Week 6 2026 CGA Power Rankings & Recap

By Peri Goodman, Isaac Erickson, Shannen Horan, and Peter Hristozov

Week six was filled with nail-biting finishes, debut performances, and program firsts. The All Academy Championships were the highlight of the weekend with all three academies competing for bragging rights and hardware. In the Big Ten, a lot of experimental lineups were used, giving some underclassmen and unfamiliar faces the chance to shine and gain experience. The Simpson Storm are showing their improvements, with standout performances and results against their quad competition against William and Mary, Greenville, and Nebraska. Lastly, it's almost Winter Cup weekend, meaning one step closer to post season for these collegiate teams. Many past, current, and future NCAA gymnasts will be competing in Louisville this weekend for those coveted national team spots. 

HOT TAKES

Week 6 meet recap

All Academy Championships

The All Academy Championship was filled with excitement, drama, and fantastic gymnastics performed by Navy, Army, and Air Force down in Dallas, Texas. Air Force won the last three All-Academy Championships in a row, so the Falcons came in confident and poised to defend their title. The Navy Midshipmen took the title by the narrowest of margins after all scores were tabulated. Navy won with a 310.150 to Air Force's 310.100. What made the whole situation more dramatic was that the judges initially gave the title to Air Force, but after a judging error the scores were changed, and the victory ultimately went to Navy. The Midshipmen began their competition on the floor exercise, where they set themselves apart from Air Force and Army. Navy scored a giant 55.450, highlighted by Benjamin Thurlow Lam, who displayed beautiful combination passes and a stuck double pike dismount for a 14.000. Teammates Colby Prince and Daniel Gurevich were right behind, both scoring 13.950’s. Navy captured the win on high bar with Boone Washburn and his 13.250, placing him second in the event. Washburn's routine demonstrated great amplitude with his Piatti release and a double-twisting double layout dismount. Airforce began their competition on the pommel horse, a difficult place to start, but they excelled greatly and came out swinging. Seniors Sam Brown and Jack Matlock set up the Falcons with momentum moving forward in the competition with a 14.300 and a 13.800, respectively. Air Force won multiple event titles, including a 13.350 on high bar from Tai Gopaul with a Yamawaki-to-Gienger combination and a stuck triple back dismount that electrified the arena and had Air Force fans on their feet. Sophomore Jack Foltyn had an outstanding competition, winning the rings with a 13.150 and the parallel bars with a 13.500. Foltyn was able to stop the bleeding on parallel bars with a few errors early in the lineup with a clutch set, demonstrating difficult underbar elements and a clean double pike dismount. Lastly, Jared Fry was a major contributor to the Falcons' team score, with an overall score of 78.700, the highest of week six. Fry placed third on high bar and parallel bars with a 13.200 and a 13.250,  respectively. Fry also placed second on the still rings with a 12.900. The Army Black Knights had a solid competition, but some large errors, most notably on the parallel bars, kept them out of contention for the title. The Black Knights finished the competition with a 301.600. Junior Nick Lester stood out on the vault with an explosive and clean Kasamatsu full, scoring a 13.850 and tying for the vault title. Maddox Pabellon put on a masterclass on the pommel horse to the tune of a 14.300, sharing the event title with Air Force’s Sam Brown. 

Wintercup Preview

USA Gymnastics’ Winter Cup kicks off the 2026 season on Saturday, February 21, in Louisville, Kentucky. With National Team berths on the line, these 27 college athletes are looking to secure a spot on the roster and qualify for the 2026 Xfinity U.S. Gymnastics Championships. Here is who you should be looking out for:

Illinois: The Fighting Illini will be sending a trio of gymnasts to Winter Cup: Tate Costa, Preston Ngai and Garrett Schooley. Schooley is competing in the Winter Cup senior division for the first time and his vault is a must watch. Ngai finished just outside the podium last year on pommel horse and will look to climb into the top three this year. 

Michigan: Four current Wolverines are set to compete in Winter Cup: Carson Eshleman, Charlie Larson, Aaronson Mansberger and Frederick Richard. 2024 graduate and assistant coach Crew Bold will also be competing. Eshleman will compete on floor, rings, parallel bars and high bar, Larson will compete floor and vault, and Mansberger, who is currently ranked second in the NCAA on the event, will compete on pommel horse. Richard will compete in the all-around and hopes to bring home the gold after finishing second last year. Bold will take the floor, parallel bars and looks to defend his title on high bar. 

Navy: Junior Brian Solomon is representing the Naval Academy at Winter Cup. He was a 2025 NCAA Championship Event Final Participant in the all-around and looks to represent the Navy and ECAC well. 

Nebraska: Nebraska will have two current and two former Huskers competing in Kentucky: juniors Alex Nitache and Max Odden and 2025 graduates Taylor Christopulos and Chris Hiser. Nitache is a must-watch on floor and you won’t want to miss Odden’s high bar routine. Christopulus was the 2025 Winter Cup all-around bronze medalist and is looking to stay on the podium this year. 

Ohio State University: The Buckeyes are sending five athletes to Winter Cup this year: Drake Andrews, Kristian Grahovski, Jesse-Lee Pakele, David Ramirez and Parker Thackston. Thackston will only be competing on pommel horse while the rest will be competing in the all-around. Ramirez is currently ranked second in the NCAA in the all-around and Andrews is ranked in the top-10 on parallel and high bar. 

Oklahoma: Oklahoma is only sending three athletes: redshirt senior Fuzzy Benas, freshman Sasha Bogonosiuk and freshman Nathan Roman. Coming off a third in the all-around and vault at the 2025 U.S. Championships and being on the National Team last year, Benas is looking to make it back for the 2026 season. Bogonosiuk has experience as part of both the junior and senior National Team and is currently ranked third in the NCAA in the all-around and on vault. Roman is tied for first in the NCAA on parallel bars, and will be one to watch on that apparatus. 

Penn State University: Junior Landon Simpson will be representing Penn State at Winter Cup. Simpson is currently ranked eighth in the NCAA in the all-around and 11th on parallel bars. 

Springfield: Junior Kaleb Palacio is the lone qualifier from Springfield College. He had a standout sophomore year and is hoping to continue that momentum into Winter Cup. 

Stanford: Stanford is bringing the most college athletes to Winter Cup with seven: Arun Chhetri, Zach Green, Jun Iwai, Cooper Kim, Kiran Mandava, David Shamah and Kai Uemura. Shamah and Kim will be vying for an all-around title as 2023 graduate Riley Loos looks to defend his title on floor, rings and in the all-around.

Watch the Winter Cup Senior Men at 7:00 EST p.m. on the USA Gymnastics YouTube channel. 

William & Mary, Simpson, Greenville at Nebraska

It was an exciting quad meet in Lincoln, with Nebraska hosting a trio of ECAC teams at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. Nebraska took the title with a 319.650, which was their highest team score of the year so far. The Cornhuskers swept all six event titles, with standout performances in all lineups. Alex Nitache performed his floor routine with confidence and style, sticking his full twisting double layout pass and his full twisting double tuck dismount for a 13.850. One of Nebraska’s leaders, Nathan York, showed off on the pommel horse with good single pommel work, travel elements, and a beautifully executed dismount that scored a 14.000. Asher Cohen displayed great variety in his ring routine with a difficult back-uprise inverted cross, leveled maltese positions, and a nicely done double twisting double tuck dismount for a 13.650. Cohen also took the parallel bars title with a 13.650 after a clean and precise performance. Freshman newcomer Ty Roderiques had a memorable moment sticking his Kasamatsu 1 ½ vault, creating excitement amongst the crowd and his Husker teammates. Junior Max Odden put on a high bar masterclass with a gigantic Liukin release and a stuck double twisting double layout dismount. Greenville took second with a 309.400, claiming their highest team score of the season so far. Logan Watterson had a great performance on the vault, taking second by the most narrow of margins. His clean Kasamatsu 1 ½ vault earned him a 14.150. Kyler Hinson placed top three on the parallel bars with solid upper bar work and a double front dismount, earning him a 12.900. Hinson competed in the all-around for the Panthers, scoring a 76.650. Andres Esquivel-Garza also had a great performance on the pommel horse, earning him a 13.500 for third place. This was a huge milestone competition for the Simpson Storm, with it being their first team win in program history. The Storm placed third with a 298.950, defeating William and Mary’s 296.050. Simpsons' competition was highlighted by their 53.000 event score on the vault, where Braxton Jones and Jake Smith both put up solid Kasamatsu 1 ½ vaults, scoring a 13.800 and a 13.750, respectively. Brian Rollison also had a great performance on the still rings, placing second with a 13.550. Rollison had great strength positions and ended the routine with a tucked double twisting double tuck dismount. William and Mary struggled in spots throughout the meet, most notably on pommel horse and parallel bars, but their highlights came from floor exercise and vault. On floor exercise, the Tribe scored a 52.700, highlighted by Luke Tully’s 13.400. Tully also had great performances for the Tribe on vault and high bar, where he scored a 13.550 and a 13.450, respectively.  

Springfield and Arizona State at Michigan

Michigan hosted a tri-meet with Springfield and Arizona State on Saturday, earning a dominant win and its second-highest season score of 318.700. The Wolverines controlled the meet early, leading by nearly six points after the first rotation, and continued to grow the lead after each event. Michigan ended the night with four event titles and multiple season and career-highs. It was a battle for second between Springfield and Arizona State, but a huge 53.800 from the Pride on vault for the last rotation gave them the silver with 302.450 and ASU came in third with 300.000. 

Michigan started strong on floor, with freshman Eli Osuna putting up a career-high 13.500 and junior Charlie Larson anchored the rotation with a jaw-dropping season-high 14.100 that also secured him first place. Springfield’s junior Evan Reichert and senior Will Wilson put exclamation points at the end of their routines by sticking their final passes and taking the rest of the podium with a 13.900 and 13.650, respectively. The Wolverines swept on pommel horse, with sophomore Aaronson Mansberger clinching first with a 13.850 after a solid, clean routine, followed by Blixt’s 13.800 and senior Zach Grandos rounded out the podium with a 13.400. ECAC gymnast of the week Blaise Rousseau showed why he earned this honor, showcasing his strength on the rings to win the event with a 13.850. Despite a short handstand and large hop on his double double dismount, Michigan junior Will Young posted a career-high 13.350 that placed him second and senior Robert Noll was not far behind with a 13.30. The Wolverines had a huge vault rotation, earning a 56.050 team score that helped them widen the scoring gap to 14.5 points. They swept the podium again with Larson’s yurchenko 2 ½ scoring a meet-high 14.200, while freshman Adam Lakomy and Chase Pappas went back-to-back 14.050 on their Kaz 1 ½, a career-high for Pappas. Arizona State’s Elliot Foster took the gold on parallel bars with a clean, solid routine that went 13.550. Rousseau’s high-flying routine was close behind with a 13.000 and Blixt’s season-high 12.950 gave him the bronze. Even after posting its lowest event score of the day, Michigan still maintained a 16-point lead over second with only one rotation left. Michigan closed out the meet with a bang, sweeping the podium high bar. Noll led off with a season-high 13.900, and Eshleman followed with a beautiful routine and triple back dismount that gave him a career-high and winning performance of a 14.200. Despite a fall after catching too close on his stalder Tkatchev, Blixt still claimed third with a 13.000. 

Confrence outlook

Big Ten

Michigan and Nebraska competed in week six for the Big Ten, both coming out on top in their respective competitions. Neither Michigan nor Nebraska put out their top lineups, but they still put up very competitive and respectable scores. Carson Eshleman’s difficulty on highbar is exciting as Michigan moves throughout the season, trying to finalize their lineups. Eshleman’s half Tak to Liukin connection, double flipping releases, and a huge triple back dismount will be interesting to follow as he gets more opportunities and repetitions. Another noteable stand out from the Michigan lineup that is going to be exciting to follow is Aaronson Mansberger, and his consistency on the pommel horse. Mansberger is currently ranked second in the nation on pommel horse with a 14.100 average. What stood out from the Nebraska quad meet was the incorporation of a lot of the new freshmen in the Nebraska lineup. Head coach Chuck Chmelka seemed to give his newcomers the opportunity to represent the scarlet and cream for the first time. Rome Whimpey, Grant Bowers, and Ethan Cox all made their debuts for the Cornhuskers. Performances from leaders such as Nathan York, Asher Cohen, and Max Odden will continue to be important for the Huskers as they move on throughout the season. 

MPSF

The only representative of MPSF to compete in week six was Air Force. The Falcons had their strongest and most consistent competition of the season so far at the All Academy Championships. This is very promising for Josh Loeser and his team, and it shows that the increases in difficulty are paying off as they move closer to the postseason. Senior Sam Brown claims MPSF Specialist of the Week honors after a stellar performance anchoring his team on the pommel horse. Sophomore Jared Fry won MPSF Gymnast of the Week after a 78.700 all-around performance, contributing greatly to the Falcons’ team score. After being asked about the competition, Senior Air Force gymnast Denis Iriemiea stated, “It was a heartbreaking loss, but we will be back and will improve our team's score by points come USAG’s”. The academy rivalries are always suspenseful and exciting to watch throughout the season, so it will be exciting to see how the three teams will look come postseason, and as we see potential rematches at USAG’s and NCAA’s.

ECAC

After Week 6, ECAC teams delivered statement wins, career-best performances, and momentum-shifting results as the conference builds toward Winter Cup and the championship push in April. From the All-Academy Championships to key non-conference matchups, programs across the conference showed both individual firepower and meaningful team progress. At the All-Academy Championships, Navy captured the team title behind a dominant floor rotation that separated the Midshipmen from the field and secured academy dominance. The win provides a major confidence boost and reinforces Navy’s standing among the service academies heading into the heart of the season. Army West Point produced some of the meet’s top individual performances, led by Nick Lester. Competing on three events, Lester posted a 13.200 on floor exercise, a 13.850 on vault, and a 13.450 on parallel bars. After previously missing a lineup spot against Navy on floor, he responded with a career high on the event, another vault title, where he now ranks second in the ECAC, and a career-best on parallel bars to finish second, just 0.05 out of first. Assistant Coach Jake Bonnay highlighted Lester’s resilience and impact while noting continued areas of focus. Speaking on parallel bars and high bar, he emphasized that while progress in practice has been evident, the lineup must come together to hit 8-for-8 without major errors. Those events will be critical in Army’s campaign to return to the NCAA Championships in April. Army’s strength on pommel horse was also on display as Pabellon scored a 14.3 to take second place. West Point currently ranks third nationally on pommel horse heading into Winter Cup, solidifying the event as a cornerstone for the program. Springfield faced a tough road test against Division I No. 3 Michigan. While the team score reflected a lower-scoring weekend, the Pride secured impressive individual results. Evan Reichert delivered a 13.9 on floor to place second, and Blaise Rousseau captured event titles on rings and parallel bars against the nationally ranked Wolverines, showcasing Springfield’s ability to compete for top spots against elite opposition. In Nebraska, Greenville and Simpson joined William & Mary for a competitive tri-meet. Kyler Hinson led Greenville by winning the all-around against Michigan, demonstrating consistency across six events. The Panthers finished second overall, continuing their steady climb. Simpson produced one of the weekend’s most significant results, defeating Division I William & Mary by two points. The win marks Simpson’s first victory over a Division I program, a milestone for both the program and the CGA’’s new program initiative. The result also shifts the national rankings, with Simpson moving to No. 14 ahead of William & Mary at No. 15. With Navy claiming academy honors, Army delivering standout routines, Springfield earning event titles against top-tier competition, Greenville maintaining momentum, and Simpson securing a historic win, the ECAC

After Week 6, programs across the country have hit their stride, competing multiple times, breaking program records, and producing historic results. The weekend was highlighted by Navy winning the All-Academy Championship in dramatic fashion, edging the field by just 0.05 in one of the tightest finishes of the season. Simpson also made national headlines with its first-ever victory over a Division I program, a milestone moment for the newest NCAA team. The national rankings saw movement across the board. Cal jumped two spots to move ahead of Navy, while several teams shifted slightly as scores begin to tighten midway through the season. Simpson climbed to No. 14 following its landmark win over William & Mary, and Air Force rose to No. 11, motivated after a tough All-Academy battle. Attention now turns to Winter Cup in Kentucky, where athletes from every program will compete for a place on the U.S. National Team. The field features veterans such as Yul Moldauer, Frederick Richard, Shane Wiskus, and Riley Loos, alongside a wave of first-time senior competitors. Gymnasts will be vying for national team selection and qualification to the American Cup, which will follow the mixed-team format set to mirror the 2028 Olympic structure. Winter Cup begins February 20. Fans can follow the competition live on the USA Gymnastics YouTube channel as the next phase of the season unfolds.

Week SIX Schedule:

All Times EST.

Saturday, February 21st

1:00 p.m. - Army @ Simpson

7:00 p.m. - Winter Cup @ Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville, Kentucky