Air Force Academy
USAG Team Finals
Air Force Claims First-Ever USAG Championship Title
3/26/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
March 26, 2010
Photo Gallery 1 
| Photo Gallery 2
USAG Championship Photo Gallery I USAG Trophy Presentation Photo Gallery
NCAA Scoresheet 
I All-Around Results I Top 16 Event Results
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. - Highlighted by junior Nash Mills' national title in the all-around and a team score of 342.350, the 12th-ranked Air Force men's gymnastics claimed its first-ever USAG national title on Friday, March 26, at the Academy's Cadet West Gym. The Falcons, which bettered the field by over seven points, also advanced nine gymnasts to tomorrow's event finals.
Mills tallied a combined score of 85.450 to tie for first in the all-around with William and Mary's Derek Gygax, the defending USAG champion in the all-around. Mills' all-around title marks the third time in the past four seasons that a member of the Air Force team has taken the top spot on the medal podium. Contributing to his all-around score were first-place scores on the still rings (14.650), parallel bars (14.450) and high bar (13.950), as well as a fourth-place score of 15.450 on the vault.
Air Force tallied a score of 342.350 - the fourth-highest ever - to win its first USAG national title in the 23-year history of the event. The Falcons bettered the field by over seven points, as 13-time national champion, William and Mary, finished second with a score of 335.150. Springfield placed third with a tally of 329.350, while the Falcons' service academy rival Navy finished fourth with a score of 327.450.
The Falcons' victory marked the first time since 1993 that neither William and Mary or Navy has won the USAG national team title.
In the championship among club teams, Arizona State tallied a score of 326.200 to win its fourth straight national title - and its 13th in the past 14 years. Washington placed second with a score of 295.800, while Brockport (289.550), Texas (260.350) and MIT (247.250) rounded out the scoring. The Sun Devils' Riley Barclay won the "club division" all-around title with a total of 80.350.
Tonight's meet also served as a qualifier into the event finals on Saturday. Backed by several dominating performances, the Falcons qualified nine gymnasts into tomorrow's finals. In the preliminary rounds that included both the varsity and club team gymnasts, Air Force was well represented among the top spots of the pommel horse and still rings, accounting for four of the top six spots in each.
Freshman Chase Nobles tallied an Academy record score of 14.800 to place first on the pommel horse, while classmate James Okamoto scored a career-best 14.600 to finish third. Junior Dan Klimkowski finished fifth with a 14.100, while senior Garrett Canter tied for sixth with a score of personal-best 14.000. On the still rings, Mills tallied a 14.650 to finish first, while Klimkowski scored a 14.400 to place second. Sophomore Devin Menefee tied for third with a mark of 14.200, while classmate Joel Uptmor finished fifth with a score of 14.050.
Air Force also dominated the top of the parallel bars. Behind Mills' first-place score, Canter placed third with a mark of 14.000, while junior Matthew Thorne tied for fourth with a mark of 13.900.
The Falcons claimed the top individual score on five of the six events. In addition to Mills' first-place scores on the still rings, parallel bars and high bar and Nobles top score on the pommel horse, Menefee led the field of 50 on the vault, scoring a 15.650. Uptmor recorded the Falcons' top performance on the floor exercise, scoring a 14.450 to tie for fourth.
Backed by career-best performance from Nobles, Okamoto and Canter, the Falcons shattered their previous team high on the pommel horse. Scoring a combined mark of 57.500, Air Force bettered its previous standard by nearly two points (55.950).
The top individuals from each apparatus during tonight's competition will return to the Cadet West Gym tomorrow (Saturday, March 27), for the event finals of the USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships. The meet to determine the 2010 champions is slated to begin at 5 p.m.
Players Mentioned
