11th-Ranked Air Force Heads to All-Academy Championships
2/10/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
Feb. 10, 2016
The 11th-ranked Air Force men's gymnastics team travels to Atlanta, Ga., this Saturday (Feb. 13) to take on 12th-ranked Navy and 13th-ranked Army West Point at the annual All-Academy Championships. The triangular meet between the three service academies, which is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. (ET), will be held at the Georgia State Sports Arena and run in conjunction with the 33rd-annual Peachtree Invitational.
Meet Notes 05: at All-Academy Championships 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Navy, under the direction of former Air Force head coach Kip Simons, is currently ranked 12th in the national standings with an average of 416.383, while Army West Point is listed 13th with a 414.039 average. The two programs are coming off of their annual Star Meet on Feb. 6, where the Mids earned a 419.300-413.750 victory over the Black Knights in Annapolis. Army, which defeated the Falcons 422.650-417.000 last month at West Point, is currently ranked eighth nationally on the high bar (70.788), while Navy is listed 10th on both the still rings (69.883) and parallel bars (69.067). Individually, Army West Point's Jesse Glenn is ranked fourth on the high bar with a season average of 14.867, while teammate Leo Genders (high bar, 18th) and Navy's Mitchell Larios (parallel bars, 14th tie) and Connor Gonzales (still rings, 19th) are also listed in the top 20.
AIR FORCE IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Backed by a fifth-place ranking on the pommel horse (69.750 average), Air Force is ranked among the nation's top-10 in four of the six events. Individually, Tim Wang is ranked second on the vault (15.275) and fourth on the pommel horse (14.863), while holding a No. 11 ranking in the all-around (86.900). In addition, Denis Aurelius is listed 12th on the still rings with a 14.700 average and Arinn Wade is listed 20th on the pommel horse with a season average of 14.287.
FRESHMEN DOMINATE THE LINEUP
With nine members in the Class of 2019, Air Force has the third-highest number of freshmen gymnasts in the country. The youngest class of Academy gymnasts has accounted for more than half of the squad's routines this season (75-of-144), including a season-high 22 performances at Army West Point. To date, the group has combined for 18 improvements to the Academy's all-time record book.
WHAT'S AHEAD FOR THE FALCONS
Air Force takes a break from team competition next weekend (Feb. 18-20), when select individuals travel to Las Vegas for the prestigious Winter Cup Challenge at the Cashman Convention Center.
