University of Missouri
Big 12 Championship
Nebraska Wins Big 12 Gymnastics Championship
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
March 27, 1999
COLUMBIA, MO, -- Behind the one-two punch of senior Misty Oxford and junior Heather Brink, the Nebraska Cornhuskers won their sixth consecutive conference gymnastics championship Saturday night at Hearnes Center.
Coach Dan Kendig's Huskers have now won the first three Big 12 Conference Championships and won the final three in the former Big Eight Conference. Nebraska led after every rotation and was never headed as it scored a championships-record 196.75. Iowa State was second (195.65) and was followed by Oklahoma (194.675) and Missouri (194.55).
Oxford and Brink tied for the all-around title with scores of 39.375. Brink also won the floor exercise championship at 9.925. In her three years at Nebraska Brink has now won five conference individual championships.
Oklahoma junior Amber McCracken, named the Big 12 Gymnast of the Year following the meet, tied for first place on the uneven parallel bars with Iowa State freshman Sissy Huey. Both scored 9.875.
Missouri claimed co-championships in two events with school record performances. Senior Jessica Haag tied with Nebraska's Courtney Brown in the vault (9.925) and junior Shannon Brown tied Brown and Iowa State's Kelli More for first place on balance beam (9.925). The 9.925s scored by the MU gymnasts were the highest scores ever recorded in any event by a Tiger.
Nebraska freshman Bree Dority won the league's Newcomer of the Year Award and Mizzou's Jake Jacobson was named the Big 12 Coach of the Year. For Jacobson, Saturday's event was his last home meet after 20 years at the Tiger helm and 33 years overall as a collegiate head coach. He founded the gymnastics program at Missouri in 1979 and will be retiring after the completion of this season.
Nebraska, Oklahoma and Iowa State have each qualified for NCAA Regional competition, to be conducted April 10. Missouri will likely qualify all-arounders Haag, Brown and Amanda Peterson. Qualifiers will be finalized on Monday.
VAULT 1. Jessica Haag, Missouri 9.925 Courtney Brown, Nebraska 9.925 3. Heather Brink, Nebraska 9.875 4. Shelly Kringen, Iowa State 9.85 Amber McCracken, Oklahoma 9.85 6. Jessica Smith, Iowa State 9.825
UNEVEN PARALLEL BARS 1. Amber McCracken, Oklahoma 9.875 Sissy Huey, Iowa State 9.875 3. Mariana Goncalves, Oklahoma 9.85 Sarah Stayberg, Iowa State 9.85 Laurie McLaughlin, Nebraska 9.85 6. Heather Brink, Nebraska 9.85
BALANCE BEAM 1. Shannon Brown, Missouri 9.925 Courtney Brown, Nebraska 9.925 Kelli More, Iowa State 9.925 4. Ginger Russell, Oklahoma 9.9 5. Amanda Peterson, Missouri 9.875 Alison Akers, Missouri 9.875 Misty Oxford, Nebraska 9.875 Sissy Huey, Iowa State 9.875
FLOOR EXERCISE 1. Heather Brink, Nebraska 9.925 2. Kelli More, Iowa State 9.9 Misty Oxford, Nebraska 9.9 Ginger Russell, Oklahoma 9.9 5. Courtney Brown, Nebraska 9.875 6. Amanda Peterson, Missouri 9.85 Michelle Gonzaga, Oklahoma 9.85 Amber McCracken, Oklahoma 9.85 Mariana Goncalves, Oklahoma 9.85
ALL-AROUND 1. Heather Brink, Nebraska 39.375 Misty Oxford, Nebraska 39.375 3. Sissy Huey, Iowa State 39.225 Amber McCracken, Oklahoma 39.225 5. Jessica Smith, Iowa State 39.175 6. Shannon Brown, Missouri 39.1 Amanda Peterson, Missouri 39.1
VAULT, TEAM 1. Nebraska 49.15 2. Iowa State 48.9 3. Missouri 48.575 4. Oklahoma 48.15
UNEVEN PARALLEL BARS, TEAM 1. Nebraska 49.175 2. Iowa State 48.95 3. Oklahoma 48.725 4. Missouri 48.4
BALANCE BEAM, TEAM 1. Iowa State 49.2 2. Nebraska 49.1 3. Missouri 48.725 4. Oklahoma 48.625
FLOOR EXERCISE, TEAM 1. Nebraska 49.325 2. Oklahoma 49.175 3. Missouri 48.85 4. Iowa State 48.6
TEAM TOTALS 1. Nebraska 196.75 2. Iowa State 195.65 3. Oklahoma 194.675 4. Missouri 194.55
Attendance: 1,659
1999 CONFERENCE AWARDS Gymnast of the Year - Amber McCracken, Oklahoma Newcomer of the Year - Bree Dority, Nebraska Coach of the Year - Jake Jacobson, Missouri
ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM (top four in each event)
