Feb. 24, 2017
| Saturday, Feb. 25 | 2 p.m. | Annapolis, Md. | |
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Feb. 24, 2017
MEN'S GYMNASTICS HEADS TO NAVY
After a week away from team competition, the Penn State men's gymnastics team will travel to Annapolis, Maryland for a dual with Navy Saturday, Feb. 25. The Nittany Lions and the Midshipmen have met up once in the 2017 season with Penn State earning the 412-.350-391.250 victory at the West Point Open.
SERIES HISTORY WITH THE MIDSHIPMEN
Penn State holds the 55-10-0 all-time series lead over Navy having not lost a regular season to the Midshipmen since the 1988 season. The Nittany Lions fell 275.300-275.600 to Navy on the road in Annapolis, Maryland. Earlier this season at the West Point Open, Penn State earned all six event victories, while Navy saw its highest score on the vault (68.500) and scored a 67.300 on the still rings in the season opener.
SCOUTING NAVY
The No. 12 Midshipmen head into the dual against Penn State with a 6-6 overall record having defeated William & Mary in the its lone dual victory. Navy also came away with two victories at the West Point Open and three wins in the Navy Open. As a team, Navy ranks No. 11 in nation averaging a 399.070, while it ranks No. 10 on the still rings with a 67.800 average.
Individually, Jonathan Tang ranks fourth in the all-around with an average of 80.710 and ties for 12th on the parallel bars with an average score of 13.710. Wyatt LaPointe has been strong for the Midshipmen on the still rings with a season average of 13.920 and a season-high score of 14.550, while Tanner West ranks 12th in the all-around with a season-best 82.250.
WINTER CUP HIGHLIGHTS
The Nittany Lions had a strong showing at the Winter Cup, getting all four of their competitors into the event finals along with former gymnast and current volunteer assistant coach Trevor Howard.
Sophomore Michael Burns had two top 20 finishes in the finals, tying for 14th on both the parallel bars and the high bar, scoring a 13.000 and a 12.950, respectively. In his second career appearance at the Winter Cup, redshirt-senior Leroy Clarke, Jr. placed seventh on the pommel horse, scoring a 14.450 representing the Nittany Lions. Senior Dominic DiFulvio had the best showing on the floor for the Blue and White, placing 22nd overall, while also earning a top 20 finish on the still rings with a 13.650. Freshman Favian Valdez placed 19th overall in the all-around in his first collegiate appearance at the Winter Cup. The freshman all-arounder notched a 19th place finish on the pommel horse, scoring a 13.300, while tying for 17th overall on the parallel bars with a 13.200.
VALDEZ GARNERS FOURTH BIG TEN FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK HONOR
For the sixth-straight week a Penn State men's gymnastics freshman notched Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors as Favian Valdez garnered the award for the fourth time in the 2017 season as announced by the conference office Monday, Feb. 20.
Valdez placed 19th overall in the all-around in his first collegiate appearance at the Winter Cup. The freshman all-arounder notched a 19th place finish on the pommel horse, scoring a 13.300, while tying for 17th overall on the parallel bars with a 13.200. In the prelims, Valdez earned a top 30 finish on the pommel horse and the parallel bars, scoring a 12.750 and a 12.950 respectively.
MGYM WINS BEST DANCE AT 2017 THON PEP RALLY
In an event that raises money for pediatric cancer, the Penn State men's gymnastics team took home the top spot in the student-athlete pep rally. The Nittany Lions dance on Saturday night was part of a student-run philanthropy committed to enhancing the lives of children and families impacted by childhood cancer. Penn State student dance for 46 hours in order to raise money and awareness for pediatric cancer. This year, Penn State raised $10,045,478.44 for the kids.
TICKET INFORMATION
For information on purchasing 2017 season tickets fans can visit http://www.GoPSUsports.com/tickets or call 1-800-NITTANY weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Penn State will host its first home meet of the 2017 season Saturday, Jan. 21 against Army West Point. The dual is slated to start at 4 p.m. at Rec Hall.
NEXT UP
Penn State will travel to Lincoln, Nebraska for a tri-meet against both the Cornhuskers and Iowa Saturday, March 4. The Nittany Lions will square off with the two Big Ten Conference squads starting at 5 p.m. ET.
