May 1, 2004
IOWA CITY, IA – The Iowa men’s gymnastics team celebrated its 2004 season last night at the team’s annual Dr. C. E. Obermann Awards Banquet.
Senior Eric Block (Buffalo Grove, IL) was honored with the N.R. Holzaepfel Most Valuable Team Member Award. Block excelled on the parallel bars and pommel horse, recording 14 top-three finishes and setting an Iowa season-best score of 9.625 at the NCAA qualifier. He took second at the Big Ten Championships and is a four-time letterwinner for the Hawkeyes.
For the second year in a row, sophomore Michael Reavis (Tallahassee, FL) was honored with the Biggest Contribution Award. Reavis, a two-time letterwinner, was an all-American on vault after taking fourth at the NCAA individual finals. He recorded 27 top-three finishes and was crowned event champion seven times.
Matt Metzger (Cincinnati, OH) was the recipient of the Dr. C.E. Obermann Outstanding Senior award. Metzger was an academic all-American in 2003 and was named to the academic all-Big Ten team for the 2004 season. Metzger is a four-time letterwinner for the Hawkeyes and finished in the top-five 12 times this season.
Sophomore’s Bryan Bourland (Lubbock, TX) and Jacques Bouchard (Rio Rancho, NM) were also honored. Bourland received the award for the Most Improved Competitor and was also named to the 2004 academic all-Big Ten team. Bouchard received the Academic Excellence Award and was also named to the academic all-Big Ten team. Bouchard, along with teammate Linas Gaveika (Vilnious, Lithuania), were named team captains for next season.
Gaveika is a three-time all-American for the Hawkeyes. In 2003, Gaveika was crowned NCAA champion on horizontal bar and this year took second on parallel bars and fourth on horizontal bar, earning him all-America honors on both events. He was also Iowa’s nominee for the 2004 Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.
Kenny Lin (Sparks, NV) and Dan Proudfoot (Lakeville, MN) were also named to the 2003-04 academic all-Big Ten team. Lin is a three-time letterwinner for the Hawkeyes while Proudfoot received his first letter.