Men's Gymnasts of the Week – March 22-23, 2024

Gymnast of the Week awards are given by conference offices and the College Gymnastics Association.

Gymnast of the Week
Josh Karnes – Penn State
See below for accomplishments.

Rookie of the Week
Luke Esparo – Penn State
See below for accomplishments.

Specialist of the Week
Brandon Deng – Illinois
See below for accomplishments.

Gymnast of the Week
Josh Karnes – Penn State

• Claimed his fourth parallel bars victory with a 14.650 in Saturday’s loss to No. 4 Illinois
• Finished second on the vault (14.650) and third in the floor exercise (13.900) and high bar (13.700)
• Garners his sixth career Gymnast of the Week award and fourth of the season

Specialist of the Week
Brandon Dang – Illinois

• Scored a 14.750 on the pommel horse to win his sixth title of the season, helping the Illini clinch a share of the 2024 Big ten title
• Earns his third Event Specialist of the Week honor

Freshman of the Week
Luke Esparo – Penn State

• Scored his fourth still rings victory of the season with a 14.150, as No. 6 Penn State fell to Illinois
• Earns his third Freshman of the Week award

Co-Gymnasts of the Week
Sam Kaplan – Springfield
Kaplan finished as the national runner-up in the all-around competition at the USAG Collegiate Championships at Air Force over the weekend as he delivered a 77.5500, the highest mark of any of the ECAC competitors.

Matthew Petros – Navy
Petros had a standout multi-event performance at the USAG Collegiate Championships this past weekend as he suited up on four events for Navy in Friday’s team event and qualified for the event finals in three (VT, PB, HB.) On Friday, he placed first on parallel bars at 13.85, tied for first on the vault with a career-high 14.7 and ranked fifth on the high bar with a 13.4 score. On Saturday, he garnered silver medals in all three event finals, including just a 0.05 margin in the vault finals (14.4.)

Specialist of the Week
Samuel Smith – William & Mary
Smith was medically released from ACL repair on Monday and competed on Friday. He qualified to event finals and earned career high score with a 13.60 on pommel horse and USAG All American honors.

Rookie of the Week
Landon Benas – Greenville
Benas had a great day to lead Greenville to the podium at the USAG Collegiate Championship. He hit 4/4 and made finals on 3/4 events at his first ever USAG’s. On the second day, Landon secured All American Honors on pommel horse (3rd, 13.95) and parallel bars (6th, 13.6). both personal records.

Gymnast of the Week
Oliver Zavel – Air Force
Air Force senior Oliver Zavel (Austin, TX) had a stellar performance at the USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships (Mar. 22-23) team event, claiming first place in the floor exercise (14.150) and first on the still rings (13.350). His floor score was a season-best. Zavel also reached the podium on the parallel bars, placing second with a 13.800. He continued his exemplary performance in the individual event, claiming the floor title with 14.150 to tie his season-best. He earned his second All-America honor on the vault where he finished fifth with 14.300. Zavel’s effort helped the Falcons to a season-best 401.650.
This is the first career MPSF weekly award for Zavel.

Specialist of the Week
Patrick Hoopes – Air Force
Air Force junior Patrick Hoopes (Lehi, UT) rose to the top at the 2024 USA Gymnastics Collegiate National Championships, earning a title in both the team event and individual finals (Mar. 22-23). The highlight for Hoopes was breaking his own pommel horse Academy record, scoring a 15.400 to claim first-place with the nation’s second-highest score this year. In the individual event, Hoopes continued his dominance, winning the pommel title with an impressive 14.950 to earn USAG All-American honors. Hoopes’ effort helped the Falcons to a season-best 401.650. This is the second career MPSF weekly award for Hoopes.