Jan. 12, 2004
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
THIS WEEK — The sixth-ranked University of Iowa men’s gymnastics team will travel to Colorado Springs, CO, Friday and Saturday to compete at the Rocky Mountain Open hosted by the Air Force Academy. The meet will begin at 7 p.m. Friday and 1 p.m. Saturday at the Academy’s Cadet Gymnasium.
THE COMPETITION — The Rocky Mountain Open will showcase six squads, three of which are ranked in the nation’s top-20. Teams competing include No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 6 IOWA, No. 10 Nebraska, No. 15 Air Force, Washington, Arizona State and gymnasts from the Olympic Training Center.
HAWKEYES PLACE FOURTH AT WINDY CITY — The Hawkeyes opened their 2004 season with a fourth-place finish at the Windy City Invitational. Iowa finished behind top-ranked Ohio State, No. 3 Illinois and No. 4 Michigan, but topped No. 8 Minnesota and No. 14 Illinois-Chicago. The Hawkeyes finished with a total of 213.150 points.
GAVEIKA TIES RECORD — Hawkeye junior Linas Gaveika turned in a strong perfomance at the Windy City Invitational last weekend. En route to a second place all-around finish, Gaveika placed second on pommel horse (9.550) and 10th on horizontal bar (9.0). He finished with 53.500 points in the all-around competition, tying the University of Iowa record (since the 2001 code) set by Cameron Schick in 2003. Sophomores Michael Reavis (Tallahassee, FL) and Michael McNamara (Orem, UT) finished sixth (52.250) and 13th (40.050), respectively, in the all-around competition.
TOUGH BIG TEN COMPETITION — The Big Ten once again dominates the gymnastics polls, ranking all six of its teams in the top eight. Iowa was ranked sixth in the GymInfo pre-season Coaches Poll behind top-ranked Ohio State, No. 3 Illinois, No. 4 Michigan and No. 5 Penn State, while Minnesota came in at No. 8. In the first week of competition Ohio State jumped out to a strong start, scoring 215.750 team points at the Windy City Invitational. Illinois (214.425), Michigan (214.100), and Iowa (213.150) followed closely behind.
COACH Tom Dunn — Head Coach Tom Dunn is in his 24th year at Iowa, where he has compiled a 179-73-2 record (.705). In 1998, Dunn was named Big Ten Coach of the Year and CGA Central Region Coach of the Year. He has led the Hawkeyes to 17 top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships, and Iowa has competed at the NCAA meet 17 of the past 20 seasons.
NEXT COMPETITION — Iowa will travel to Lincoln, NE , January 25 to take on No. 10 Nebraska. The meet will begin at 1 p.m. at the Devaney Sports Center.