Tribe Rolls to Win Over James Madison

Team Sets Season High in Home Opener

02/17/07 8:20PM

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - The College of William and Mary’s 15th-ranked men’s gymnastics squad put its best foot forward for the home fans in Kaplan Arena by setting its season-best team score of 196.15 in defeating 21st-ranked James Madison University (158.35) in dual meet action on Saturday evening.

The team score bettered the Tribe’s previous season high (190.85) by nearly six full points and improved is record to 6-5 overall. The College claimed the team title and swept the top three positions on each of the evening’s six events.

William and Mary started the evening on the floor exercise and used season best scores from junior Dave Locke (Natick, Mass.), 8.60, and freshman Josh Fried (Gwynedd Valley, Pa.), 8.15, to turn in a solid team mark of 33.50. Tribe sophomore Sloan Crawford (Burlington, Ontartio, Canada) had the meet’s top floor performance, as he tumbled to a mark of 8.70.

One of the team’s highlights on the evening came on the pommel horse, where five of the six Tribe competitors hit for season best performances and combined to turn in the school’s season best team score of 32.9 on the event. The mark betters the College’s previous team best by nearly two points (31.10). Sophomore James Prim (Hendersonville, N.C.) had the meet’s top score on the event, as he tied his career best with a mark of 8.5. Senior Dave Ridings (Parkton, Md.) placed second overall, with a personal season best mark of 8.35, while sophomore Richard Pearson (Baton Rouge, La.) took the bronze with a score of 8.25.

The evening’s top individual performance came during the ring event, as Prim put together a career-best set that earned him a mark of 9.15 to win the event. Prim’s previous best was 9.0, set last season. Freshman all-arounder Derek Gygax (Stevensville, Md.) also turned in a career best effort, as he powered his way to the meet’s second-best mark of 7.85. Junior Aaron Ingram (Paxton, Mass.) placed third overall, with a mark of 7.65. Senior Charles Portz (Humble, Texas) provided the squad with an inspirational effort on the event, as he overcame inju-ries to compete the rings for the first time in nearly two years and put up a solid set 7.25.

The vault event showcased yet another career best effort for the College, as Fried flew to a mark of 8.2, which tied him with teammate Sloan Crawford for the meet’s top mark. Junior Andrew Hunt (Upper Black Eddy, Pa.) finished in a tie for third place with a score of 8.05.

Powered by a season-best effort of 8.40 by Ridings, the College put together its top team score of the season the parallel bars (32.45). Hunt finished in second with a mark of 8.20, just edging a career best effort by Gygax, who finished third on the event with a score of 8.05.

Moving into the evening’s last rotation, the College needed a solid five-hit effort from its high bar crew to secure the team season-best overall score and the corps responded by combining for a team event season total of 32.65. The effort was led by Hunt, as he posted the top event’s top score (8.50), but it was Locke’s second-place total of 8.35 which powered the season-high, as he shook off early season injuries to compete on the apparatus for the first time this season. Crawford finished in third place on the event, as he put together a personal season best mark of 7.90.

The team’s next action will come in two weeks, when the Tribe will play host to a pair of nationally ranked opponents in Penn State and Navy on Saturday, March 3rd. The meet is scheduled to start in Kaplan Arena at 2:00 p.m.