Most people visit Las Vegas to indulge in gambling in the hopes of winning large sums of money. However, for four members of the No. 1 Penn State men's gymnastics team, their gambles would yield vastly different rewards, notably four spots on the U.S. Men's National Team.
On Friday and Saturday, seniors Matt Abboud and Kevin Donohue, junior Kevin Tan, and freshman Luis Vargas, along with Penn State men's gymnastics coach Randy Jepson, traveled to "Sin City" to take part in the annual Winter Cup Challenge in The Sports Center.
In addition to competing against 100 of the nation's top gymnasts, the meet offered the Lions the chance to impress national judges before this summer's world championships in Anaheim, Calif.
"This meet offered us the chance to make a statement to the rest of the country and to the national judges," Jepson said. "We were able to come out and show that we are a good team and it was really good for us to get two guys up there today and have good outings and show what we are made of."
On Friday night, the gymnasts competed in two different sessions, with the top eight in each event advancing to Saturday night's event finals. During the qualifying round, Donohue earned a 9.150 on the floor, good for fourth place, and a 9.400 on vault to tie for first and advance to the next night.
In addition, Donohue finished ninth overall with a 51.600, improving two spots from his placement a year ago. A crucial error on the high bar, where he is currently ranked first in the country, and a fall on pommel horse doomed Donohue's chances of earning a national team berth.
"(Kevin) Donohue had a good outing for the most part," Jepson said. "He did have those two misses but other than that I think he can be right up there with the nation's best if he cleans up those little errors."
Tan scored a 9.525 for first place on the rings and a berth in Saturday night's competition. The other Lions, however, were not as fortunate, with Abboud and former Lion Adam Benas failing to advance.
For Vargas, the stakes were of a different kind entirely. Without U.S. citizenship, and having represented his home country of Puerto Rico in international events such as the Pan American Games, he was forced to compete in an exhibition meet of sorts, with none of his scores counting toward the competition.
During the event finals, Tan continued his hot streak by taking the still rings title with a 9.25, an improvement from his bronze medal of a year ago.
Additionally, Donohue ended the competition with an 8.150 on floor, good for eighth place, and a fourth-place showing on the vault with a 9.275, missing the bronze medal by .025.
"In order to be fully competitive with the top guys in the country, we need to get more skills and higher start values in our routines," Jepson said.
"We have good routines but need to learn to do them day in and day out and develop an even better sense of consistency to fully reach the top of the sport."
Now, after an up-and-down weekend, the Lions will return home with medals and experience in hand to prepare for the remainder of their season and to ensure that all of their future gambles will pay off.
