University of Illinois
Penn State
No. 6 Illini Come Up Big On Senior Day
March 7, 2020 | Men's Gymnastics
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The No. 6 Illini men's gymnastics team defeated No. 2 Michigan and No. 8 Penn State in a tightly contested Big Ten tri-meet, with scores of 406.900, 405.100, 402.200, respectively.
Illinois improved to 8-3-1 overall and 3-1-1 in the Big Ten.
The Illini picked up two event titles, with the highlight being senior Michael Paradise. He earned the event title on the pommel horse, his 10th career title in the event, with a score of 14.950, also a new season high.
Senior Danny Graham earned the event title on rings with a score of 14.550, his second career event title on the rings, and third overall.
Five different Illini set new career highs on the day, including freshmen Connor McCool (14.800) and Evan Manivong (13.950) on the floor, sophomore Ian Skirkey on the pommel horse (14.700), senior Danny Graham on rings (14.550), and freshman Josh Cook on the high bar (13.800).
Senior Sebastian Quiana secured two top five finishes on his senior day, placing third on the floor (14.600) and fifth on the high bar (13.550).
With the win today, the Illini move to a perfect 5-0 in Huff Hall with one home meet remaining.
How It Happened
First Rotation – Floor Exercise (70.000)
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Freshmen Connor McCool (14.800) and Evan Manivong (13.950) set new career highs and placed second and seventh, respectively, while senior Sebastian Quiana placed third in the event with a score of 14.600.
Second Rotation – Pommel Horse (66.350)
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Senior Michael Paradise earned his 10th career event title on the pommel horse, scoring a new career-high mark of 14.950. Sophomore Ian Skirkey followed in second place with a new career best score of 14.700.
Third Rotation – Still Rings (69.000)
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Senior Danny Graham earned his second career event title on rings with a score of 14.550, while junior Max Diab tied for fourth place with a score of 13.800.
Fourth Rotation – Vault (70.100)
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Freshman Evan Manivong and junior Max Diab tied for fourth place on the vault with a score of 14.300, while senior Sebastian Quiana placed sixth for the Illini with a score of 14.100.
Fifth Rotation – Parallel Bars (65.850)
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Senior Danny Graham placed sixth overall with a score of 13.600, while senior Zach Treadway matched his career high with a score of 13.350, placing eighth overall.
Sixth Rotation – High Bar (65.600)
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Freshman Josh Cook set a new career high score of 13.800, placing second on the high bar, while senior Sebastian Quiana placed fifth with a score of 13.550.
Event Titles
Pommel Horse – Michael Paradise (14.950)
Still Rings – Danny Graham (14.550)
Up Next
The Illini will be going international next weekend, traveling to Puerto Rico for the Puerto Rico Invitational on March 14th, beginning at 5 p.m. CT.
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