No. 11 Air Force Travels to USAG Collegiate Nationals

March 22, 2016

FalconVision Interview with Coach Robinson

The 11th-ranked Air Force men's gymnastics team opens the championship portion of the season in defense of its USAG team title. The Falcons will travel to Springfield, Mass., this weekend for the 2016 USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships. The two-day meet will feature the team and all-around finals on Friday, March 25, and the individual event finals on Saturday, March 26.

Meet Notes 09: at USAG Collegiate National Championships

MEET INFORMATION
The 2016 USAG Collegiate National championships will be held at Blake Arena on the campus of Springfield College and feature five Varsity Teams (Air Force, Army, Navy, Springfield, William and Mary) and five teams from the Club Division (Arizona State, California United, NY Alliance, Temple, Washington).The all-around and team competitions will take place at 4:00 p.m., on Friday, March 25, while the individual event championships will take place at 1:00 p.m., on Saturday, March 26. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for seniors, students and children. Parking can be found on behind Blake Arena or in free parking lots around campus.

LOOKING AT THE FIELD
Ranked 11th nationally, with a four-score average of 426.933, Air Force currently leads the USAG field. Among the Varsity Division teams the Falcons will face this weekend, Army is 12th with a 420.617 average, while Navy is ranked 13th (418.417), William and Mary is ranked 14th (409.133) and Springfield is ranked 15th (405.500). Among the Club Division, Arizona State is ranked 16th with a four-score average of 404.250, while Washington (17th, 398.617), Temple (18th, 394.933), California United (20th, 349.200) and NY Alliance round out the field.

HISTORY 101
Air Force has won the last six USAG national team titles, while accounting for 21 individual championships and 62 USAG All-America certificates during that span. Three members of the current squad – Denis Aurelius (2014 floor exercise, 2015 still rings), Josh Pyne (2015 vault), Tim Wang (2015 pommel horse) – have captured individual USAG national titles, while seven have combined for 12 USAG All-America awards. Since they began competing at the USAG meet in 1994, the Falcons have totaled six team championships, 37 individual titles and 167 USAG All-America distinctions.

AIR FORCE IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Highlighted by a #1 ranking from Chase Cannon, three Falcons are listed among the nation's top 12 in four total events. Cannon currently leads the NCAA on the high bar with a four-score average of 15.367, while Tim Wang is listed fourth on the pommel horse with a 15.233 average. Wang is also listed seventh on the vault (15.183) and Denis Aurelius is ranked 11th on the still rings (15.083). Backed by #7 rankings on the pommel horse (71.133) and still rings (72.617), air Force is listed among the top 10 in three of the six individual events and hold a #11 team ranking (426.933).

WHAT'S AHEAD FOR THE FALCONS
Air Force travels to Palo Alto, Calif., next Saturday (April 2) for the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships.