OU men's gymnastics: Goodell, Guimaraes learning from past NCAA Championship experiences

Apr. 13—When Oklahoma's Spencer Goodell first went to the NCAA Championships, he admits he let the weight of the moment rattle him.

Goodell was just a freshman and competing on an OU team that was riding a streak of four straight national championships. It was a huge moment, on the biggest stage and against the toughest competition in the country.

Immediately after the event, Goodell just remembers being frustrated at himself for not trying to enjoy the experience.

Now a fifth-year senior entering his fourth NCAA Championships on Friday in University Park, Penn., Goodell doesn't want the younger gymnasts on the team to make the same mistake.

"Enjoy the experience," Goodell said. "You really only get it four times and luckily for (Vitaliy Guimaraes and I) we've been here five years ... Just having them understand it's exciting, its should be fun, it should be an enjoyable experience, so kind of advocating for that too."

The Sooners would finish as the runner-up behind Stanford in 2019. Stanford would go on to win the next three NCAA Championships, while the Sooners are still looking for their first since 2018.

Goodell wasn't alone in having that experience.

For Guimaraes, who is also in his fifth year, learning how to compete at his best at the biggest meet of the year took time. His freshman season was often clouded by lack of confidence.

"Just telling myself to rely on my training definitely helps me feel calm when I'm out there on the floor," Guimaraes said. "So just kind of taking a step back and taking a deep breath and then going. That's been helpful for me."

The Sooners have been ranked first or second in the national rankings since the start of the season. When the Sooners haven't had the top spot, it's belonged to the Cardinal.

They've met three times this season. The first came in the season opener at the Rocky Mountain Open, a meet Stanford would win by a little over eight points.

The second time the Sooners hosted Stanford at McCasland Fieldhouse and won 418.900-413.800.

At the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship, the Cardinal posted a 423.150 to take first place.

With the Sooners struggling with injuries and the Cardinal entering the event as a clear favorite, OU head coach Mark Williams was honest about his team's chances of winning their 13th national championship.

"They're mega-talented," Williams said. "There's a chance that we could be competitive if they have a lot of mistakes, but they'd have to have a lot of mistakes. Last year we were second and they beat us by nine points and we were really good that day."

On Friday the Sooners will be in the second session of NCAA Qualifying alongside No. 3 Michigan, No. 6 Penn State, No. 7 Ohio State, No. 10 California and No. 11 Springfield. The top three teams from the two qualifying sessions will advance to Saturday's final at 5 p.m.