The Simpson College men’s gymnastics team had a standout performance in their home opener against the Naval Academy. Although the final scores tell a different story, the Storm clenched four event titles and a school record.
The first rotation began with Simpson on floor and Navy on pommel horse. The Storm started strong with Christopher Duane’s 13.100 high score, and he and Jake Smith added a stick bonus to the leaderboard. After swapping for the second rotation, William Bacus claimed a 12.050 high score for the Storm on pommel horse. Though Navy led at this point in the meet with 100.500, the Storm followed close behind with 97.950.
Athletes were on still rings and vault in the third and fourth sets. Brian Rollison claimed first place in the still rings event, scoring 13.500, and all four Storm gymnasts in the event lineup earned a stick bonus. According to Simpson College athletics, Braxton Jones won his first collegiate event title on vault while simultaneously breaking the school record with a 14.350 score.
“My first thought was disbelief,” Jones said. “I really surprised myself by putting up a score like that.”
Jones is already making big moves in his first season at Simpson, having been named ECAC Rookie of the Week and earning Routine of the Week after sticking a Kas 1-1/2 on vault in his second collegiate meet ever.
“The Kas is a very mental skill for me that I’ve struggled with a bit throughout pre-season,” Jones said. “These past couple of months leading up to the season, I’ve built up my confidence with the skill, so I was fairly confident going into the meet that I would land the vault and help the team.”.
Simpson moved to parallel bars, and Navy moved to high bar for the second to last rotation. The 2024 parallel bar USAG All-American, Alex Catchpole, took home the first-place title, scoring 13.250 in the event. Catchpole and Paul Tiedemann also added a stick bonus to their scores, giving the Storm the opportunity for a comeback in the final rotation.
“My favorite thing about having a home meet is that we’re competing in our own space and on our own equipment. We’re used to how it feels, and the atmosphere is very calming,” Catchpole said.
In the sixth and final rotation of the night, Jake Smith tied with Navy’s Isaiah Drake to claim the first-place finish on high bar for the Storm, sticking his routine landing and scoring 13.000. Even with a strong finish, Simpson ended with a total score of 297.750, falling to Navy’s 306.350.
The Storm will compete next in a triangular against the Oklahoma Sooners and the Michigan Wolverines on Feb. 15 in Norman, Oklahoma.
