (@OhioState_MGYM) January 22, 2018
Women’s Gymnastics Places Third at Regionals
The 25th-ranked women's gymnastics team scored 196.500 at the NCAA Columbus Regional on Saturday. The score placed the Buckeyes behind only third-ranked UCLA and tenth-ranked Arkansas. The third-place finish is Ohio State's best since 2012.
The Buckeyes started the day with a solid performance on the uneven bars. After a rough performance on the balance beam, the Scarlett and Gray regained their footing on the floor exercise. To conclude the day, the team showed grace under pressure on the vault, notching their second-highest score of the season.
While the Buckeyes did not earn the opportunity to advance to NCAA Championships, the team exceeded expectations. With a strong conclusion to head coach Meredith Paulicivic's first year at the helm, the future looks bright for Ohio State.
Coach Paulicivic said: “When you come in as the fourth seed and do better than expected and stay in the mix, that’s exciting for a young inexperienced team. Even though we’re a little disappointed because we came so close, it was a great meet and a great year. It’s been a great first year at Ohio State, it’s like I’m living a dream and I’m really looking forward to the future of this program.”
Ohio State caps off a tremendous season by taking third place at the NCAA Columbus Regional, its best finish since 2012. Buckeye Nation, thank you for keeping St. John Arena rockin' and for all your support! #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/4BJqzB5rCs
— Ohio State WGYM (@OhioState_WGYM) April 8, 2018
Junior Jamie Stone of Chesapeake, Virginia tied her career-best scoring 9.900 on vault. The score earned Stone a first place in the event and a ticket to NCAA Championships in St. Louis on April 20th and 21st.
Men’s Tennis Continues Win Streak
With the Big Ten Tournament looming in the distance, the men's tennis team is on fire. After a busy week of play, the third-ranked team has won ten straight matches and remains undefeated in Big Ten play .
The Buckeye's latest stretch started Wednesday with a road match at 22nd-ranked Kentucky. The Wildcats took an early 2-1 lead after Senior Mikael Torpegaard dropped just his fourth dual match of the season. The team quickly regained composure, however, and went on to win the match 4-2.
On Friday, the team returned home to Iowa, Nebraska and Toledo. The Buckeyes defeated the Hawkeyes 4-0, blanked Nebraska 7-0 and capped the weekend with a 4-0 sweep against Toledo. With scores like those, the men's tennis team leaves little room for discussion.
Ohio State now has 20 wins on the year #GoBucks
— Ohio State M Tennis (@OhioState_MTEN) April 7, 2018
RECAP: https://t.co/P3vnQ4UXUx
PHOTOS: https://t.co/4GyQnwFjZC pic.twitter.com/tWlS3EbADe
Men's tennis next hosts Illinois and Northwestern for pair of matches next weekend. The regular season wraps up April 22nd, and the Big Ten Tournament begins April 26th.
OTHER NEWS AND SCORES
- Men's volleyball clinched the team's 26th Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association regular season championship with a win versus the Mastodons of Fort Wayne. After losing to Ball State in the team's next match, however, they had to settle to share the crown. Tournament play begins on April 14th.
- Men's track placed third at the Jim Click Shootout in Arizona.
- Softball won all three games of a weekend series versus Rutgers.
- Baseball lost a 2-1 game versus Iowa in a weekend series tie-breaker on Sunday.
- Women's lacrosse fell to eighth-ranked Northwestern.
- Men's lacrosse dropped a 13-10 showdown at sixth-ranked Johns Hopkins.
- Women's tennis lost to Minnesota on Friday. The team bounced back to beat Wisconsin on Sunday.
