WEST POINT, N.Y.; January 28, 2006 ¨C Twenty-four hours after successfully defending its West Point Open team title for the ninth consecutive year, No. 7 Penn State attained equivalent success in the individual event finals Saturday evening at Christl Arena in West Point, N.Y. The Nittany Lions took first in four of the six events and placed a total of nine gymnasts in the top three.
Leading the way for Penn State was sophomore Tommy Ramos (Guaynabo, P.R.), who won titles on the rings, parallel bars, and high bar. RamosĄŻ parallel bar score of 9.050 was a team high for this season. The 9.200 he attained on the high bar was a significant improvement on his first-place qualifying score from last night (8.950). After placing seventh on the pommel horse on Friday night with a score of 8.150, sophomore Derek Helsby (Orlando, Fla.) stepped up his effort tonight, taking first with a season high mark of 9.150. Freshman Casey Sandy (Brampton, Ont.) had another solid showing, earning second place finishes on the pommel horse and the high bar. Sandy, ranked No. 1 in the nation on the pommel horse, has placed either first or second in the event in all five competitions thus far this season. Sophomore Santiago Lopez (Cibola del Mar, Mex.) took second on the vault, scoring a 9.050, and third on the parallel bars (8.200). A select group of Penn State gymnasts will be in action next weekend, taking part in the Winter Cup in Las Vegas, Nev. The USA Gymnastics-sponsored event is scheduled for Fri. and Sat., Feb. 3-4. A year ago, Chad Buczek (Bridgewater, Mass.) placed sixth in the floor exercise and Kevin Tan took second on the rings. For those not participating in the Winter Cup, an extended competitive layoff is in store. Penn State will not return to meet action for three weeks until it hosts Stanford at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sun., Feb. 19 at 5:00 p.m. For more information on Nittany Lion men's gymnastics, visit the official website of Penn State athletics at www.GoPSUsports.com. Individual Event Results Floor Exercise 1. Luke Vexler, Temple 8.850 2. Paul Ruggiri, CNY Gym 8.800 3. Brandon Cook, Navy 8.750 Pommel Horse 1. Derek Helsby, Penn State 9.150 2. Casey Sandy, Penn State 8.850 3. Luke Vexler, Temple 8.250 Rings 1. Tommy Ramos, Penn State 9.750 2. Mike Tiffany, Army 9.400 3. Matt Cohen, Penn State 9.350 Vault 1. Anthony Morales, Army 9.450 2. Santiago Lopez, Penn State 9.050 3. Mike Assenmacher, Army 9.000 Parallel Bars 1. Tommy Ramos, Penn State 9.050 2. Eliot Proctor, Army 8.300 3. Santiago Lopez, Penn State 8.200 High Bar 1. Tommy Ramos, Penn State 9.200 2. Casey Sandy, Penn State 8.900 3. Luke Vexler, Temple 8.750
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