March 26, 2015
| B1G CHAMPIONSHIPS | |||
| Team and All-Around Finals: Friday, March 27 - 7 p.m. ET | |||
| Individual Finals: Saturday, March 28 - 7 p.m. ET | |||
| Recreation Building | University Park, Pa. | |||
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| Championships Central | Penn State Meet Notes | Coach Jepson Preview | |||
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - After tallying a second-place finish at Nebraska two weeks ago, the No. 2 Penn State men's gymnastics team is ready to host the 2015 Big Ten Men's Gymnastics Championships inside Rec Hall March 27-28. Both nights start at 7 p.m. Friday's individual session includes team and all-around competition while Saturday's session features the individual event finals. The Big Ten Network will broadcast both sessions live with Bernie Guenther (play-by-play) and John Roethlisberger (analyst) on the call.
The Nittany Lions are looking to win their third Big Ten title, but will be up against tough competition. Five other Big Ten schools are ranked in the top-10, including the two-time defending champion No. 4 Michigan. Also in the Big Ten, Illinois ranks fifth while Ohio State, Minnesota and Iowa rank seventh though ninth. Nebraska is just outside the top-10 with their 11th-place ranking.
Last year at the Big Ten meet, the Nittany Lions tallied a score of 438.000 en route to a third-place finish. Michigan won its second-straight title with its score of 448.200. Trevor Howard (Columbus, Ohio) captured Penn State's eighth Big Ten title in the still rings with his then-career-best score of 15.825.
Nationally as a team, the Nittany Lions rank in the top-10 in all six events, including four averages that rank in the top-three. Penn State ranks second in team score average (429.069), third in the floor exercise score average (73.906), third in the still rings score average (74.300) and Penn State is also second in parallel bars score average (73.506).
Individually between the six events and the all-around the Nittany Lions have tallied 14 top-15 scoring averages. Junior Alexis Torres ranks second in the still rings (15.631) and the parallel bars (15.086) and Trevor Howard ranks in the top-10 in three events. Howard is seventh in the all-around (85.550), fourth in the still rings (15.336) and fifth in the parallel bars (14.925).
Penn State returns two Big Ten champions in Trevor Howard (still rings) Craig Hernandez (pommel horse). Howard won the still rings event last year and Hernandez is a two-time champion in the pommel horse (2012-13).
LAST TIME OUT
LINCOLN, Neb.; March 15, 2015 - The No. 5 Penn State men's gymnastics team posted a second-place finish in its regular season finale Saturday against No. 9 Iowa, No. 6 Minnesota and No. 11 Nebraska inside the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Minnesota finished first with an overall score of 434.000 followed by Penn State (432.100), Iowa (429.250) and host Nebraska (426.050).
The Nittany Lions won three individual events and captured two team titles. In the all-around, Penn State posted the top two scores as Alexis Torres (Catano, Puerto Rico) recorded the highest score of the day, 89.500, followed by senior Matthew Felleman (Medway, Mass.), who posted a career-best score of 86.400 in his first all-around competition of the year.
Sophomore Dominic DiFulvio (Marietta, N.Y.) led the Nittany Lions in the floor exercise as he tied his season-best score of 15.400 to capture his first floor exercise title of the season. At the West Point Open Team Finals in early January, DiFulvio finished first in the floor exercise with his score of 15.400. Also in the floor exercise, Felleman tied for fourth with his score of 15.000.
Torres went onto capture his fifth still rings title of the 2015 season Sunday. Torres claimed the event title with his score of 15.900. He now has recorded scores of 15.900 or better three times this year. His mark ties him for ninth all-time in the Penn State record books. Along with Torres, sophomore Leroy Clarke, Jr. (Maplewood, N.J.) and Felleman also posted top-10 finishes in the still rings. Clarke, Jr., finished fifth with a score of 14.900 and Felleman tied for seventh with his season-best score of14.800.
Four Nittany Lions posted top-10 scores in the high bar event. Along with capturing the still rings title, Torres placed first in the high bar with his career-best score of 15.200. Clarke, Jr., placed eighth (14.200), freshmen Thad Lawson (Chesapeake, Va.) and Quest Hayden (Harrisburg, Pa.) tied for ninth with their career-best scores of 14.150. As a team, the Nittany Lions recorded a season-best score of 71.550 to finish first in the high bar.
In the pommel horse, Penn State recorded a pair of top-10 finishes by Torres and freshman Colin Coates (Emmaus, Pa.). Torres tallied a score of 14.200 (fifth) and Coates finished seventh with his score of 14.150. Despite a pair of top-10 finishes in the pommel horse, the Nittany Lions recorded a season-low team score of 68.700 in the pommel horse.
Keeping pace with the afternoon, the Nittany Lions were led in the vault and parallel bars by Torres and Felleman. Torres finished fifth with his score of 15.000 and Felleman tied for sixth with a season-best score of 14.800. In the parallel bars, Torres placed fourth (14.800) and Felleman finished ninth (14.450). The Nittany Lions' team score of 72.000 in parallel bars was the top team mark Sunday.
In all, Torres posted five top five finishes, including two titles and Felleman recorded four top-10 finishes.
Overall as a team, the Nittany Lions recorded scores of 73.650 (floor exercise), 68.700 (pommel horse), 72.950 (still rings), 73.250 (vault), 72.000 (parallel bars) and 71.550 (high bar).
LAST YEAR AT THE BIG TEN MEET
LINCOLN, Neb.; Team Finals (March 28, 2014) - Led by a top score on the vault from junior Tristan Duverglas (West Orange, N.J.), the No. 7 Penn State men's gymnastics team opened their postseason run with a third-place finish at the third place finish at the Bob Devaney Center in Lincoln, Neb.
The Nittany Lions' total team score of 438.000 ranked third behind Ohio State (441.050) and eventual Big Ten Champion, Michigan (448.200). Illinois and Minnesota rounded out the top five finishers with scores of 435.350 and 429.150, respectively.
As a team, Penn State finished within the top five in all six events. The Nittany Lions registered a second-place finish on the vault (75.100) and a third-place finish on the parallel bars (73.900), while also finishing fourth on the floor exercise (73.700), pommel horse (71.450), rings (74.00) and high bar (69.850).
Duverglas led the squad tying for first on the vault, recording a 15.300 in the first session. Ranked seventh nationally on the apparatus, Duverglas posted his third highest score of the season to for the top score. Reigning Big Ten individual champion junior Craig Hernandez (Libertyville, Ill.) finished third on the pommel horse, recording a 15.100.
Sophomore Trevor Howard (Columbus, Ohio) finished fifth overall in his sixth all-around performance of the season. He recorded a pair of top five finishes on the way to his second highest all-around score in 2014 (87.200). Howard highlighted the evening with a second-place finish on the rings, swinging to a score of 15.700 and a fifth-place finish on the vault (15.150). Howard turned in two more top-10 finishes with a six-place finish in the floor exercise (15.150) and a seventh-place finish on the parallel bars (15.100).
Redshirt junior Nestor Rodriguez (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) also posted a pair of top-10 finishes, coming in at fifth on the parallel bars (15.300) and eighth on the vault (15.050). Rodriguez's performance on the parallel bars matches a season-high effort.
Individual Finals (March 29, 2014) - Sophomore Trevor Howard (Columbus, Ohio) headlined the group of Nittany Lion competitors in the individual finals of the 2014 Big Ten Championships with his first conference title of his career on the still rings Saturday evening at the Bob Devaney Center in Lincoln, Neb.
Howard swung to a career-high score of 15.825 to finish with the top score on the rings. The title marks the eighth time in program history a Nittany Lion has claimed the top spot on the rings in the individual finals at the Big Ten Championship, and first since Scott Rosenthal in 2012.
Howard also added another top-five finish, as he recorded a fifth place finish on the vault with a score of 14.875. The three-time Big Ten Gymnast of the Week earned First Team All-Big Ten honors for his performances this season.
Junior Craig Hernandez (Libertyville, Ill.) closed out the weekend with a runner-up finish on the pommel horse, recording 15.175 to place second behind Minnesota's Ellis Mannon. Hernandez earned Second Team All-Big Ten honors for his standout performances on the pommel horse this season.
Competing on the vault, junior Tristan Duverglas (West Orange, N.J.) recorded a ninth-place finish with a score of 14.375. Redshirt junior Nestor Rodriguez (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) competed on both the vault and the parallel bars, placing highest on the bars with a score of 14.825, which slotted him eighth. Senior Wasef Burbar (Arlington Heights, N.J.) also claimed an eighth-place finish with a score of 14.575 on the high bar.
Although he did not compete in the individual finals this evening, senior Preston Gall (Columbus, Ohio) earned conference recognition as he was selected as Penn State's sportsmanship honoree.
Ohio State led the way with three top finishers in the second session, securing individual titles on the vault, high bar and parallel bars. Illinois, Minnesota and Penn State grabbed one individual title each on the floor, pommel horse and rings, respectively.
RETURNING B1G CHAMPIONS
Penn State returns two Big Ten champions in Trevor Howard (still rings) Craig Hernandez (pommel horse). Howard won the still rings event last year and Hernandez is a two-time champion in the pommel horse (2012-13).
AGAINST THE FIELD
Illinois: Illinois handed Penn State its first loss of the year on Feb. 14 (441.300-434.500).
Iowa: Penn State defeated Iowa in both meetings (440.800-435.750 and 432.100-429.250) this season.
Michigan: Penn State defeated Michigan 444.700-436.350 on Jan. 24, but fell 431.000-425.000 on March 6.
Minnesota: Minnesota handed PSU its third loss of the year on March 15 (434.000-432.100) in their lone meeting.
Nebraska: Penn State took down Nebraska in the regular season finale (432.100-426.050).
Ohio State: Penn State defeated Ohio State on Feb. 6 by a score of 443.600-431.400.
B1G HONORS
During the 2015 season, three Nittany Lions have garnered Big Ten weekly honors. Craig Hernandez and Alexis Torres have both been named Gymnast of the Week and Thad Lawson has tallied three freshman of the week honors.
MARCH 16
Against Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska, Torres tallied five top-five finishes including his first place finishes on the still rings and the high bar. On the still rings, Torres posted a score of 15.900 and on the high bar he recorded a career-best score of 15.200. He also finished first in the all-around with a score of 89.500.
MARCH 9
Following his performance at the Puerto Rico Gymnastics Challenge, Thad Lawson was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week (March 9). This is third award of the year for Lawson.
Lawson and the Nittany Lions posted an overall score of 425.100 to finish second Friday night at the Puerto Gymnastics Challenge at the Pedrin Zorilla Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Michigan won the meet with its team score of 431.000.
Individually, Lawson tied for first in the floor exercise (15.400) and he tied for third in the vault with his mark of 14.750.
MARCH 2
On March 2, the Big Ten announced that Thad Lawson (Chesapeake, Va.) was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week and Alexis Torres (Catano, Puerto Rico) was named the Big Ten Gymnast of the Week. This is the second career award for both Lawson and Torres.
Lawson won his third floor exercise title of the year against Iowa with his career-best mark of 15.700. His score moves him into fourth all-time at Penn State.
Torres, a junior, tallied five top-three finishes, an eighth-place finish in the vault and in the all-around, he posted the top score (90.550) against the Hawkeyes. Torres climbed the Penn State record books Friday night. He tied Tommy Ramos (2008) for sixth all-time in the still rings (16.000) and he moved into eighth all-time in the all-around event.
JANUARY 26
After capturing the school record in the pommel horse against Michigan, senior Craig Hernandez (Libertyville, Ill.) was named the Big Ten Co-Gymnast of the Week (Jan. 26).
Hernandez and the No. 4 Nittany Lions defeated the No. 5 Michigan Wolverines Saturday in front of 2,385 fans inside Rec Hall, 444.700-436.350. In the pommel horse event, Penn State posted a score of 75.000, which is the second-best mark all-time for the Nittany Lions.
Individually, Hernandez captured his second pommel horse title of the 2015 season with his school record score of 15.950.
JANUARY 16
Lawson and Torres were also honored by the Big Ten earlier this season following their performances at the West Point Open.
After helping the No. 6 Penn State men's gymnastics team to its 16th West Point Open team title on Jan. 16, Torres was named the Big Ten Co-Gymnast of the Week and Lawson garnered the Big Ten Freshman of the Week award (Jan. 19).
In the team finals, Torres placed second still rings (15.750), tied for second in the parallel bars (15.200) and finished fifth in the vault (14.350). Torres captured the still rings title in the individual finals with his career-best score of 15.950. His score of 15.950 moves him into seventh all-time at Penn State.
Lawson won the floor exercise event with his score of 15.300 and finished third in the vault with his mark of 14.600. In the team finals, Lawson posted the fifth-best score in the floor exercise (14.850) and the second-best score in the vault (14.650).
HERNANDEZ NAMED NISSEN-EMERY FINALIST
Senior Craig Hernandez (Libertyville, Ill.) has been named a finalist for the 2015 Nissen-Emery Award, as announced by the College Gymnastics Association (CGA) Wednesday afternoon (March 11). Hernandez is one of six finalists for the prestigious Nissen-Emery Award.
The Nissen-Emery Award is an annual honor presented to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in collegiate gymnastics. First awarded in 1966, the accolade honors the senior gymnast who has established a record of outstanding achievement throughout his collegiate career, while also maintaining a high standard of academic scholarship and sportsmanship.
Hernandez has garnered numerous awards throughout his Penn State career for his work as a Nittany Lion gymnast and in the classroom. On the pommel horse, he has been named an All-American twice (2013-14) and he is a two-time Big Ten champion (2012-13). During his freshman year, 2012, he was a NCAA finalist in the floor exercise. Earlier this year he broke his own school record (15.750) in the pommel horse with his score of 15.950.
In the classroom, Hernandez currently holds a 3.3 grade point average as a chemistry major. He has been named Academic All-Big Ten and a CGA Academic All-American three times.
He is also the 27th Nissen-Emery finalist in Penn State program history and the fourth consecutive Nittany Lion finalist since 2012. A total of six PSU gymnasts have gone on to earn collegiate gymnastics' highest honor, including the most recent Penn State award winner, Casey Sandy, who captured the top honor in 2009.
Each year, collegiate gymnastics coaches, student-athletes and accredited college gymnastics judges from across the nation submit their nominations for the award prior to the conclusion of the current season. Gymnasts receiving a 50% vote of confidence from the head coaches are then placed on a final ballot and voted upon by the coaches, team captains, Honorary Lifetime Members, and conference judges.
The award will be presented at the NCAA national championship at the University of Oklahoma during the CGA Awards Banquet, Wednesday, April 8, at 8 p.m. (CT) in Norman, Okla. The trophy is inscribed with the motto: "The true champion seeks excellence physically, mentally, socially, and morally."
The original Nissen Award was named in honor of George Nissen, a former NCAA champion, for his contributions to men's gymnastics. The award was re-named the Nissen-Emery Award in 1998 to honor Dr. Robert Emery, a Penn State graduate, who won the Nissen Award in 1969.
CGA GYMNAST OF THE WEEK
Junior Alexis Torres (Catano, Puerto Rico) has been named the College Gymnastics Association (CGA) Gymnast of the Week twice this season (March 5 and 19).
He picked up his honor following his performance against Iowa last Friday night (Feb. 27). Torres and the Nittany Lions closed out their final home meet of the season with a 440.800-435.700 win over the Hawkeyes on Senior Night.
Torres, a junior, tallied five top-three finishes, an eighth-place finish in the vault and in the all-around, he posted the top score (90.550). Torres climbed the Penn State record books Friday night. He tied Tommy Ramos (2008) for sixth all-time in the still rings (16.000) and he moved into eighth all-time in the all-around event.
Against Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska (March 15), Torres tallied five top-five finishes including his first place finishes on the still rings and the high bar. On the still rings, Torres posted a score of 15.900 and on the high bar he recorded a career-best score of 15.200. He also finished first in the all-around with a score of 89.500.
SCHOOL RECORD MARKS
Individually, Penn State has posted 12 top-10 school record book performances during the 2015 season, including Craig Hernandez's school record score of 15.950 in the pommel horse.
As a team, Penn State has tallied 20 top-10 school record book performances in the 2015 season. The Nittany Lions have set the school record in the floor exercise (75.800) and the parallel bars (75.950).
AMERICAN CUP
Penn State junior Alexis Torres has been added to the field of competitors for the 2015 AT&T American Cup.
Torres will be representing his home country of Puerto Rico at the meet. Previously, Torres was a member of the Puerto Rican national team that finished seventh at the Olympic Test Event and he also competed at the 2014 World Championships in Nanning, China.
Last year, Torres was named an All-American in the still rings with his eighth-place finish (14.850) at the NCAA Finals.
Featuring the world's best gymnasts in a one-day all-around competition, the AT&T American Cup is the USA's most prestigious international invitational and part of the International Gymnastics Federation's all-around World Cup Series.
WINTER CUP
Craig Hernandez and Trevor Howard represented the Nittany Lions at the 2015 Winter Cup. Hernandez finished 12th on the pommel horse, while Howard placed 30th in the all-around competition.
350 WINS
With a second-place finish on March 15 at Nebraska, Coach Jepson eclipsed the 350 win mark as the head coach of the Nittany Lions.
IN THE RANKINGS
Nationally as a team, the Nittany Lions rank in the top-10 in all six events, including four averages that rank in the top-three. Penn State ranks second in team score average (429.069), third in the floor exercise score average (73.906), third in the still rings score average (74.300) and Penn State is also second in parallel bars score average (73.506).
Individually between the six events and the all-around the Nittany Lions have tallied 14 top-15 scoring averages. Junior Alexis Torres ranks second in the still rings (15.631) and the parallel bars (15.086) and Trevor Howard ranks in the top-10 in three events. Howard is seventh in the all-around (85.550), fourth in the still rings (15.336) and fifth in the parallel bars (14.925).
FOUR ALL-AMERICANS RETURN
The 2015 Nittany Lion men's gymnastics team will be led by four All-Americans. Craig Hernandez (pommel horse), Trevor Howard (parallel bars) and Alexis Torres (still rings) garnered All-America honors last year, while Matthew Felleman (high bar) garnered All-America honors in 2013.
PENN STATE TO HOST THE 2015 BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Nittany Lions will host the 2015 Big Ten Championships at Rec Hall on March 27-28. Tickets are available on GoPSUsports.com/tickets.
B1G PRESEASON POLL
The Penn State men's gymnastics team was picked fourth in the Big Ten Men's Gymnastics Preseason Coaches' Poll, as announced by the conference office. Along with the preseason coaches' poll, Trevor Howard (Columbus, Ohio) and Néstor Rodriguez (Guaynabo, P.R.) were selected as "Gymnasts to Watch" for the upcoming season.
CGA PRESEASON POLL
The Nittany Lions entered the 2015 season ranked No. 6 by the College Gymnastics Association (CGA). Penn State received one first place vote.
THREE IN A ROW
Trevor Howard won the 2014 Big Ten still rings, marking the third year in a row a Nittany Lion has won an event at the Big Ten meet.
IT'S ALL ABOUT FAMILY
The Penn State gymnastics program is all about family and there is one special connection within the Nittany Lion family.
Senior Sidney Sanabria-Robles transferred to Penn State after spending a season at LSU and one of the main factors in that move was being close to family. Sanabria-Robles competes for the women's squad, while her brother, Ismael Sanabria, is a part of the Penn State men's program.
SMART LIONS
The CGA released its list of 2014 CGA All-America Scholar-Athletes, and the Nittany Lions were represented with one first team All-American Scholar-Athletes and five second team All-Americans Scholar-Athletes.
In order to garner first team recognition, student-athletes had to achieve a grade point average of at least 3.50 while members of the second team attained between a 3.20 and 3.499. The Blue and White placed 10th as a team in the NCAA and fourth among Big Ten squads with a combined GPA of 3.024.
Adrian Evans led Penn State with first team Scholar-Athlete All-America honors as he had a GPA between 3.70 and 3.799.
Evans is a four-time CGA All-America Scholar-Athlete recipient and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree. During the 2014 gymnastics season, Evans was named a Nissen-Emery Finalist, team captain, the recipient of the Ernest B. McCoy Award and the 2013-14 Big Ten Medal of Honor recipient.
Dominic DiFulvio, Preston Gall, Craig Hernandez and Ingvar Jochumsson all garnered second team Scholar-Athlete All-America honors as they tallied GPAs between 3.30 and 3.399. Franz Card also received second team Scholar-Athlete All-America honors with his GPA between 3.20 and 3.299.
Last year, Evans and Jochumsson were both named First Team CGA All-Academic Scholar-Athletes, while Gall and Hernandez were on the second team.
NEXT TIME OUT
The Nittany Lions will turn their attention to the NCAA Championships in two weeks. The 2015 NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championships are held in Norman, Okla., inside the Lloyd Noble Center April 9-11.