April 2, 2011
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Penn State's overall team depth and strong young nucleus was on display on Saturday evening, as 10 Nittany Lions, including eight underclassmen, competed in the individual event finals of the 2011 Big Ten Men's Gymnastics Championships at host Illinois' Huff Hall in Champaign, Ill.
Sophomore Scott Rosenthal (Clearfield, Pa.) earned Second Team All-Big Ten honors, contributing Penn State's top performance by placing second in the still rings with a score 15.850, a mark just shy of this career high of 15.900.
Junior Miguel Pineda (Galloway, Ohio) had strong showings in two events. He finished in third in the rings, equaling his career high score of 15.600, which he set on Friday during the team finals of the Big Ten Championships and tied for fourth place in the parallel bars (14.600).
Redshirt junior Warren Yang (Nepean, Ont.) highlighted Penn State's floor exercise contingent, placing third with a score of 14.850. Sophomore Parker Raque (Louisville, Ky.) finished two spots back in fifth (14.600).
Sophomore Mackenzie Dow (Cranford, N.J.) impressed in the high bar and vault, placing fifth (14.000) and in a tie for sixth (15.700), respectively.
Also competing for Penn State were sophomore Felix Aronovich (Kiryat Bialik, Israel) (7th in still rings, 8th in parallel bars), sophomore Matt Chelberg (Athens, Ohio) (8th in floor exercise, 9th in still rings), freshman Adrian Evans (Boulder, Colo.) (7th in pommel horse), freshman Wasef Burbar (Arlington Heights, Ill.) (7th in parallel bars, 10th in high bar), and freshman Nestor Rodriguez (Guaynabo, P.R) (9th in high bar).
Redshirt freshman Francisco Vazquez (San Juan, P.R.) was scratched from both events for which he qualified, the floor exercise and vault.
In less than two weeks, the Nittany Lions will seek their NCAA-record 13th national title when they travel to Columbus, Ohio for the 2011 National Collegiate Men's Gymnastics Championships. From April 14-16, the nation's elite collegiate gymnastics competitors will descend upon historic St. John Arena and the campus of The Ohio State University to vie for team and individual glory. The competition begins on Thurs., April 14 with two qualifying sessions, scheduled for 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET. The top three teams from each qualifier then advance to vie for the national championship at 7 p.m. on Fri., April 15. The nation's top all-around performer will also be crowned that evening. On Sat., April 16, the individual event finals will be held at 7 p.m., with six national titles and All-American status at stake.