March 10, 2010
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THIS WEEK: The No. 10 Iowa Hawkeyes will travel to No. 7 Minnesota to take on both the Golden Gophers and the No. 11 Illinois-Chicago Flames. Competition will be held at the Sports Pavilion, with the meet set to begin at 7 p.m
AGAINST MINNESOTA & UIC: Iowa faced Minnesota and UIC at the Windy City Invitational back in January. The Hawkeyes finished in front of both opponents, placing fourth out of six teams. Iowa scored 339.600, Minnesota 337.650 and UIC 328.750.
The Hawkeyes picked up a win against Illinois-Chicago in February at the UIC Physical Education Building. The Hawkeyes scored a team total of 340.200, while the Flames posted a score 331.050. Iowa won without its two team leaders; Jonathan Buese and Ben Ketelsen who were competing at the Winter Cup in Las Vegas, NV.
IN THE RANKINGS: The Hawkeyes are currently ranked No.10 in the country. Big Ten opponents Illinois (No. 3) , Michigan (No. 4), Ohio State (No. 5), Penn State (No. 6) and Minnesota (No.7) are all ranked in the top 10.
LAST TIME OUT: Iowa fell to No. 4 Illinois at Carver Hawkeye Arena in its final home meet of the season. Head Coach Tom Dunn was honored for his 31 years as a Hawkeye after announcing in June 2010 he will step down as Iowa’s head coach. Four Iowa seniors; Jonathan Buese, Danny Kuklinski, Joel Snyder and Reid Urbain were also honored for their dedication to the program. The Hawkeyes scored a season-high 346.600 as a team, but Illinois won with a 357.500.
Freshman Broderick Shemansky tied the school record after placing second on rings (14.800). Fellow freshmen Matt McGrath and Anton Gryshayev tied for third (14.500) on rings. The team’s 58.100 total on the event was the highest this season.
SCOUTING THE HAWKEYES: The Black and Gold return 11 letterwinners, including Iowa’s “one-two punch” of senior Jon Buese and junior Ben Ketelson. The Iowa roster is made up of 11 underclassmen on the 18-man roster with newcomers: Todd Becker, Anton Gryshayev, Timm Krueger, Jack McClay, Matt McGrath and Broderick Shemansky.
HEAD COACH Tom Dunn: In his 29-year career as Iowa’s head gymnastics coach, Dunn has elevated the program’s status to one of a perennial national contender. With an Iowa record of 220-138-2, Dunn has led the Hawkeyes to 23 top-10 finishes in the NCAA Championships,and has competed in the national meet 24 of the past 29 seasons. Dunn has helped 33 individuals to earn 67 all-America honors and 22 gymnasts win 35 Big Ten titles. There have been 122 academic all-Big Ten selections and 78 all-America scholar athletes in his 29 seasons as Iowa’s head coach. Dunn has announced his retirement for June 30, 2010 after his 31st season with the program.
QUOTE FROM COACH DUNN:“Last weekend’s meet was very encouraging on several levels and I hope we can continue improving. We had a couple of injuries during the meet and we may still be short a few routines this week, but everyone stepped up against Illinois so I don’t expect any less against Minnesota. We beat the Gophers in January, but they will be gunning for us on Senior Night in Minneapolis.”