Jan. 30, 2008
The Air Force men's gymnastics team will head to the East Coast this weekend for a pair of dual meets. The Falcons will first meet up with service-academy rival Army on Friday, Feb. 1, in West Point, N.Y., before traveling to Springfield, Mass., on Sunday, Feb. 3, for a competition with Springfield College.
Meet Notes 03: at Army; at Springfield 
WE'LL BE SEEING YOU
The Falcons and Black Knights will face off again on Feb. 17, when they join Navy at the All-Academy Championships in Aliso Viejo, Calif. Air Force will also return to Springfield on April 18-19 for the USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships.
LAST TIME OUT
Increasing its season-best totals in three events, Air Force tallied a season-high 323.650 to finish third at a triangular meet with No. 3 Oklahoma and No. 10 Nebraska on Jan. 20. The Falcons increased three team totals, including an impressive jump of nearly three points on the high bar (52.450). Air Force also increased its vault total by two points (60.200), while upping the tally on the parallel bars (53.850).
KLIMKOWSKI'S CLIMBIN'
Daniel Klimkowski had a strong showing in his first collegiate road meet. Picking up four top-10 finishes, Klimkowski improved his career-best marks in every event, including a 6.35 increase in the all-around. Scoring a combined score of 80.800, Klimkowski finished fifth in the all-around. He also picked up a fifth-place standing on the floor exercise, where he paced the Falcons with a score of 14.200. In addition, he earned a 10th-place score of 13.350 on the high bar.
SCHONIG EARNS CGA HONORS
Jacob Schonig was named the "USAG Division" Gymnast of the Week by the College Gymnastics Association (CGA) for the week ending Jan. 14. The award, which is voted on by the men's gymnastics coaches, is the first such career honor for Schonig. He joined Stanford's David Sender, who earned the award for the "NCAA Division".
A NEW SCORING SYSTEM
Beginning with the 2008 season, collegiate men's gymnastics will use a new scoring system, reflecting recent scoring changes adopted by the Federation of International Gymnastics. Each gymnast will begin with an initial 10 point start value. The start value will be increased up to 2.5 points for fulfilling event requirements, and the judges have discretion to add bonus points according the difficulty of the 10 most difficult skills in the routine. The 10 initial points, combined with the points for event fulfillment and bonus points, will determine the gymnast's final start value. From there, the judges will deduct from the final start value for errors in the routine to determine a gymnast's final score.
HOME SWEET HOME?
Home may be where the heart is, but it is a place where you won't find the Falcons during much of the season. Air Force will be predominantly a road team this season, competing at the Academy on just two weekends. Following the Rocky Mountain Open, Air Force will be at the Academy on March 7-9 for a pair of dual meets with Illinois-Chicago.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN...
Air Force seniors Brian Boardman and Kevin Murphy will serve as co-captains for the 2008 men's gymnastics team. This is Boardman's second season to hold captaincy, while it is Murphy's first. It is the 10th time in the Falcons' 52-year history that a pair of gymnasts has shared the honor of team captain.
WHAT'S AHEAD FOR THE FALCONS
The Falcons will be off next weekend, before traveling to Aliso Viejo, Calif., on Feb. 17, for the 2008 All-Academy Championships. Air Force will compete against its service academy rivals from Army and Navy.
