Shorthanded Cardinal Drops Opener
STANFORD, Calif. - Opening the season without nine gymnasts on Wednesday morning, Stanford totaled a team score of 306.650 in a virtual meet against William & Mary. The Tribe managed a team score of 379.950 to post the victory.
The Cardinal entered the meet limited to just five competitors in five of the six events, but senior Andrew Bitner was unable to continue in the meet following his floor routine in the first rotation – leaving Stanford with just four scorers in four of the final five rotations.
Freshman Brandon Nguyen performed well in his collegiate debut, hitting on all six events to total a 78.050 and win the all-around competition. The native of Elk Grove, Calif. turned in a 14.600 on vault – second only to Curran Phillips' career-best 14.950. Nguyen's stuck 12.750 was a team-high on still rings as the Cardinal managed a 61.650 in the rotation.
Junior Blake Wilson captured one event title, posting a 13.650 on floor to claim top honors. Senior Blake Sun also managed one victory, delivering a 14.650 on parallel bars.
Stanford will continue the season with a second virtual meet on Saturday, meeting California at 4 p.m. PT on virti.us.