CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The third-ranked Illinois men's gymnastics team returns home for Senior Day, as the team welcomes No. 8 Michigan to Huff Hall on Saturday, February 24. The meet is set to begin at 3 p.m. CT and will air live on the Big Ten Network.
Last Time Out
UI had five gymnasts travel to compete in the annual Winter Cup Challenge in Las Vegas, Feb. 15-17. Freshman Joel Diaz, sophomore Jordan Kovach, juniors Johnny Jacobson and Alex Diab and senior Brandon Ngai all competed in the event. Diab came away with a still rings title in the finals of the event with a score of 14.400, while Ngai finished in third place on pommel horse with a two-day total of 29.050.
Scouting the Wolverines
Michigan enters the weekend with a 1-1 record on the season, having earned a narrow 411.850-410.650 victory over Ohio State last time out. The Wolverines lone defeat came against No. 1 Oklahoma. In two meets thus far, UM has an average overall team total of 407.750.
Promotions
Saturday's meet marks Senior Day, as seven Illini gymnasts will be recognized following the meet, including Bobby Baker, Tyson Bull, Chandler Eggleston, Harry McLellan, Dennis Minton, Brandon Ngai and Andreas Silbermann.
In addition to Senior Day, the meet also marks Hail to the Orange and Student Appreciation Day, as there will be giveaways such as Hail to the Orange t-shirts and koozies, as well as a TV raffle (students only).
"Any time you have a group of seniors graduate, it changes the dynamic of the team tremendously. When you look at this class specifically, with their contribution on the floor and their spiritual energy every day in practice, it's going to be a completely different team next year. Like I have said all year, it has been a deep team and that is because of them. There's so much incredible gymnastics, countable routines, world class ability and they have shown it through the numerous accolades they have got. To say that they will be missed is an understatment."
Career Title Count
Out of the 23 Illini on the roster, 8 have claimed event titles in their careers. Bobby Baker currently sits with 26 total titles, while Alex Diab has 21. Chandler Eggleston enters the weekend with 21 career titles won and Brandon Ngai has 19, all on pommel horse. Tyson Bull and Johnny Jacobson have 12 and nine career titles, respectively, and Sebastian Quiana has three titles. Max Diab and Jacob Light each earned their first event title of their career this season and Dennis Minton claimed one event title on still rings in 2016.
Looking Ahead
The Orange and Blue will travel to compete in the Stanford Invite, held in Stanford, California. Competition will begin at 6 p.m. CT on March 3.
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