WEST POINT, N.Y. – Penn State men's gymnastics won their 10th consecutive West Point Open with a team score of 401.300 Friday night at Army's Christl Arena.
The Nittany Lions pushed past Navy (394.500), Army (388.650), Springfield (381.850) and William & Mary (359.350) to secure their 25th West Point Open victory in program history.
Michael Artlip was named all-around champion with his score of 81.400, qualifying him for the Winter Cup in Louisville, Ky. next month. The senior was the all-around runner-up in 2023.
Freshman Luke Esparo continues to have a strong rookie campaign. The Wallington, Conn. native took fourth in the all-around with a score of 76.500. Esparo improved two of his first scores from last weekend including: floor (13.500) and vault (13.850).
Freshman Akseli Karsikas recorded the top score on high bar (13.800) and second-best score on rings (13.750).
Graduate student Nate Warren tied a career high score of 14.200 on the rings in New York, earning him the highest score of the night on the apparatus.
Sophomore Kacper Garnczarek made his season debut, earning a career best score of 13.900 on vault and tied a career high 13.600 on floor.
Senior Brandon Campbell notched a career high score of 12.600 on pommel horse in his season debut.
The squad saw an 80% hit ratio and 24/30 hit routines. They ended their night with six stuck landings.
The Nittany Lions opened the season with a victory over Army last Friday at Rec Hall. The team saw a 7.500 point improvement from their last competition.
Penn State Event Finalists (Saturday, Jan. 13)
Floor: Michael Artlip, Kacper Garnczarek, Will Fleck, Luke Esparo, Matt Underhill
Pommel Horse: Michael Artlip, Will Fleck
Rings: Nate Warren, Akseli Karsikas, Matt Underhill, Luke Esparo
Vault: Michael Artlip, Matt Underhill, Landon Simpson
Parallel Bars: Michael Artlip
High Bar: Akseli Karsikas, Michael Artlip, Kacper Garnczarek
