University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, January 19
Chicago, ILL.
7:30 PM
University of Minnesota
at
Windy City Invitational
Players Mentioned
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
/ Men's Gymnastics
Photo by: Christopher Mitchell
Gophers Come in Third at Windy City
1/19/2019 10:37:00 PM | Men's Gymnastics
Meet Results (PDF)
It was another top three weekend for the Minnesota men's gymnastics team. The No. 5 Gophers came in third place at the Windy City Invitational in Chicago, Ill. on Saturday with a final score of 399.800. Minnesota was edged by fellow Big Ten opponents No. 3 Illinois (403.150) and No. 7 Michigan (402.000).
The scene was similar to last weekend as the Gophers had some struggles in the beginning and saved some of their best performances for their last two events, vault and parallel bars.
"Pommel horse continues to be a spot where we hit a bit of a buzz saw ... It's an event that can do funny tricks on our guys' minds, so we'll need to get a little more psychologically in charge to tame this beast," head coach Mike Burns said. "We still don't have our strongest lineup completely in place yet, so as we get a few routines back in the right spots, I feel this issue will almost start to solve itself."
Senior Justin Karstadt earned two podium finishes on the night, and came in second on pommel horse and third on parallel bars, where he scored a 13.950 on each.
Karstadt on pommel horse rounded out a trio of second place marks for the Gophers. Sophomore Shane Wiskus earned a 13.900 on Minnesota's first event, high bar, and senior captain Shaun Herzog notched a 79.700 in the All-Around, both for No. 2 finishes.
Wiskus and freshmen David Pochinka and Mike Moran also competed in the All-Around. The race was tight and Wiskus came up just behind Herzog with a 79.500 for fourth place, while Pochinka finished with a 72.950.
"We did have a big improvement in our hit percentage from week 1 (77 percent), so the team is improving and we are looking forward to hosting Michigan this coming weekend," Burns said.
Minnesota also got to compete with a future Gopher. Valen Watrous, who will head to the University next season, competed as a Winter Cup qualifier and was rostered with Minnesota for the evening. Watrous posted a top 20 finish on pommel horse, with a 12.300 for 16th place.
High Bar
The Gophers started on high bar for the second meet in a row and put up a 65.350, third-best of the meet. Wiskus led the way with his second place 13.900, which is the second-highest high bar score of his career. Junior captain Timmy Kutyla, who is ranked No. 2 on the event, scored a 13.650 for fifth place.
Floor
Kan was Minnesota's best finisher on floor. He scored a 14.150 and was just held off the podium in a tie for fourth. Herzog posted a 13.700 to take 11th place and Wiskus added a 13.600 to tie for 12th. The Gophers finished floor exercise with a team score of 67.700, third on the meet.
Pommel Horse
Minnesota posted a score of 62.800 on pommel horse, fourth among all teams, but three Gophers landed in the top 10. Karstadt, who is ranked No. 7 on the event, claimed second place, while Kan came in sixth overall with a 13.400 and Herzog tied for 10th with a 12.800. Senior George Khoury also made his career competition debut on pommel horse and was in the lead-off spot in the lineup.
Rings
Wiskus was Minnesota's leader on rings with a score of 13.600, good to tie for sixth place. Sophomore Colton Dee was not far behind and notched a 13.350, which put him in a tie for eighth, and Herzog earned a 13.300 and tied for ninth. The Gophers finished the event with a score of 65.250.
Vault
Minnesota easily gained momentum when it came time to compete on vault. Kan proved why he's ranked No. 1 on the event yet again when he scored a 14.500 and landed in a three-way tie for the title. Freshman Ben Eyles made his Gopher debut on vault and rose to the occasion. He scored a 14.350, good to tie for sixth. Herzog and freshman Mike Moran went back-to-back in the five and six spots and scored matching scores of 14.100 to split ninth place. The Gophers tallied a 70.950 on vault, the best score of the night.
Parallel Bars
The Gophers have also been enjoying success on parallel bars early in the season. They followed up their stellar vault performance with a 67.750 on parallel bars to close the night, 1.3 points away from Illinois, who finished second on the event. Karstadt is ranked No. 6 on parallel bars and led the way with a 13.950, good to tie for third. Wiskus earned a 13.650 to take fifth and senior Ben Winkel posted a 13.550 for sixth place. Freshman David Pochinka rounded out Minnesota's top ten finishers on the event and scored a 13.450 to place ninth.
The Road Ahead
Minnesota will host its first home meet of the year on Jan. 26 with a dual against Michigan at 1:30 p.m. The meet is one of four at Maturi Pavilion this season. Jan. 26 will be Faculty and Staff day with discounted admission for University employees, as well as Student Appreciation Day with free Goldy long sleeve shirts for students while supplies last. The Gophers will also sign autographs post-meet. For a full list of home promos and ticket information, check out our promotions calendar, and be sure to follow the Gophers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for all team updates!
It was another top three weekend for the Minnesota men's gymnastics team. The No. 5 Gophers came in third place at the Windy City Invitational in Chicago, Ill. on Saturday with a final score of 399.800. Minnesota was edged by fellow Big Ten opponents No. 3 Illinois (403.150) and No. 7 Michigan (402.000).
The scene was similar to last weekend as the Gophers had some struggles in the beginning and saved some of their best performances for their last two events, vault and parallel bars.
"Pommel horse continues to be a spot where we hit a bit of a buzz saw ... It's an event that can do funny tricks on our guys' minds, so we'll need to get a little more psychologically in charge to tame this beast," head coach Mike Burns said. "We still don't have our strongest lineup completely in place yet, so as we get a few routines back in the right spots, I feel this issue will almost start to solve itself."
Minnesota again proved that it is a dangerous team on vault. Senior captain Vitali Kan earned his title in the event in as many weeks and defended his No. 1 ranking as he tallied a 14.500. The Gophers emerged as the top vault team with a 70.950.Happy spring semester, #Gophers! Start it off right with some gymnastics highlights. All the action from last weekend's Windy City Invitational is here! pic.twitter.com/IaJbWNjXqE
— Minnesota Men's Gym (@GopherMGym) January 22, 2019
Senior Justin Karstadt earned two podium finishes on the night, and came in second on pommel horse and third on parallel bars, where he scored a 13.950 on each.
Karstadt on pommel horse rounded out a trio of second place marks for the Gophers. Sophomore Shane Wiskus earned a 13.900 on Minnesota's first event, high bar, and senior captain Shaun Herzog notched a 79.700 in the All-Around, both for No. 2 finishes.
Wiskus and freshmen David Pochinka and Mike Moran also competed in the All-Around. The race was tight and Wiskus came up just behind Herzog with a 79.500 for fourth place, while Pochinka finished with a 72.950.
"We did have a big improvement in our hit percentage from week 1 (77 percent), so the team is improving and we are looking forward to hosting Michigan this coming weekend," Burns said.
Minnesota also got to compete with a future Gopher. Valen Watrous, who will head to the University next season, competed as a Winter Cup qualifier and was rostered with Minnesota for the evening. Watrous posted a top 20 finish on pommel horse, with a 12.300 for 16th place.
High Bar
The Gophers started on high bar for the second meet in a row and put up a 65.350, third-best of the meet. Wiskus led the way with his second place 13.900, which is the second-highest high bar score of his career. Junior captain Timmy Kutyla, who is ranked No. 2 on the event, scored a 13.650 for fifth place.
Floor
Kan was Minnesota's best finisher on floor. He scored a 14.150 and was just held off the podium in a tie for fourth. Herzog posted a 13.700 to take 11th place and Wiskus added a 13.600 to tie for 12th. The Gophers finished floor exercise with a team score of 67.700, third on the meet.
Pommel Horse
Minnesota posted a score of 62.800 on pommel horse, fourth among all teams, but three Gophers landed in the top 10. Karstadt, who is ranked No. 7 on the event, claimed second place, while Kan came in sixth overall with a 13.400 and Herzog tied for 10th with a 12.800. Senior George Khoury also made his career competition debut on pommel horse and was in the lead-off spot in the lineup.
Rings
Wiskus was Minnesota's leader on rings with a score of 13.600, good to tie for sixth place. Sophomore Colton Dee was not far behind and notched a 13.350, which put him in a tie for eighth, and Herzog earned a 13.300 and tied for ninth. The Gophers finished the event with a score of 65.250.
Vault
Minnesota easily gained momentum when it came time to compete on vault. Kan proved why he's ranked No. 1 on the event yet again when he scored a 14.500 and landed in a three-way tie for the title. Freshman Ben Eyles made his Gopher debut on vault and rose to the occasion. He scored a 14.350, good to tie for sixth. Herzog and freshman Mike Moran went back-to-back in the five and six spots and scored matching scores of 14.100 to split ninth place. The Gophers tallied a 70.950 on vault, the best score of the night.
Parallel Bars
The Gophers have also been enjoying success on parallel bars early in the season. They followed up their stellar vault performance with a 67.750 on parallel bars to close the night, 1.3 points away from Illinois, who finished second on the event. Karstadt is ranked No. 6 on parallel bars and led the way with a 13.950, good to tie for third. Wiskus earned a 13.650 to take fifth and senior Ben Winkel posted a 13.550 for sixth place. Freshman David Pochinka rounded out Minnesota's top ten finishers on the event and scored a 13.450 to place ninth.
The Road Ahead
Minnesota will host its first home meet of the year on Jan. 26 with a dual against Michigan at 1:30 p.m. The meet is one of four at Maturi Pavilion this season. Jan. 26 will be Faculty and Staff day with discounted admission for University employees, as well as Student Appreciation Day with free Goldy long sleeve shirts for students while supplies last. The Gophers will also sign autographs post-meet. For a full list of home promos and ticket information, check out our promotions calendar, and be sure to follow the Gophers on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for all team updates!
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