Dec. 19, 2006

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Juniors Wes Haagensen and Tyler Yamauchi were tabbed preseason All-Big Ten selections as picked by the conference coaches, the conference office announced on Tuesday, Dec. 19. The Illinois men's gymnastics team also was picked to finish fourth by the coaches, while 2007 NCAA Championships host Penn State was chosen as the preseason league favorite. Ohio State, the reigning Big Ten champion, was picked second, followed by Michigan, Illinois, Minnesota and Iowa who rounded out the list.

Illinois grabbed the ranking after finishing runner-up at Big Tens last season, falling just short of its 10th national title, placing second behind Oklahoma at the 2006 NCAA Championships. The Illini, ranked sixth nationally this season, are looking once again to be a national contender behind the efforts of Haagensen and Yamauchi, as well as fellow All-Americans Ross Bradley and Chris Lung. In 2006, Bradley took eighth on high bar, Haagensen finished third on parallel bars, fourth in all-around and fifth on floor exercise, while Lung grabbed fifth place on pommel horse and Yamauchi posted an eighth-place finish on rings at the NCAA Championships.

The Nittany Lions garnered the top spot after finishing fourth at NCAAs in 2006, and are ranked No. 5 in the GymInfo Preseason Coaches poll. PSU returns 12 competitors, including All-American juniors Derek Helsby, Tommy Ramos and Santiago Lopez. Helsby, along with sophomore Casey Sandy were named to the Preseason All-Big Ten team for the 2007 season.

Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Ohio State will open the 2006 season on Saturday, Jan. 13, at the Windy City Invitational in Chicago, while Penn State kicks off its season by hosting Army that same day.

2007 BIG TEN PRESEASON POLL

Rank    School

1.      Penn State

2.      Ohio State

3.      Michigan

4.      Illinois

5.      Minnesota

6.      Iowa




2007 PRESEASON ALL-BIG TEN MEN'S GYMNASTICS TEAM


Name                 School          Yr.     Hometown

Wes Haagensen           Illinois        Jr.     Belleville, Ill.

Tyler Yamauchi          Illinois        Jr.     Sugarland, Texas

Curtis Kleffman         Iowa            Jr.     Washington, N.J.

Geoff Reins             Iowa            So.     Buffalo Grove, Ill.

Justin Laury            Michigan        Sr.     Marietta, Ga.

Kent Caldwell           Michigan        So.     Charlotte, N.C.

Jake Lee                Minnesota       Sr.     Saratoga Springs, Utah

Cole Storer             Minnesota       Fr.     Plano, Texas

Jake Bateman            Ohio State      So.     Kingsport, Tenn.

DJ Bucher               Ohio State      Jr.     Mason, Ohio

Derek Helsby            Penn State      Jr.     Orlando, Fla.

Casey Sandy             Penn State      So.     Brampton, Ontario