University of Minnesota Athletics
Players Mentioned
Gophers Finish as National Runner-Up
4/21/2018 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
The University of Minnesota men's gymnastics team finished second at the NCAA Championships Saturday night. It is the fourth time in program history they finished as the national runner-up, the best finish in team history.
The runner-up finish is the best finish for Minnesota since 1990. The Gophers hit on every routine and had eleven named All-Americans, which is a school record.
"From the first day of school back in September we knew we had the makings of an historic team," head coach Mike Burns said. "An amazing group of seniors led this team throughout the season and they left an amazing legacy with the performance they put together tonight. I'm so happy for those 10 guys that have put so much into this team. I know this will be a memory they'll cherish for the rest of their lives."
The moment the #Gophers found out they were national runner-ups! This is family! #SkiUMah pic.twitter.com/RGcAz8O2Bg
- Minnesota Men's Gym (@GopherMGym) April 22, 2018
Shane Wiskus earned All-American honors on rings, high bar and was the national runner-up in the all-around as just a freshman. Luke Aldrich picked up his first career All-American honor on floor, Justin Karstadt was named All-American on pommel horse and p-bars, Shaun Herzog earned it on rings, Yaroslav Pochinka and Vitali Kan each got the nod on vault, Jalon Stephens earned high bar honors and Tristan Duran was named All-American in the all-around.
Just talked to the two leaders (@AlexWittenberg_ and @Gagnon_Joel) who have helped make this happen from the moment they stepped on campus! Cool moment for these guys and all 10 of the #Gophers seniors! pic.twitter.com/IuavO0TDsp
-- Minnesota Men's Gym (@GopherMGym) April 22, 2018
HIGH BAR
The Gophers opened up the meet with their highest score of the season on high bar. They notched a 68.531 with no score under a 13.400. Wiskus took seventh and All-American honors with a 13.866 and Stephens earned All-American on the event for the second straight season finishing fourth with a 13.966.
FLOOR
Aldrich opened up floor with an All-American performance. He took seventh with a 14.166. Joel Gagnon and Wiskus each went 13.833.
POMMEL HORSE
The Gophers went over 13 on all five sets and were led by an All-American performance from Karstadt. He took fifth with a 14.066.
RINGS
Herzog and Wiskus each took All-American honors on rings. Herzog's 13.800 was good for sixth and Wiskus came in fourth with a 13.866.
VAULT
The Gophers have been electric on vault all season long and used a 72.299 to move from fifth to third going into the final rotation. The entire squad went over 14.000 led by a 14.633 by Kan and a 14.766 for Pochinka.
P-BARS
A 69.432 on p-bars was the final piece that moved the Maroon and Gold from third to second. No Gopher scored less than a 13.500 with Karstadt taking third with a 14.466.
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