University of Minnesota Athletics
Saturday, April 20
Champaign, ILL.
6 PM
University of Minnesota
at
NCAA Championships
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
Photo by: Jessica Frankl
Wiskus Earns Parallel Bars Title, Gophers Get Five All-Americans
4/20/2019 11:07:00 PM | Men's Gymnastics
The Minnesota men's gymnastics team added a national title to its trophy case for the first time since 2014 on Saturday.
Sophomore and Big Ten Gymnast of the Year Shane Wiskus put on a phenomenal performance in the all-around competition, which culminated in the parallel bars gold (14.200), second place all-around for the second consecutive year (84.199) and an All-American honor on vault. Wiskus is now a six-time All-American through just two seasons at Minnesota.
In addition to Shane's three All-American plaudits, the Gophers racked up two more on the night. Senior Justin Karstadt claimed one after placing sixth on pommel horse (13.833), his third on the event and fourth overall in his career. Freshman Ben Eyles made a huge statement in his first-ever Championship Saturday and delivered a career-high 14.800 on vault to head back to Minneapolis as an All-American.
"We're able to bring home some hardware, and I think that's important in a meet like this," head coach Mike Burns said. "It means you're competitive, it means you're striving and achieving excellence, and that's what we did today."
The evening was a shot at redemption for Minnesota after the team had a disappointing fourth place finish on Friday that left the Gophers out of the running for the team national championship. Last season, Minnesota placed as the national runner-up, a program-best finish.
It could've proved difficult for the eight Gophers that competed to stay focused and motivated without their team behind them, but they managed to rise to the occasion.
"The pressure was different, the focus of the meet is on the six teams that are out there," Burns said. "I told them to quietly do their job and hit some routines, and they might be amazed at what the results are. The results were really, really good."
Saturday was the culmination of careers for six Minnesota seniors, but was also another reminder of how young the team really is.
"It kind of put a stamp on what next year is going to look like," Burns said. "The end of some great careers, and the beginning of some new careers. It was pretty emotional to know that it was the last NCAA Championships for some of these guys, the last meet for some of these guys in their careers, but I'm happy for them to go out on a high, positive note and have their last experience be a good one."
All-Around
Wiskus started the night on pommel horse and rotated with Michigan throughout. He was on all night, gaining a good beginning on pommel horse and rings, and then turned it up on a notch on vault. He stepped up to the runway and scored a solid 14.700, which was good to put him in sixth place and for All-American honors. Shane kept the heat from there and his next event would be his top of the night: parallel bars. He scored a stuck 14.200, which would hold through the next two rotations and prove to be the nation's best. He wrapped up his all-around campaign on high bar and floor, coming just short of another All-American award on high bar with a ninth place finish (13.733). All together, he scored an 84.199 to repeat as the second place all-arounder for the second consecutive year.
Pommel Horse
Karstadt was Minnesota's other representative on pommel horse besides Wiskus. He stepped up amid an incredibly tough pommel field and held his own to score 13.833 for sixth place. It is the third All-American honor for Karstadt on the event, who was also a finalist for the CGA Specialist of the Year award for his work on pommel horse. Along with a parallel bars nod, Karstadt closed his Gopher career Saturday as a four-time All-American.
Rings
Karstadt also competed rings, along with sophomore Russell Johnson. He scored a 13.733 in what would be his last-ever routine with the maroon and gold to tie for 22nd place. Johnson, in the first individual championships of his career, earned a 13.366, which tied for 41st.
Vault
Though the Gophers arrived on vault in only the third rotation of the night, it was clear that the performances were shoo-ins for All-American status. Freshman Ben Eyles went first and made his last vault of the year his best with a stuck, career-high 14.800 for fifth. Wiskus was just behind him in sixth with a score of 14.700.
Parallel Bars
While Eyles and Wiskus were on vault, freshman David Pochinka took to the parallel bars in the first NCAA individuals appearance of his career and scored a 12.766. Wiskus took to the parallel bars in the fourth rotation and delivered his performance to remember.
High Bar
Michael Harris closed his Minnesota career on high bar, where he scored a 12.766 and came in 32nd place. He was followed by Wiskus, who scored a 13.733 to come in ninth, but boost his all-around score heading into the sixth and final rotation.
Floor
Floor was truly an event to remember for the Gophers on Saturday as it marked the last two routines for Minnesota senior captains Shaun Herzog and Vitali Kan. Herzog went first and scored a 14.233, a season-best, only for Kan to follow and score the same 14.233 to close their careers in sync. Wiskus was the last to compete on floor and scored a 14.200 to seal his second place all-around finish.
Sophomore and Big Ten Gymnast of the Year Shane Wiskus put on a phenomenal performance in the all-around competition, which culminated in the parallel bars gold (14.200), second place all-around for the second consecutive year (84.199) and an All-American honor on vault. Wiskus is now a six-time All-American through just two seasons at Minnesota.
In addition to Shane's three All-American plaudits, the Gophers racked up two more on the night. Senior Justin Karstadt claimed one after placing sixth on pommel horse (13.833), his third on the event and fourth overall in his career. Freshman Ben Eyles made a huge statement in his first-ever Championship Saturday and delivered a career-high 14.800 on vault to head back to Minneapolis as an All-American.
"We're able to bring home some hardware, and I think that's important in a meet like this," head coach Mike Burns said. "It means you're competitive, it means you're striving and achieving excellence, and that's what we did today."
The evening was a shot at redemption for Minnesota after the team had a disappointing fourth place finish on Friday that left the Gophers out of the running for the team national championship. Last season, Minnesota placed as the national runner-up, a program-best finish.
It could've proved difficult for the eight Gophers that competed to stay focused and motivated without their team behind them, but they managed to rise to the occasion.
"The pressure was different, the focus of the meet is on the six teams that are out there," Burns said. "I told them to quietly do their job and hit some routines, and they might be amazed at what the results are. The results were really, really good."
Saturday was the culmination of careers for six Minnesota seniors, but was also another reminder of how young the team really is.
"It kind of put a stamp on what next year is going to look like," Burns said. "The end of some great careers, and the beginning of some new careers. It was pretty emotional to know that it was the last NCAA Championships for some of these guys, the last meet for some of these guys in their careers, but I'm happy for them to go out on a high, positive note and have their last experience be a good one."
All-Around
Wiskus started the night on pommel horse and rotated with Michigan throughout. He was on all night, gaining a good beginning on pommel horse and rings, and then turned it up on a notch on vault. He stepped up to the runway and scored a solid 14.700, which was good to put him in sixth place and for All-American honors. Shane kept the heat from there and his next event would be his top of the night: parallel bars. He scored a stuck 14.200, which would hold through the next two rotations and prove to be the nation's best. He wrapped up his all-around campaign on high bar and floor, coming just short of another All-American award on high bar with a ninth place finish (13.733). All together, he scored an 84.199 to repeat as the second place all-arounder for the second consecutive year.
Pommel Horse
Karstadt was Minnesota's other representative on pommel horse besides Wiskus. He stepped up amid an incredibly tough pommel field and held his own to score 13.833 for sixth place. It is the third All-American honor for Karstadt on the event, who was also a finalist for the CGA Specialist of the Year award for his work on pommel horse. Along with a parallel bars nod, Karstadt closed his Gopher career Saturday as a four-time All-American.
Rings
Karstadt also competed rings, along with sophomore Russell Johnson. He scored a 13.733 in what would be his last-ever routine with the maroon and gold to tie for 22nd place. Johnson, in the first individual championships of his career, earned a 13.366, which tied for 41st.
Vault
Though the Gophers arrived on vault in only the third rotation of the night, it was clear that the performances were shoo-ins for All-American status. Freshman Ben Eyles went first and made his last vault of the year his best with a stuck, career-high 14.800 for fifth. Wiskus was just behind him in sixth with a score of 14.700.
Parallel Bars
While Eyles and Wiskus were on vault, freshman David Pochinka took to the parallel bars in the first NCAA individuals appearance of his career and scored a 12.766. Wiskus took to the parallel bars in the fourth rotation and delivered his performance to remember.
High Bar
Michael Harris closed his Minnesota career on high bar, where he scored a 12.766 and came in 32nd place. He was followed by Wiskus, who scored a 13.733 to come in ninth, but boost his all-around score heading into the sixth and final rotation.
Floor
Floor was truly an event to remember for the Gophers on Saturday as it marked the last two routines for Minnesota senior captains Shaun Herzog and Vitali Kan. Herzog went first and scored a 14.233, a season-best, only for Kan to follow and score the same 14.233 to close their careers in sync. Wiskus was the last to compete on floor and scored a 14.200 to seal his second place all-around finish.
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