Oklahoma Ups the Game with Big Vaults, 'E' Tumbling, and Creative Combos
Oklahoma Ups the Game with Big Vaults, 'E' Tumbling, and Creative Combos
We are providing offseason updates from some of the top Division I teams in NCAA gymnastics, and this week we are looking at defending national champion Oklahoma.
We are providing offseason updates from some of the top Division I teams in NCAA gymnastics, and this week we are looking at defending national champion Oklahoma.
In the past three years, the Sooners have won two national championships, including their first in the women's program's history in 2014. Under the guidance of OU head coach K.J. Kindler, the team has risen to be the team to beat in the NCAA. This year, the Sooners have been using the hashtag "#committo3" to emphasize their intention of going for a third national title. Thanks to lots of great Instagram footage, we have summarized some updates from the team's training sessions below.
Last year, the Sooners had three 10.0 start value vaults in their lineup, and two of those came from seniors who have since graduated (Haley Scaman and Hunter Price), leaving only junior AJ Jackson, who has been competing the Yurchenko 1 1/2. Fortunately, some of Oklahoma's new additions can add a lot on this event. Freshman Maggie Nichols has been seen training the Yurchenko 1 1/2 (and sticking it), and sophomore Brenna Dowell has returned this year and is also training the 1 1/2. In addition to the newbies, senior Charity Jones has also been seen training the 1 1/2, which would be an upgrade for her this year.
The most likely scenario will see Jones, Jackson, and Chayse Capps return on vault. For those final three spots, we could see Nichols, Dowell, and sophomore Alex Marks. Marks competed on vault a few times last season with a Yurchenko full.
Adding a scale to the end of a front aerial makes it an E-level skill, and the Sooners have quite a few gymnasts training it. Nichols and Capps have been seen training this skill, along with junior Natalie Brown. Brown has also been working on upgrading her front aerial to back handspring tumbling series, and she's been seen training with two back handsprings or with a back handspring to layout step out. Check out some of the series work the Sooners have been doing on beam lately:
With Scaman and Keeley Kmieciak graduated, Oklahoma needed to add some difficulty into its bars lineup. Out of their regular lineup, Scaman and Kmieciak were two out of three gymnasts who performed an E-level release move in their routine (the other was Jackson).
The Sooners seem to be working hard this offseason toward adding more E-skills across their potential lineup. Nichols is still working her Ray II, Pak Salto, and Van Leeuwen. Fellow freshman Jade Degouveia can perform both a piked Jaeger and Pak Salto. Brehanna Showers, the third freshman to join the team this year, has been training a full twisting Tkatchev. Several returning gymnasts have added the Ray II as well as a Hindorff. Check out the full video from training below:
Oklahoma is one of the best teams on floor, and the Sooners also had some of the highest difficulty on the event last season. This year, they will be welcoming back some of their top gymnasts on this event, such as Jackson and Capps, but they will also be able to take advantage of some newcomers. Notably, Dowell is back this year and has upped her difficulty since training elite most recently. In training videos, she has been seen working both her front double tuck and front double pike (the "Dowell"). Other upgrades include a double layout from Capps, which she is training on soft mats as well. We got a sneak peak of choreography on floor from both Capps and Nichols -- check out what Nichols has been working on below:
Related:
Oklahoma Gets Incredible Boost of Talent from Freshman Class
NCAA Preseason Training Update: LSU
In the past three years, the Sooners have won two national championships, including their first in the women's program's history in 2014. Under the guidance of OU head coach K.J. Kindler, the team has risen to be the team to beat in the NCAA. This year, the Sooners have been using the hashtag "#committo3" to emphasize their intention of going for a third national title. Thanks to lots of great Instagram footage, we have summarized some updates from the team's training sessions below.
New Additions & Upgrades on Vault
Last year, the Sooners had three 10.0 start value vaults in their lineup, and two of those came from seniors who have since graduated (Haley Scaman and Hunter Price), leaving only junior AJ Jackson, who has been competing the Yurchenko 1 1/2. Fortunately, some of Oklahoma's new additions can add a lot on this event. Freshman Maggie Nichols has been seen training the Yurchenko 1 1/2 (and sticking it), and sophomore Brenna Dowell has returned this year and is also training the 1 1/2. In addition to the newbies, senior Charity Jones has also been seen training the 1 1/2, which would be an upgrade for her this year.
The most likely scenario will see Jones, Jackson, and Chayse Capps return on vault. For those final three spots, we could see Nichols, Dowell, and sophomore Alex Marks. Marks competed on vault a few times last season with a Yurchenko full.
Aerial to Scale on Beam
Adding a scale to the end of a front aerial makes it an E-level skill, and the Sooners have quite a few gymnasts training it. Nichols and Capps have been seen training this skill, along with junior Natalie Brown. Brown has also been working on upgrading her front aerial to back handspring tumbling series, and she's been seen training with two back handsprings or with a back handspring to layout step out. Check out some of the series work the Sooners have been doing on beam lately:
Adding some Es on Bars
With Scaman and Keeley Kmieciak graduated, Oklahoma needed to add some difficulty into its bars lineup. Out of their regular lineup, Scaman and Kmieciak were two out of three gymnasts who performed an E-level release move in their routine (the other was Jackson).
The Sooners seem to be working hard this offseason toward adding more E-skills across their potential lineup. Nichols is still working her Ray II, Pak Salto, and Van Leeuwen. Fellow freshman Jade Degouveia can perform both a piked Jaeger and Pak Salto. Brehanna Showers, the third freshman to join the team this year, has been training a full twisting Tkatchev. Several returning gymnasts have added the Ray II as well as a Hindorff. Check out the full video from training below:
Dowell bringing the Dowell on Floor?
Oklahoma is one of the best teams on floor, and the Sooners also had some of the highest difficulty on the event last season. This year, they will be welcoming back some of their top gymnasts on this event, such as Jackson and Capps, but they will also be able to take advantage of some newcomers. Notably, Dowell is back this year and has upped her difficulty since training elite most recently. In training videos, she has been seen working both her front double tuck and front double pike (the "Dowell"). Other upgrades include a double layout from Capps, which she is training on soft mats as well. We got a sneak peak of choreography on floor from both Capps and Nichols -- check out what Nichols has been working on below:
Related:
Oklahoma Gets Incredible Boost of Talent from Freshman Class
NCAA Preseason Training Update: LSU