Army West Point Athletics
Gymnastics Tops MIT, Falters Against Springfield
March 17, 2008 | Men's Gymnastics
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. The Army gymnastics team finished second at a tri-meet with Springfield College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on Sunday afternoon at Springfield’s Blake Arena. Senior Mike Assenmacher won two events, while sophomore Ty Smith tallied Army’s best all-around score with an 82.400 to finish third overall.
No. 17 Springfield upset the No. 16 Black Knights (2-9) to avenge an Army win on Senior Day just eight days ago at Gross Sports Center at West Point, N.Y. Army went 2-1 against Springfield this season and faced MIT for the first time this year.
Springfield finished with a score of 338.300, edging Army (336.400) by a slim 2.100 margin. MIT rounded out the tri-meet with a 325.300 on the afternoon.
Assenmacher highlighted Army’s performance, as the Milford, Mich., native won the floor exercise (14.950) and the vault (15.650). He enjoyed a solid performance as one of Army’s top all-around gymnasts by finishing fourth in the pommel horse (13.450) and fifth in both the parallel bars (13.700) and the high bar (13.950).
Smith compiled Army’s highest all-around score with an 82.400 to finish third among the meet’s competitors. Springfield’s Josh Spencer (83.500) and MIT’s Boris Rasin (82.850) took first and second, respectively, in the all-around scoring. Smith registered a 13.400 on the pommel horse to tie for fifth and also wound up in a tie for third on the high bar with an even 14.000. He matched teammate Justin Sappington on the high bar.
Army had two other winners on Sunday afternoon, as sophomore Jon Grey was tops on the parallel bars (14.050) and senior Tim Burns won the high bar (14.800).
Sunday marked Army’s final tri-meet of the season. The Black Knights return to action with the College Nationals, which are hosted by Springfield, March 28-29. That will be the team’s final tune-up prior to hosting the ECAC Championships at West Point, April 4-5.
Players Mentioned
