Falcons Travel to Nebraska for Quad Meet
2/19/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
Feb. 19, 2010
After an extra, unscheduled week off from competition due to the cancellation of the All-Academy Championships, the 13th-ranked Air Force men's gymnastics finally returns to action on Sunday, Feb. 21. The Falcons will face off with No. 6 Ohio State, No. 9 Nebraska and No. 11 Illinois-Chicago at the Devaney Center in Lincoln, Neb. The meet is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. (CST).
Meet Notes 05: at Nebraska Quad Meet
THE COMPETITION AT A GLANCE
Ohio State is ranked sixth in the latest GymInfo Coaches Poll with a total season average of 344.250, while host Nebraska is ranked ninth (338.300) and Illinois-Chicago is ranked 11th (331.712). Ohio State hasn't competed as a team since Jan. 30, when it fell 349.700-341.350 to Illinois. Nebraska is currently 4-3 on the season after falling to second-ranked Oklahoma last weekend, while Illinois-Chicago has a 1-9 record after falling to Michigan 339.250-328.859.
IN THE RANKINGS
The Buckeyes currently lead the nation on the still rings (58.650) and are ranked third on the vault (62.400). Ohio State is backed by Brandon Wynn, who leads the nation on the still rings (15.975), while ranking fifth on the vault (15.825) and sixth on the all-around (86.625). The Huskers' Kyle Shanahan is ranked 11th on the floor exercise, while John Robinson is 14th in the all-around and Daniel Brule is 15th on the high bar. Andrew Stover leads the Flames, with top-20 national rankings on the vault (11th), parallel bars (15th) and all-around (19th).
DID YOU KNOW?
Air Force head coach Kip Simons was a four-year letterwinner for Ohio State (1991-94), earning the Big 10 Freshman of the Year award and the Nissen-Emery Award, which is given to the nation's top senior gymnast. While at OSU, he was a four-year member of the All-Big 10 Team, while earned four conference titles on the parallel bars (1992, 1994), still rings (1992) and high bar (1993).
WE'LL BE SEEING YOU
Air Force will face Illinois-Chicago two more times during the upcoming weeks, as the Flames travel to the Academy for a pair of meets. The Falcons will host UIC and Stanford on Friday, March 5, before facing the Flames again in a dual meet on Sunday, March 7. Air Force will also see Nebraska once more this season, as the two teams will meet at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships.
RANK YOU VERY MUCH
Individually, junior Nash Mills is ranked 10th on the vault's national rankings with an average score of 15.775. As a team, the Falcons have averaged a score of 61.700 on that apparatus, highlighted by a season-high, Academy-record score of 62.200. That mark is ranked fifth on the national leaderboard.
AIR FORCE - THE UNOFFICIAL NUMBER ONE
The Falcons could be considered the unofficial champion of the 2010 All-Academy Championship meet, as they were the only team able to travel to California. While Navy had already forfeited their chance to repeat due to multiple injuries, Army was grounded at West Point due to the snowstorms that slammed into the East Coast. Due to the cancellation of the Feb. 13 meet and the previous week's Winter Cup Challenge, Air Force hasn't competed in a team competition since Jan. 30.
WHAT'S AHEAD FOR THE FALCONS
The Falcons head to Tempe, Ariz., for a dual meet with Arizona State on Friday, Feb. 26, at 7:30 p.m. (PST). The meet, which will be held at Wells Fargo Arena on the main ASU campus, will also feature a dual meet between the Sun Devils' women's team and Oregon State.
