University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Michigan
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Minnesota Falls in Big Ten Battle at Michigan
2/29/2020 3:03:00 PM | Men's Gymnastics
The No. 10 Gophers traveled to the home of the No. 2 Wolverines on Saturday for a Big Ten undefeated match-up, but were unable to come out on the winning side.
Minnesota fell to Michigan 408.900-396.300 to bring its conference record to 1-1. It was the first five-up, five-count meet of the season in which each score from every gymnast contributed to the final team total.
Despite the loss, the Gophers did have some bright spots on the day. Junior captain Shane Wiskus earned the all-around (82.300), rings (14.450) and parallel bars (14.600) titles, while freshman Donte McKinney continued his dominance on vault to take the gold (14.950). The team also posted season highs on vault (72.550) and rings (68.100).
Notable
The Gophers recorded a season-high vault score of 72.550, which was the country's fourth-highest mark as of Saturday afternoon. McKinney, who is ranked No. 15, earned a 14.950 to take the event title. It is also Minnesota's highest score since 2018 on vault and the second-best in the NCAA this year. Wiskus (14.550), sophomore Mike Moran (14.500) and sophomore Ben Eyles (14.250) all also earned season highs on the day, and no Gopher scored below 14.250.
Quotable
"This was a tale of two meets. We were outstanding on two events, but subpar on four. We had a few serious highlights today with Shane and Donte, those were a couple of the impressive performances we had out there," head coach Mike Burns said. "This was our first five-up, five-count and unfortunately had a couple of very poor routines that cost us dearly. We obviously need to solve the problems we experienced today if we want to achieve our team goals."
Pommel Horse
The Gophers began yet another meet on pommel horse, which was highlighted by junior Russell Johnson's career high score of 13.600 for fourth place. It was the second consecutive meet in which Johnson set a new high on the event. Minnesota's next best finisher was freshman Donte McKinney, who scored 13.150 to come in sixth.
Floor
Minnesota moved to floor for its second event of the day and was led by sophomore Mike Moran with a score of 14.350 to tie for second. Wiskus earned a 13.900 for sixth and freshman Crew Bold and junior Colton Dee both scored 12.700 for eighth.
Vault
The Gophers made up for a rough two opening rotations with an impressive vault showing and recorded a season-best 72.550. McKinney scored 14.950 in the No. 2 spot, a new career high, team season high and Minnesota's best mark on the event since 2018 for the event title. Wiskus followed close behind with a season best of 14.550 for third place, while Moran (14.500) and Eyles (14.250) also added season highs of their own.
Rings
Minnesota bested Michigan on rings with a team score of 68.100, also a season high on the year for the Gophers. Wiskus led the event with a career best 14.450 for the title. Dee was held just off the podium with a 13.800 to place fourth and Johnson and junior Henry Meeker added 13.300s to split seventh.
High Bar
The Gophers had two falls on high bar, but were still able to manage top performances in the event. Sophomore David Pochinka was the Gophers' best finisher with a score of 13.750 to tie for second place. Bold came in fifth with a 13.350 and McKinney in sixth (13.200).
Parallel Bars
Minnesota's captain duo of Wiskus and senior Timmy Kutyla showed great resilience in the last rotation of the day after high bar mishaps. Wiskus recorded a 14.600 for the event title, while Kutyla earned a 13.700 for fourth place. Sophomore Danny Yoon was the Gophers' next-best finisher with a score of 12.850 to tie for seventh.
The Road Ahead
Minnesota has a bye week coming up, but Wiskus will not take any time off as he is set to represent the United States in the annual American Cup in Milwaukee, Wis. on March 7. The Gophers will resume team competition on Friday, March 13 at Maturi Pavilion for a Senior Night tri-meet against Big Ten foes Ohio State and Nebraska at 7 p.m.