With an off-season that included several injuries and a mid-semester coaching change, the men's gymnastics team began its 1992 campaign with several question marks.

However, many of those questions were answered this weekend, as the Lions collected 272. 6 points en route to a second-place finish at the two-day West Point Open in West Point, N.Y. Temple took first-place honors with a score of 275. 6 while Iowa placed third with 269. 4.

"We were very rough," Coach Randy Jepson said. "We had 14 major breaks. We are where I expected the team to be. We had a long fall with a lot of injuries and I am encouraged by what I see right now."

Senior Adam Carton, who is recovering from a shoulder injury, led the Lions with a 9.55 second-place finish on the horizontal bar, a 9.55 third-place finish on the vault, and a 9.5 fifth-place finish in the floor exercise.

"Overall, everything was OK except for the horse, which was a disaster." Carton said. "The shoulder is starting to come around, but I am not in performance shape yet."

Senior Mike Reichenbach captured first place on the rings with a 9.8.

"I felt good going into the meet," Reichenbach said. "The meet showed us what we need to work on in the coming weeks. It was a good start. A lot of injuries are starting to heal and the team is coming together."

Newcomer Mark Cooper, despite a slight break, placed seventh in the vault. All-American Mark Sohn, who graduated last year, captured the gold medal on the horse in the open competition.

Jepson's squad has two weeks of practice until its next outing, a Jan. 25 date at Navy. In those two weeeks, Jepson will prepare his team for a busy two months of meets.

"We are trying to maintain some consistency and build to regional, Big Ten, and NCAA championships," Jepson said. "Even though we were rough, I know that as we progress we will be a force to reckon with. This is the healthiest we have been all season and this is the time that you need to be healthy."

The 1992 Nittany Lion schedule includes five meets against Big Ten foes. In mid-February, Penn State hosts a strong Ohio State squad that is returning all of its members from last year's team. On Feb. 22, the Lions travel to Illinois to face a team which, Jepson said, is always well prepared.

"The Big Ten is nice because it is basically our regional competition," Jepson said. "Temple is really our only threat outside the Big Ten."

Penn State will face Temple again on Feb. 28 in Rec Hall.