After taking first place in the Massachusetts Invitational on Dec. 3, Men's Gymnastics Coach Randy Jepson and his team are confident as they travel to West Point, N.Y., this weekend.

Penn State will meet Temple, Syracuse, Massachusetts, Navy, Army, William and Mary, host West Point and others at 7 p.m. today and tomorrow.

The West Point Open is a competition for college and club teams. Today is the team competition. The top eight finishers in each event will compete in the individual finals tomorrow.

For Penn State, this meet is a stepping stone toward the dual-meet season. This contest will give the Lions a competitive opportunity as well as a chance "to see where we are" compared to other teams, Jepson said.

Last year, the Lions finished sixth in the NCAA championships. In the West Point Open last year, they took second place with a score of 272.75.

"Our strength this year is that we have a lot of depth," said senior captain Dave Riordan. "Last year, we had to worry about whether the person up before you would hit their routine, so it put a lot of pressure on the upcoming people . . . we've got a lot more consistency (this year)."

Junior Tony Pansy is expected be in the lineup in several events. At the Massachusetts Invitational, he took second place in the all-around with a career-high score of 56.5.

Senior Mark Cooper excels in the floor exercise and high bar. In the NCAA regionals last year, he took third place with a 9.75 on the floor.

Sophomore Tom Ellefson's best events last year were the parallel bars and high bar. He came in second on the high bar with 9.75 at the regionals last year.

In preparation for this weekend, the team focused on being more consistent and increasing the difficulty in some routines.

Also, the Lions have been working to stick dismounts and eliminate little steps and walks that could be crucial in their score, Riordan said.

The other teams have been preparing in similar ways.

"If we all hold together, we should be solid in this meet," Syracuse Coach Walt Dodge said.

Returning Orangemen are senior Craig Holt, who made nationals on rings last year, junior Ofri Porat and senior Richie Keunzler.

Jepson thinks that this meet will be a two-team race, pitting Penn State against Temple. In the Massachusetts Invitational, Penn State beat Temple by five-hundreths of one point.