Jan. 27, 2016
By Miranda Kulp, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - As Penn State men's gymnastics carries on their regular season, the Nittany Lions enter their second home match on Saturday, January 30 against Illinois.
The Blue and White defeated Army to kick off its season before earning a first-place finish at the West Point Open. Although the team suffered a step back against Minnesota, the boys are focused and determined as the season continues.
The 2016 men's gymnastics squad is a mix of veteran and newcomers who all are determined to keep the team focused on the goals set in front of them.
"I think one of the biggest goals for the team this season is to win both NCAA and Big Ten's," stated Dominic DiFulvio. "As a team, we want to win back-to-back Big Ten championships, which has never been done before during my time here at Penn State."
DiFulvio is a junior and leader on the team. The New York native has been on the team since his freshman year in 2014, and since joining the Blue and White he has become an all-around competitor
As one of the veterans, DiFulvio consistently aims to inspire the rest of his teammates to achieve their personal goals to help better the team as a whole.
"One thing I'm looking forward to is competing in as many meets as I can this season," said DiFulvio. "I really enjoy doing all the different type of events at competitions so I'm going to keep working towards this goal to help the team out. Each event demands a certain amount of focus and body training so I want to make sure I can perform them all and be as beneficial to my team as possible," he continued.
With the physical demands of the sport, several of the guys on the team are focusing on getting healthy to compete again.
"A challenge our team is facing right now is getting everyone healthy enough to compete, it's important we all take care of ourselves so we can continue to take on the season together," said DiFulvio. "Although some of our guys are hurt, it does allow some new faces to get in the competition and that'll help build their self-esteem while competing, which can help us in the future."
This season the Lions will only be hosting three meets, forcing the Blue and White to adjust to being on the road most of the regular season.
"Although it can be tough to always be traveling, being on the road is always a fun time with the team," said DiFulvio. "Whenever the team travels it brings everyone closer and being close with the team makes those trips even more fun. We're all really close so whenever we're on the road like we are majority of this season the bus rides become fun and we're always playing games and talking to one another while traveling."
After hosting Illinois this upcoming Saturday, the Blue and White will be on the road until the team hosts Nebraska on March 11.
Be sure to keep an eye out on the Nittany Lions as the men's gymnastics team conquers the difficulty of being on the road in hopes to make history with back-to-back Big Ten titles.