CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois is serving as the host site for the 2026 NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championships, which will run from April 17-18 at State Farm Center.
The Illini, the No. 7 seed in the competition, will take part in the second session of qualifying on Friday at 7 p.m. CT. The Illini will look to advance to Super Six as they compete alongside No. 2 Michigan, No. 3 Stanford, No. 6 Penn State, No. 10 Navy, and No. 11 Army.
LAST TIME OUT
No. 7 Illinois secured a third-place finish at the Big Ten Championships in Lincoln, Neb.
The Fighting Illini scored a 316.700, finishing ahead of No. 5 Ohio State (314.800) and No. 6 Penn State (310.850).Â
Based on their performances on Friday, Hasan Aydogdu, Tate Costa, Brandon Dang, Logan Myers, Preston Ngai, Sam Phillips, Garrett Schooley, and Dylan Shepard all advanced to Saturday's individual event finals. Â
Brandon Dang highlighted the Big Ten Event Finals for Fighting Illini men's gymnastics as the junior three-peated as the conference's pommel horse champion. Dang turned in a season-best 14.850 on pommel horse in the last routine on the apparatus to secure the event title.
Dang became the fourth Illini in program history to win three Big Ten pommel horse titles, joining an elite group that includes Daniel Ribeiro (2008, 2010-11), Ben Newman (2003-05), and Harry Koehnemann (1939-41).
Garrett Schooley joined Dang as a First Team All-Big Ten honoree, while Sam Phillips earned Second Team All-Big Ten accolades.
On vault, Schooley continued his strong weekend with a 14.025 on the apparatus, which helped him take the silver medal. Sam Phillips secured a share of the silver medal on horizontal bar with his 13.800.Â
Illinois has now claimed at least one gold medal at the Big Ten event finals in 23 consecutive meets. The Orange and Blue have owned the league's top spot on the pommel horse for each of the last four seasons and 39 times total.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS INFO
Friday: Qualifying Session II
Still Rings //Â Vault // Parallel Bars // Horizontal Bar // Floor // Pommel Horse
Saturday: Super Six/ Individual Event Finals
The top three teams and the top three all-around competitors not on one of the qualifying teams, plus the top three individuals on each event not already qualified on a team or as an all-around competitor, will advance from each qualifying session to the championships finals.
Five Illini Earn Six CGA Regular-Season All-America Honors
The Illini saw five student-athletes secure CGA Regular-Season All-America status following their rankings in the final regular-season Road to Nationals rankings.
Illinois at the 2025 NCAA Championships
The Fighting Illini placed third in a field of six at the NCAA Championships Qualifiers to advance to the Super Six Finals. Illinois' final score of 323.194 defeated Ohio State, Army, and Navy for the final qualifying spot.
Advancing to Super Six, the Illini secured sixth place with a score of 316.293.
Preston Ngai earned All-American status on pommel horse and all-around. He finished fourth on pommel horse with a 14.100, while his 81.298 on all-around placed fourth.
Garrett Schooley claimed bronze on vault, placing third with a score of 14.533. Amari Sewell's 14.366 was good for seventh. Both scores qualified for All-America honors.
NGAI NAMED B1G GYMNAST OF THE WEEK (MARCH 3)
Fighting Illini junior Preston Ngai was named Big Ten Men's Gymnast of the Week following his standout performances against Greenville and Navy, the conference office announced on Tuesday (March 3).
Ngai secured two event titles during Illinois' tri-meet win, claiming individual triumphs on still rings and vault.
On rings, the Elk Grove, California, native anchored the Illini lineup, using a 13.750 to secure the event title.
After the meet reached the halfway point, Ngai's 14.350 on vault was good for his second title of the afternoon and his first on the apparatus this season.
Ngai became the first Illini gymnast to win a weekly conference award this season, while it marked the second Big Ten Gymnast of the Week honor of his career.
