April 4, 2001

The University of Oklahoma added women's gymnastics to its athletic roster in 1981, at the encouragement of men's coach Paul Ziert.

Ziert served as head coach for both programs until he left OU in 1984. Already a prolific men's coach, Ziert amassed a 23-10 record in his three seasons as the women's head coach.

The '84 season marked former assistant Becky Switzer's first at the helm for the Sooners. That same year Oklahoma won the team's first Big Eight conference title, a feat OU went on to repeat in 1985, 1986, 1991 and 1993.

In 1985 the Sooners qualified to the NCAA National Championships for the first time as a team. They finished 10th at the NCAA meet, where Amy Priest became Oklahoma's first female All-American thanks to a second-place vault finish.

In 1987 OU hit the big time with its first NCAA national champion when Kelly Garrison won the first of two consecutive all-around crowns. (Garrison also finished eighth on beam in those championships.)

Also adding her name to the record books in '87 was Cassie Frey (who would go on to coach 2000 Olympian Tasha Schwikert). Frey finished seventh in the all-around and fifth on uneven bars at the NCAA.

In 1988 Garrison earned national championship titles on bars and beam after claiming her second straight all-around crown. With fourth-and fifth-place finishes on vault and floor, respectively, Garrison became the only Sooner to earn All-America honors in the all-around and all four events.

Frey also repeated as an All-American at those championships, with a fifth-place vault finish. In 1989, Frey became OU's only three-year All-American, finishing fourth on bars.

In 1994 OU captured its only team national title when the Sooners claimed the NIT crown. Individually, Amy Smith added NIT national vault and floor titles to the Sooners' success.

The OU women have also had considerable success on the international scene. In 1988, Garrison, a three-time US national beam champ, earned a berth on the 1988 US Olympic team. The oldest member of the squad, Garrison finished fourth with her team and seventh on beam. To date, Garrison is the last active collegiate gymnast to make a US Olympic team.

In 1994, Garrison's 1988 Olympic teammate, Chelle Stack, joined the Sooner squad. Stack was a two-time letterwinner for the Sooners and earned the 1995 Big Eight title on bars.

In 2000, after more than two decades at Oklahoma, head coach Becky Switzer announced she would step down after the 2001 season. Switzer hand picked her replacement, well-known coach Steve Nunno, a former OU assistant (1983-85) who had gone on to guide Oklahoma native Shannon Miller to two world all-around titles and seven Olympic medals, including two golds at the 1996 Games. Switzer and Nunno will serve as co-head coaches for the 2001 season.