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Big Ten Championships
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Meet Preview: Minnesota Heads to Nebraska for Big Ten Championships
4/1/2021 2:48:00 PM | Men's Gymnastics
The Gopher men's gymnastics team will travel to Lincoln, Neb. this weekend to take part in the Big Ten Championships on Saturday, April 3 at 7:00 p.m. CDT.
The Maroon & Gold finished at the bottom of the Big Ten for the regular season with a conference and overall record of 1-5 on the year. The Michigan Wolverines earned the title of regular season conference champions after an undefeated season where they finished 6-0.
"The Big Ten Championships are by far one of the most exciting gymnastics competitions on the face of the planet," head coach Mike Burns said. "I love this meet because of the intense school spirit every single athlete exudes as they compete for a chance to be called 'Big Ten Champ'. I can't tell you how much respect I have for every guy on this team in terms of how they've dealt with all the adversity that was dealt their way this year. I'm excited to step on the competition floor on Saturday night and represent the Golden Gophers in one last Big Ten Championships."
Some storylines surrounding the Gophers heading into the weekend include Shane Wiskus returning to the team's lineup to compete for the remainder of the postseason, fellow sophomores Donte McKinney and Crew Bold both holding top ten rankings in the nation on high bar, and former All-American on vault Ben Eyles' steady incline in the event as the season has progresses, as he is coming off of a meet where he set a new season high in the event of 14.650.
Saturday's Big Ten Championships are set to be televised on Big Ten Network starting at 7:00 p.m. CDT in Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Neb. Live stats for the event are also available at the link provided above. The Big Ten is also providing digital programs for fans, with the link for that also being provided above. Fans will also be able to follow along with the Gophers by following the Minnesota men's gymnastics Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram pages.
Gophers in the Rankings
Minnesota closed out their regular season ranking ninth in the nation on Road to Nationals, along with being ranked ninth in the final CGA Coaches Poll of the regular season. Team event rankings for the Maroon & Gold are as follows: tenth on floor exercise, eleventh on pommel horse, ninth on still rings, ninth on vault, fifth on parallel bars, and fifth on high bar.
Minnesota gymnasts finding themselves in the top 25 individual rankings this week are:
All-Around: Shane Wiskus (3rd), Mike Moran (11th)
Floor Exercise: Shane Wiskus (4th)
Still Rings: Shane Wiskus (7th), Colton Dee (22nd)
Vault: Ben Eyles (21st)
Parallel Bars: Shane Wiskus (T-5th), Crew Bold (19th)
High Bar: Shane Wiskus (3rd), Donte McKinney (5th), Crew Bold (7th)
The Road Ahead
Following this weekend's Big Ten Championships in Lincoln, Nebraska, the Gophers will have an off week before returning to Maturi Pavilion one last time to host the NCAA Championships April 16-17.