Wynn collects top points in national ranking system, three Ohio State gymnasts advance to VISA Championships

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Just three months after earning his first All-America nod in the all-around, Brandon Wynn, a rising junior on the Ohio State men’s gymnastics team, notched an 87.635 to place first at the 2009 Men’s Qualifier hosted by USA Gymnastics July 11 in Colorado Springs, Colo. Out of 88 contestants, Wynn also finished the meet with the top number of points in the ranking system to secure a spot at the VISA Championships Aug. 12-14 in Dallas, Texas.

Jake Bateman, who completed his four-year Buckeye career this past season, took second with an 87.2 all-around tally while 2009 pommel horse All-American Steven Spencer posted a second-place score of 15.15 on the event to ensure that three Ohio State gymnasts will be vying for spots on the U.S. Senior National team this August at Dallas’ American Airlines Center.

“Brandon and Jake have been busting their tails in the gym this summer, training twice a day and learning new skills,” Miles Avery, Ohio State head coach, said. “It is hard work every day so it is good to see that pay off for an athlete.

“This certainly puts these two guys and Steven in the position to win a spot on the U.S. National team in August and beyond that, a spot on the World Championships team in October.”

In his run to the top of the leaderboard, Wynn posted career highs on floor (15.2) and parallel bars (15.235), ending the competition with three Top 2 finishes. His parallel bars score stood as the best at the competition while the Voorhees, N.J., native placed second on floor and rings (15.05). The 2009 Academic All-Big Ten honoree claimed two more Top 10 finishes with a tally of 14.2 on high bar for seventh and a 15.5 on vault for 10th.

"We started this summer with two-a-day practices at 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. four days a week and all that time in the gym and hard work paid off this weekend," Wynn said. "It's a good feeling but I have to keep in mind that it was just one meet and I have to bring it again at VISAs next month. At the rate I'm going, I hope all my hard work turns into a spot on the U.S. National team - that's the goal."

Bateman, a native of Kingsport, Tenn., was close to Wynn throughout the competition, posting Top 3 finishes on parallel bars (15.0) and high bar (14.65). A recipient of an NCAA postgraduate scholarship and first team CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American, Bateman produced two more Top 10 placements on floor (14.75) and rings (14.65) to make it a 1-2 Buckeye sweep and qualify for his eighth career VISA Championships.

Competing on pommel horse and parallel bars, Spencer, the 2009 NCAA pommel horse runner-up, notched a 15.15 score, finishing just behind 2009 Big Ten pommel horse champion Luke Stannard of Illinois’ 15.3. As an event specialist, Spencer will compete for the pommel horse national title in Dallas.

Next up for the trio is a month of training before the VISA Championships Aug. 12-14. At the competition, the Buckeyes will face a field of 42 of the best male gymnasts in the country as they look to garner spots on the U.S. Senior National Team. After the preliminary session on Aug. 12, NBC Sports will broadcast the Aug. 14 finals at a date and time to be announced later.

In addition to Bateman, Spencer and Wynn, three more Buckeyes also competed at the U.S. Qualifier last weekend. Soon-to-be junior Sean Regan competed on four events, tallying his best score on rings, a 14.1, to finish 11th while sophomores Ty Echard and Philip Onorato competed on one event each. Echard, a freshman All-American on pommel horse, finished 11th on the event with a 14.11 and Onorato, the 2009 Big Ten Freshman of the Year, scored a 14.7 on vault.

Qualifiers for the 2009 VISA Championships
Jake Bateman, Kingsport, Tenn.
Steven Spencer, Pleasanton, Calif.
Brandon Wynn, Voorhees, N.J.