GymACT 2026w5 Review: Revving it up
- Breeze
- 27 minutes ago
- 9 min read
Recap Week 5 (Feb 2-8)
Stick Masters - team stuck landings
From the coaches - updates from individual GymACT programs
College bound camps - East and West Summer Camps
Gymnast of the week 5 - nominations and selection
In the media - what the world has to say about us
Connecting the Dots - way less than 6 degrees of separation
Up next: upcoming meets
Be still my little gymnastics-loving heart!
What an amazing weekend of competitions we had in Week 5: Temple’s 100th Year Celebration; All 5 highest team scores of the YEAR happened in the same weekend; two STRONG rivalry meets; the closest to a tie of any meet in GymACT history. YES!!!!
Temple’s 100-year Birthday celebration was nothing short of spectacular. This year’s Fred Turoff Invitational took place at the Temple University's historical McGonigle Hall, and hosted 5 GymACT teams. The energy was INSANE!
This humble gymnastics fan had 5 separate streams up at once on the living room TV screen, it felt like championship day! OOOOHhhhh there was SO much great gymnastics at once it was riveting! All teams put out great performances. Most notably, the rivalry of Arizona and Minnesota, meeting for the first time this year on neutral ground and leaving it all out there on the competition floor.
This time Arizona came out on top with the highest team score of the year, so far: 312.2. Minnesota made a few critical mistakes, but still put out a respectable 307.85 (2nd highest in the country - nothing to scoff at). Temple gave the home crowd a great showing. Many alumni came out to celebrate a century of Temple men’s gymnastics and witnessed their beloved owls reach their best team score so far, securing the 3rd team position that evening. What a party.
Meanwhile, Washington took to the arena against the Bandits in their traditional Co-Ed Dual-Meet (Husky's D1 women's team competed against Illinois). The GymACT teams were on HOT, neck and neck to the last man! And in the end, “W” is for Washington, who after 30 routines managed to nudge past the Bandits by 0.15 for the win; WOAH! A win by the hair on their young coaches’ chinny-chin-chin! The Bandits go home knowing they had their best season score so far AND room for improvement before their next meet. What a meet!
So, here are the CURRENT standings:
Week 5 Top Average Team Scores (compared to week 4)
1. Minnesota, 299.483 (still on top)
2. Arizona State, 298.313 (up from 3rd)
3. Bay Area Bandits, 292.917 (down from 2nd)
FX: Arizona State, 51.267 (still tumbling on top)
PH: Washington, 50.783 (still swinging on top)
SR: Minnesota, 50.683 (still strong on top)
VT: Georgia United, 53.650 (still soaring on top)
PB: Minnesota, 48.950 (up from 3rd)
HB: Bay Area Bandits, 50.633 (still the highest bar)
Week 5 Top Ranked Individuals:
All Around: Troy Holman, SC United (76.350); Ben Letvin, Minnesota (up 74.300); William Pearce, Bay Area Bandits (down 73.850)
FX: Nicky Franz, Arizona (14.250)
PH: Aidan Myers, Arizona State (13.075)
SR: Owen Frank, Minnesota (13.250)
VT: Ben Letvin, Minnesota (14.100)
PB: Elliot Foster, Arizona State (13.700)
HB: Jack Gagamov, Minnesota (13.275)
Full GymACT rankings available at Road To Nationals: https://roadtonationals.com/results/standingsGA/
That’s it for now from the gymrat’s den,
Breeze
STICK MASTERS
🏆Rocky Mountain Mavericks: 8 + 5 on PH
Minnesota: 6 Sticks for the team at Temple; 5 sticks for the team in Colorado
From the Coaches
MINNESOTA
This was a huge weekend for Minnesota as we broke our team into two teams that travelled in two different directions. Team 1 attended the Fred Turoff Invite at Temple University in Philadelphia and Team 2 attended the Extreme Altitude Invite held in Lafayette, CO. Both teams had exciting competitions with Team 2 edging the Rocky Mountain Mavericks by a mere 2 points. It came down to the last event where Minnesota had a razor slim margin of 0.5 points going into that last event. Minnesota prevailed and our floor team was able to beat the Mavericks by a mere 1.5 points to seal the victory by 2 points.
The atmosphere at McGonigal Hall was electric as Temple was celebrating their 100th year of existence! The stands were packed with alumni and gymnasts and parents from the Invitational held earlier in the day.
The meet was outstanding with Minnesota and Arizona State duking it out throughout the night. The lead changed hands several time and going into the last event of the night, Minnesota held a small 1.5 point lead over the Sun Devils. ASU finished on FX and Minnesota finished on PH. Needless to say, the small lead was eaten up and ASU went on to earn the hard fought victory over the Gophers by the score of 312.2 to 307.85. Both teams had their highest scores of the season and the energy in the gym was fantastic.
Temple finished in 3rd with 295.70 and Indy-Hio was a close 4th at 292.50. New York Alliance took 5th with a 264.25 and the Mid-Atlantic Rockets finished a respectable 6th with a team score of 241.45.
MAVERICKS
A Weekend to Remember at the Colorado Xtreme Invitational
This past weekend, the Rocky Mountain Mavericks were proud to host the Colorado Xtreme Invitational, and what a weekend it was. With 350 junior boys athletes competing across Levels 3–10, the gym was buzzing from morning to night with high-level gymnastics, big skills, and even bigger energy. From the youngest competitors stepping onto the floor to seasoned Level 10s pushing the limits, the future of men’s gymnastics was on full display.
Saturday night brought the spotlight moment everyone was waiting for—a prime-time feature matchup with the Mavericks hosting the University of Minnesota. The atmosphere was electric as fans packed the gym to watch two strong collegiate programs go head-to-head. The Mavericks rose to the occasion in a big way, posting the top score on four of the six events:
• Pommel Horse – Rayne Henriquez
• Still Rings – Gavin Robey
• Vault – Jackson Korowin
• Parallel Bars – Clark Warrener
These performances showcased not only individual excellence, but the depth, preparation, and competitive fire of the Mavericks as a team.
After the competition, we had the pleasure of hosting both teams’ athletes, coaches, friends, and families for a great night of food and community at local favorite Cosmo’s Pizza. It was a perfect way to cap off a special evening—bringing everyone together to celebrate the sport we love.
Thanks to the incredible support of everyone who attended throughout the weekend, the Mavericks also raised an additional $1,400 from donations, T-shirt sales, and raffles, directly supporting the continued growth and success of our program.
From packed sessions and prime-time performances to community connection and meaningful support, the Colorado Xtreme Invitational was everything we hoped for—and more. Thank you to all the athletes, families, coaches, officials, and fans who made it such a success. We’re already looking forward to the next one. 💪🤸♂️
Check out the MAVS on Instagram to stay up to date! @rockymountainmavs
Visit our website to know everything about our team! https://www.rockymountainmavs.com
Donate to our cause! https://givebutter.com/rockymountainmavs
GymACT Socials:
Keep an eye on our social media channels as we get closer to Championship Season!
IG: @gymact
FB: @GymACTeams
YT: @GymACT
EAST AND WEST CAMPS
2026 WEST GymACT Conference College Bound Camp
When: Friday - Sunday, June 19-21, 2026
Where: Xtreme Altitude Gymnastics
1405 South Public Rd • Lafayette, CO 80026
2026 EAST GymACT Conference College Bound Camp
When: Friday - Sunday, July 17-19, 2026
Where: Kids First Sports Center
7900 E. Kemper Road • Cincinnati, OH 45249
Register now and guarantee your spot!
Gymnast of the Week 5
Nominees
Ben Letvin - Minnesota
Ben has been a solid force for the Minnesota Team this season and he was victorious in the All Around at this weekend's Fred Turoff Invitational at Temple University. Posting his season high score of 75.25 to edge out his teammate Peter Davis-Ross, Ben posted some highlight-reel performances including a 2nd place finish on the Vault. His signature layout Kas 1 1/2 was an exercise in immaculate form in the air, followed by a near stuck landing. Ben also posted season high scores on Pommel Horse (12.25) and High Bar (12.70) on his way to the All Around Title in a hotly contested matchup with some of GymACT's top teams in the country. Ben continues to lead the Minnesota team as the 2026 campaign heats up as we move into the heart of the regular season.
Rayne Henriquez - Mavericks
This week’s Gymnast of the Week nominee is none other than Rayne Henriquez, and the recognition is well earned. As a freshman, Rayne has wasted no time making his presence felt, quickly solidifying himself as the rock of our pommel horse lineup.
At the Colorado Xtreme Invitational, Rayne delivered when it mattered most—winning the pommel horse event title as part of the Mavericks’ 100% HIT horse rotation. Calm, consistent, and confident, he set the tone for the event and showed exactly why the team trusts him in key moments.
For a first-year athlete, Rayne’s poise and reliability are exceptional. He competes with maturity beyond his years and continues to raise the standard every time he steps on the horse.
This is just the beginning. There is a lot more to come from this young man, and the future on pommel horse is bright with Rayne leading the charge. Congratulations, Rayne, on a well-deserved nomination! 💪🤸♂️
Amir El-Moslemany - Temple
In his first home meet as a freshman, Amir El-Moslemany demonstrated remarkable mental fortitude and resilience on vault.
During the one-touch, his hand slipped which caused him to flop his vault. Moments later, in his saluted competition vault, chaos struck again. A gymnast on floor went out of bounds and crossed dangerously close to the runway, forcing Amir to abort his run mid-stride and resulting in a second missed attempt, and another flop.
Two vaults. Two disruptions. Most athletes would feel rattled.
Amir walked back to the start of the runway, took a moment to reset, and refocus. With the pressure at its peak, he sprinted down the runway once more and delivered. Amir exploded off the table with a powerful front handspring Rudi, landing with confidence and finishing with only a small hop. This clinched the bronze in a tough competition.
Izaiha Mlay - Arizona
Izaiha Mlay delivered a clutch performance, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two sticks to help lead Arizona State to victory and set a new team season high. His first-place finishes on both vault and high bar produced the highest scores of the season across all GymACT athletes. Mlay also provided stability on parallel bars with a solid routine that helped steady a shaky team effort and get the Sun Devils back on track.
IN THE MEDIA:
TEMPLE’s 100!!! - News SO good, it’s worth keeping it for another week!
The Temple Men's gymnastics program is celebrating its 100th year in existence. But at one point, that existence was looking bleak. The program lost all of its funding and had to transition to a club sport. So much respect for the athletes!
Watch the video: https://www.instagram.com/p/DUTSEqBjJrb/
CONNECTING THE DOTS (Temple edition):
It was great to come back to McGonigal Hall where I had the good fortune to compete when I competed for Penn State in e1977 and again in 1979 we made the trek from State College, PA to Philadelphia to compete against Fred Turoff's temple squad.
-Mike Burns, Minnesota
Army, incidentally ALSO celebrated their 100 year history of gymnastics team this year.
THIS humble gymrat came from Brazil at the ripe young age of 14 to train at Gymnastrum with Joe Stallone (and Mike Burns) for the high school years. I WANTED to go to college at Temple as it was the closest school to me in Bethlehem, PA that had a gymnastics team. Fred Turoff graciously responded to my recruitment letter stating they did not have any scholarships available that year. So I ended up going to BYU under the tutelage of his contemporary, Mako Sakamoto (the two had a LOT of history and friendly rivalry). We did compete against Temple a number of times in my college career, but Fred ALWAYS greeted me warmly and kindly. I DO think what would have been if I had stayed “local”, alas. Things turned out ok for us all and the gymnastics world keeps on spinning in spite of BOTH programs having been cut from their D1 Athletic departments. Congratulations, Temple. 100 years of competitive history is a heck of a milestone. If I feel pride to have ALMOST been an alumni, I can only imagine what the ACTUAL team members must be feeling.
-Breeze
Up Next:
Minnesota will be hosting the MN GymACT Invitational on Saturday, February 14th at 6:20 pm in Humboldt High School in St Paul. Iowa, KC and NIU will be competing in the GymACT session.
Week 6 GymACT Competition Schedule
Saturday, February 14
MN Gym ACT Invite: Minnesota vs. Iowa, KC United, Northern Illinois