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Men's Gymnastics
Freshman Paul Ruggeri Wins High Bar National Title
April 20, 2008
STANFORD, Calif. - Freshman Paul Ruggeri of the Illinois men's gymnastics team captured the 2008 NCAA Men's Gymnastics high bar national championship tonight on the campus of Stanford University to become the first Illinois national champion since 2006, when current assistant coach Justin Spring won the crown on high bar as a senior. The Illini youngster led a contingent of seven Illinois gymnasts that competed in event finals and collected a total of nine All-America honors between them. "It is a great thing for Paul to win the title after so much hard work all season long," head coach Yoshi Hayasaki said. "He had such a great night, getting All-America honors on three events as a freshman. This just goes to show that the state of Illinois gymnastics is in good hands for the coming years. Overall, we had four guys get All-America honors for the first time, while we had six seniors wrap up great careers as well. It was just a great night for the University of Illinois. We had a good championships as a team and as individuals and I could not be more proud of this team." Illinois 2008 All-Americans included Ruggeri capturing his first accolades of his career when he earned the laurels on floor (tied for fifth), vault (fifth) and high bar (first). He was followed by first-time winners senior Jon Drollinger on rings (seventh), sophomore Brian Liscovitz on parallel bars (seventh) and freshman Daniel Ribeiro on pommel horse (sixth). The All-America honorees also included senior Wes Haagensen on parallel bars, taking the bronze, senior Tyler Yamauchi on vault (fourth) and senior Ross Bradley for the second time in his career on high bar (fifth) Ruggeri earned three All-America honors to become the first Illini to capture three in the same season since Haagensen achieved the feat in 2006. Ruggeri also became the first Illinois gymnast to win a national title in their first year of competition since both Alvin Barasch (1960, tumbling) and Ray Hadley (1960-62, floor exercise) accomplished the feat in 1960. Ruggeri's trio of awards also bests Spring's mark as a freshman - considered to be one of the most talented gymnasts ever to compete at Illinois - as he only captured two in his debut season. The Manlius, N.Y., native tabbed his feats by scoring a 15.375 on floor, a 15.950 on vault and a 15.000 to win the crown on high bar. Senior Drollinger capped off not only a tremendous 2008 season when he posted an All-America worthy score of a 15.250 on rings to finish seventh, but polished off a solid four-year career with Illinois in the process. The senior made his first event final in 2008, making it count by receiving his first career national honor to boot. Sophomore Liscovitz punched his ticket to the finals last night with a 15.000 on parallel bars during team finals, and almost bested that mark tonight when he scored a 14.575 during his event finals routine. For freshman Daniel Ribeiro, the night was bitter sweet, as he captured his first of probably many career All-America honors when he tabbed a 14.450 on pommel horse to take sixth. The mark is well below the No. 1-rated pommel horse competitor's average on the event, but a costly fall cost the youngster the title today, despite going in as the favorite.
Repeat All-American winners included Yamauchi, who became only the third Illini in the history of the program to collect All-American laurels in four straight seasons when he tabbed a fourth-place finish on vault. He joined a list of elite gymnasts from Illinois, including Peter Schostchuk, who concluded his career in 2005, and 12-time All-American Spring, who finished his career in 2006. The 2008 honor is his first on vault, bringing his grand total to four All-America awards across three different events, including rings in 2005-06 and floor exercise in 2007. Bradley put a stamp a grand comeback season of his own, as he battled back from an injury that sidelined him in 2007, a year after earning All-America honors on high bar in 2006. In 2008, while the journey back has been tough, Bradley sealed another successful season with a trip to the podium, as he scored a fifth-place finish behind a score of a 14.725. The finish is his highest of his career after taking eighth two years ago on the same event. Haagensen rounded out the 2008 All-Americans with his seventh laurel of his career and first of 2008 when he took bronze on parallel bars. In a career that has been filled with bright spots every season, Haagensen finished his career as one of the most decorated gymnasts in Illinois history, as well as in the sport as a whole. The senior tabbed a 14.875 to grab third and has now earned national honors three straight seasons. His finish on p-bars in 2008 ties his highest on the event after he achieved the same finish in 2006. Taking home the other individual championships during the event finals were Steven Legendre of Oklahoma on floor (16.100) and vault (16.400), Tim McNeill of California on pommel horse (15.625) and parallel bars (15.650) for the second straight year and Jonathan Horton on rings (16.125). Illinois has now had an Illini raise an individual title four out of the last five years. The above recap wraps up this year's edition of the 2008 NCAA Championships hosted by Stanford University at Maples Pavilion April 17-19, as well as the 2007-08 Illinois men's gymnastics competitive season. FLOOR EXERCISE RECAP With only a nod from the judges left to finalize the routine, Ruggeri waited and looked at the scoreboard as he received a 15.375, the first mark to beat of the night. With four competitors through, however, Ruggeri finally relaxed his shoulders as he had solidified his first All-American laurel by besting two different competitors, and now awaited his fate on the leader board as he stood in second and could not finish any lower than eighth. Ruggeri ended the night in a tie for fifth to close our floor. FLOOR EXERCISE FINAL STANDINGS POMMEL HORSE RECAP In an event that proved to be problematic all night during the team finals, almost all of the competitors had shaken off rocky team finals and were looking crisp through seven competitors, bringing up Ribeiro to the mat. With the score to beat, a 15.625 from McNeill, Ribeiro knew what he had to do. With him through the most difficult portion of his routine within the first 10 seconds of the set, Ribeiro was picking up speed to the finish. However, in the middle of his routine he suffered a fall off the horse, unfortunately eliminating himself from the national title but not out of the All-America standings, as he finished sixth with a score of 14.450. POMMEL HORSE FINAL STANDING STILL RINGS RECAP Drollinger was first up for the Illini, making his first event finals of his career, and what better year than as a senior. With a solid routine for the senior, there was no better way for him to exit, as he scored a 15.275 to finish seventh and earn himself his first career All-America honor. With Illini fans with still yet another Orange and Blue gymnast to cheer on, Yamauchi stepped to the rings, looking for his third All-America honor on the event, and fifth of his career. However, the night would not belong to the senior on rings, as he took a large step on his landing to score a 14.900 and finish outside of the top eight in 10th. STILL RINGS STANDINGS VAULT RECAP Heading into NCAAs, Ruggeri had prided himself on being an all-around competitor, finding his best success on high bar and floor, but had come into his own at just the right time - the 2008 NCAA Championships - on vault. With the score to beat a 15.875, Ruggeri knocked the mark out of the park when he tallied a 15.950 to finish fifth. Senior Tyler Yamauchi, looking to not leave empty handed tonight after finishing just outside of the top eight on rings, had the mood of a heavyweight boxer - all business - as he stood at the end of the vault runway. With the entire Maples Pavilion crowd looking on, Yamauchi put a stamp on his vault by sticking the landing for the first time all-season and putting a stamp on his four-year career when he posted a career-best 16.225. The effort turned out to be enough for a top-five finish, as Yamauchi racked in fourth. VAULT FINAL STANDINGS PARALLEL BARS RECAP Following Liscovitz was senior and six-time All-American Wes Haagensen. After finishing just out of the top-eight the night before in the all-around, Haagensen was hungry for his first All-American honor of the 2008 edition of the championships. Moving from handstand to release move, Haagensen brought the entire Illini cheering section to their feet as he went for his dismount and stuck it. With three claps of approval from Haagensen, he looked the judges in the eye after most-certainly an All-American routine and raised his arms in a salute. The salute was a precursor to his score of a 14.875, earning him third as an individual. PARALLEL BARS FINAL STANDING
HIGH BAR RECAP With Illinois securing two individuals on high bar, freshman Paul Ruggeri stepped onto the mat for the third and final time during event finals, looking for another All-America award. Heading into event finals the freshman was one of two Illini ranked No. 1 on their respective events, and was hoping to hold that spot at the end of tonight after his high bar routine. Putting the pressure on, Ruggeri cruised through his back-ro-back release moves, and nailed his second-set of releases, putting together a crowd-pleasing routine so far. With just the dismount left, the freshman landed it like a veteran, sticking his second landing of the night - the other on vault, also earning him All-America status - to card a 15.000 on high bar, the top score after five competitors. With the entire field chasing the freshman, no one could catch him as he finished the NCAA Championships as the high bar champion. HIGH BAR FINAL STANDINGS KEY: |
