UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; January 24, 2006 - Penn State's Matt Cohen (Agoura Hills, Calif.) earned Big Ten Men's Gymnast of the Week honors for his standout performance in the Nittany Lions' title win at the Temple Invitational in Philadelphia on Sun., Jan. 21. The conference award is the first of his career.

The senior captain captured two individual titles, winning the floor exercise with a career-high score of 9.250 and the vault (9.100), en route to securing his second all-around crown in as many weeks. Cohen also placed second on the still rings (9.450).

Through the first two weeks of the season, Cohen is ranked as the nation's top all-around competitor with an average score of 52.025. He is also nationally rated No. 2 in the vault and No. 3 on the still rings.

Cohen's effort helped Penn State secure a commanding victory over host Temple, William & Mary, and James Madison, up the Nittany Lions' 2007 mark to a perfect 4-0, and rise to the No. 2 position in the national polls. In its two meets thus far this season, Penn State has won every event individually and as a team.

Penn State returns to the road this weekend, traveling to New York for the annual West Point Open, hosted by the United States Military Academy. The Nittany Lions will be seeking their tenth consecutive West Point Open title when they take on some of the east's top collegiate and club teams on Fri.-Sat., Jan. 26-27. The team competition is scheduled for Friday with the individual event finals to be held on Saturday. Both competitions are set for 7 p.m. at the home of the Black Knights, the Holleder Center.