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Feb. 22, 2007

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Illinois men's gymnastics team takes another break from Big Ten action when they travel to Oakland, Calif., to compete in the Pacific Coast Classic on Saturday, Feb. 24, at 9 p.m. at the Oakland Convention Center. The high-level event will feature six of the top-10 U.S. collegiate gymnastics teams in one of the most heralded collegiate competitions of the season.

"This weekend will be a good chance for us to get back into competition and continue to get ourselves prepared for Big Tens and NCAAs," head coach Yoshi Hayasaki said. "We have guys getting over injury, so the most important thing for us is to keep healthy as we near the end of the regular season."

For a complete recap of the Illini's performance at the Pacific Coast Classic, go to fightingillini.com. With the event taking place at 9 a.m. (PST), midnight local time, a complete release for the Illini will not be available until Sunday, Feb. 25.

SETTING THE SCENE: 2007 PACIFIC COAST CLASSIC
Often a preview of what is to come in April during the NCAA championships, Pacific Coast brings together six of the top-10 nationally ranked teams to showcase their talents, highlighting some of the best gymnasts in the nation.

The Classic field includes two-time defending national champion Oklahoma, who is ranked No. 3 in the latest poll, joined by top-ranked Michigan, No. 5 Stanford, No. 7 Minnesota and No. 8 California.

The event is sponsored by USA Gymnastics, with the sole purpose to provide direct assistance in preserving men's collegiate gymnastics programs and increase scholarship and training opportunities in the United States. Proceeds from the Pacific Coast Classic benefit two organizations that significantly impact the future of men's gymnastics in the U.S. But it is only with the support of many participating teams, coaches, judges, volunteers, sponsors, spectators and our staff that makes assistance to these organizations possible.

ORANGE AND BLUE- THE LAST TIME OUT
The No. 5 Fighting Illini men's gymnasts fell to the No. 2 Penn State Nittany Lions, 220.150- 205.250. The Illini took home four top-three finishes during the night and one event title. Freshman Chad Wiest had a positive night, winning the floor exercise with a score of 9.450. Wiest, ranked sixth on floor and fifth on vault nationally, also took home a third-place finish on vault, posting a 8.850. Juniors Chris Silcox and Tyler Yamauchi also led Illinois, with Silcox finishing third on floor exercise (8.850) and Yamauchi tying with Penn State's Derek Helsby for third on rings, both recording a 9.400. Junior all-arounder Wes Haagensen was limited to only pommel horse during the night due to shoulder pain.

FIERY FRESHMAN
Freshman Chad Wiest has made his mark on collegiate gymnastics since beginning his freshman campaign earlier this year. Wiest has had four top-three finishes already this season, including two event titles on vault, claimed at the Windy City Invite and Minnesota with scores of 8.950 and 8.500, respectively. In addition to his national rankings, Wiest currently holds three of the top-five floor exercise, and two of the top-five vault finishes for Illinois this season.

NATIONALLY RANKED ILLINI
Chad Wiest
• 5th vault
• 6th floor exercise

Wes Haagensen
• 3rd all-around
• 12th parallel bars

Jon Drollinger
• 8th rings

Tyler Yamauchi
• 7th rings
• T17th vault

Chris Silcox
• 18th floor exercise
• 20th high bar

JANUARY RECAP
In Illinois' opening event of the season, the Illini had 15 top-10 finishes at the 37th Annual Windy City Invitational, including two event titles (Chad Wiest, vault; Wes Haagensen, floor exercise) and the all-around title (Haagensen). In addition, Illinois picked up the highest team total on vault (34.500) and tied Michigan for the floor exercise crown (36.550).

In other results, junior Tyler Yamauchi finished third on still rings with a score of 9.200, seventh on vault (8.600) and 10th on parallel bars (8.950). Junior Chris Silcox made a solid debut on the season, tying for third on the floor exercise (9.200) and the high bar (9.050).

The Illinois men's gymnastics team dropped its dual season opener, falling to the Minnesota Golden Gophers 207.150-204.750 at the Sports Pavilion in Minneapolis. Haagensen captured his second all-around title of the season to lead the Illini, while freshman Wiest and junior Jon Drollinger each took home individual crowns on floor exercise and rings, respectively.

Haagensen finished first in the all-around (49.600) for the second straight week and tied for second on parallel bars (8.900). In addition, Drollinger, who tied his career high of 9.500, took home the individual crown on rings. Wiest had a breakout performance in just his second career collegiate competition, grabbing the floor exercise title with a season-high score of 9.450, while also setting a personal best on high bar (8.250). The Butler, Pa., native also took third on vault with an 8.500. Junior Michael Boyer tied his career high of a 9.200 to finish third on the floor exercise, while sophomore Tyler Yamauchi earned a solid 9.350 on the rings to finish second to Drollinger on the event. Overall, the Illini had six top-three finishes on the night.

Most recently, The No. 5 Illinois men's gymnastics team posted a season-high score of 211.050, but the effort was not enough to top No. 4 Ohio State, who defeated the Illini tonight at Huff Hall with a score of 214.700. The Illini were led by the efforts of junior Wes Haagensen, who captured his third all-around title of the season with a season-high 53.350, while the Orange and Blue freshmen continued to improve with six personal bests being set by the class.

Illinois topped Ohio State on the floor (36.850-36.000) and vault (35.650-34.550), while also carding season highs on the floor, rings (36.200), vault (35.650) and high bar (34.750).

Haagensen added to his all-around first-place finish with a second-place outing on high bar (9.150) and pommel horse (8.550), tied for fourth on parallel bars (8.800) and third on vault (9.000). Yamauchi also took home an individual title, posting a 9.150 on vault, while he also finished fourth on rings (9.350). On the rings, the Illini swept the top-three places.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Illini return to Champaign to host fellow Big Ten rival the University of Iowa on March 3, at 2 p.m. at Huff Hall.