Six Falcons Selected to NCAA Championships
4/8/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
April 8, 2008
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Six members of the Air Force men's gymnastics team were invited to compete at the 2008 National Collegiate Men's Gymnastics Championships, the NCAA selection committee announced this afternoon (April 8). This group of Falcons will travel to Palo Alto, Calif., for the annual three-day competition (April 17-19) at Stanford's Maple Pavilion.
"The coaching staff is so proud of our guys qualifying to the NCAA meet," head coach Kip Simons said. "With a strong showing, I believe that we can bring home a couple of NCAA All-Americans."
Senior Greg Stine was chosen to compete in the all-around, as the top-ranked individual qualifier. His National Qualifying Score of 86.880 was nearly two points higher than the rest of the field. Junior Jacob Schonig is also the top-ranked individual specialist on the still rings. His NQS of 15.520 is currently ranked second in the nation.
Fellow junior Josiah Loeser and freshman Aaron Zaiser each qualified in a pair of events. Loeser will participate on the still rings (14.220 NQS) and parallel bars (13.500), while Zaiser will compete on the floor exercise (14.200) and parallel bars (13.520).
"To have two top-ranked qualifying individual in Greg (all-around) and Jake (still rings) is a real testament to the direction that this program is heading," Simons continued. "Plus, having Aaron qualify on two events as a freshman is encouraging for the future of Air Force men's gymnastics.
Senior Brian Boardman and sophomore Brennan Wolford were also invited to the national meet. Boardman will compete on the vault (14.990), while Wolford will take part in the floor exercise (13.940).
The championship weekend begins Thursday, April 17, with two sessions of the national qualifier. The top three teams, the top three all-arounders not on an advancing team and the top three individuals not on an advancing team or holding an all-around spot from each qualifying session will move on to the NCAA finals, which will be held April 18-19.
Players Mentioned
