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Gym Jam begins at 11 a.m. this Saturday at Huff Hall!
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Jan. 25, 2011
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The University of Illinois gymnastics teams will host Gym Jam this Saturday, Jan. 29 at Huff Hall, featuring the No. 3 men's squad and No. 19 women's team each battling Big Ten foe Iowa. The Iowa women are currently ranked 15th in the country, while the men checked in at No. 9.
Admission is free for the meet, which starts at noon, and free food will be provided for the first 1,000 fans beginning at 11 a.m. The event will also feature great giveaways including tickets for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus and pit passes for the E3 Spark Plugs Monster Truck Nationals. Fans also will have the opportunity to get team posters autographed and meet the gymnasts after the conclusion of the meet.
The women's team will compete for the first time at home this season after tallying a pair of runner-up finishes and a tie at Ohio State to begin the 2011 campaign. Junior Kelsey Joannides led the squad at the first two meets of the year while senior Allison Buckley paced the effort against the Buckeyes and was named Big Ten co-Gymnast of the Week after winning the vault and all-around titles with season-high scores.
The men's team is 7-0 to open the season after claiming its second straight team title (355.400) at the Windy City Invitational on Jan. 15, which included wins over defending national champion Michigan (346.100), Minnesota (340.700), Ohio State (339.800), Iowa (332.800) and host UIC (327.300). Illinois followed it up with victories over Minnesota (344.100) and Nebraska (333.100) last weekend, tallying an overall team score of 351.500. The Illini are led by senior Paul Ruggeri, who has claimed a team-best five individual titles thus far, en route to back-to-back Big Ten Gymnast of the Week honors.
