Air Force Academy

Jan. 30, 2007

After a week off from competition, the No. 17  Air Force men's gymnastics team returns to the Academy to host service academy rival and 12th-ranked Army on Saturday, Feb. 3. This meet, which will mark senior Kurt Antonio's final appearance at the Academy, is slated to begin at 7 p.m., in the Academy's Cadet West Gym.

Weekly Release 03 - Army
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SENIOR SALUTE: Saturday will be the final home meet for senior Kurt Antonio. A co-captain of the 2007 squad, Antonio has been a significant contributor to the Air Force program throughout his career.

SCOUTING THE FALCONS: Air Force was last in action two weeks ago, traveling to Oklahoma for a triangular...the Falcons finished third behind then-No. 1 Oklahoma and then-No. 10 Nebraska...improved team scores in five of the six individual events and the total score... this will be the first dual meet for the Falcons this season.

SCOUTING THE BLACK KNIGHTS: Army recently hosted the West Point Open, finishing third among collegiate teams with a score of 197.750...Joe Baumann and George Rhynedance are currently ranked 12th (tied) and 15th, respectively in the nation...the Black Knights are 1-1 in dual meet action, falling to Penn State and defeating Springfield.

CONNECTING THE DOTS: Army's George Rhynedance is the older brother of former Air Force women's gymnastics team member Elisa Rhynedance.

HOME SWEET HOME?!: Home is where the heart is, but home is NOT where the Falcons will be this season. Although it is just three weeks into the season, Air Force will close out the home slate with this weekend's meet. The Falcons, who compete as a team in 12 meets, will see the inside of Cadet West Gym for just two.

LAST TIME OUT: Brennan Wolford picked up a pair of top-10 event finishes, while Tyler Sickles and Jacob Schonig each earned one, as Air Force finished third at the Sooner Triangular on Jan. 20. As a team, the Falcons scored a season-best 180.950 to take third at the tri-meet of Mountain Pacific Sports Federation teams. Top-ranked Oklahoma easily won the meet with a team total of 213.200, while No. 10 Nebraska placed second with a score of 203.300.

AWAY FROM HOME: Brennan Wolford posted the Falcons' best individual event finish of the afternoon, scoring a career-high 8.550 on the floor exercise to finish seventh. He also picked up a ninth-place score on the vault with an 8.200. Competing in his first collegiate road meet, Wolford improved his personal-best scores in five of the six events, while improving three points in the all-around to finish second with a total of 44.350.

LEADING THE WAY: During the team finals of the Rocky Mountain Open, Tyler Sickles posted the best finish of the night for Air Force, collecting an 8.500 on the high bar to finish third. That score was just .300 shy of the event's winning mark.

ADD `EM UP: The seven Falcons that advanced to the RMO event finals are the most during this decade. Prior to this season, the last time Air Force advanced more than two athletes was at the 2002 meet.

THREE-THIRDS: Air Force picked up three third-place finishes at the Rocky Mountain Open event finals. Brennan Wolford posted a career-best 8.200 on the floor exercise to tie for third. Garrett Canter matched his personal-best 7.600 on the pommel horse to take third in that event, while Jacob Schonig tied for third on the still rings with an 8.400.

GETTING OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT: The Falcons' score of 175.300 from the team finals of the Rocky Mountain Open was a five-point improvement over last season's opening meet tally.

NATIONAL NOTICE: Junior Greg Stine was invited to participate in the prestigious Winter Cup Challenge this February, USA Gymnastics announced on Jan. 10. Stine is just the third Academy gymnast in the history of the program to participate at the nationally-recognized meet, which will help determine the U.S. Senior National Team.

COMING UP: After a week off from team competition for the Winter Cup Challenge (Feb. 8), Air Force and Army will face each other once again. The two squads will join Navy at the Service Academy Classic in San Francisco, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 17.