Stanford sophomore Asher Hong rode a first-place effort on the vault to a slim lead over Yul Moldauer in the men’s all-around competition at the USA Gymnastics Championships on Thursday in San Jose, Calif.
Hong has 85.615 points, just ahead of the 85.548 of Moldauer, the 2017 national all-around champ and a 2020 Olympian. The University of Michigan’s Fred Richard is in third at 85.469. Hong’s Stanford teammate Khoi Young sits in fourth at 84.781, and Richard’s Michigan teammate Paul Juda holds fifth at 84.352.
The men’s competitors will go through another rotation on Saturday, and two-day total scores will determine the all-around and event winners.
Hong posted a 15.455 on the vault, with Young placing second at 15.402.
Former NCAA pommel horse champion Stephen Nedoroscik, a Penn State alumnus, produced a 15.457 score on his featured event. Patrick Hoopes is in second at 14.522.
Curran Phillips, a Stanford alumnus, is on top in the parallel bars thanks to a 16.147. Moldauer logged the second-best score on the parallel bars, 15.805.
Hong’s overall score was hampered by a 21st-place score on the floor exercise due to a fall. Young topped the field on the floor at 14.650, with Shane Wiskus in second at 14.600.
Donnell Whittenburg leads on the rings at 15.261, with Hong next at 14.999.
Richard is the horizontal bar leader at 15.105, well ahead of Michigan teammate Crew Bold, who is in second at 14.005.
The women’s competition, featuring former Olympic all-around gold medalists Simone Biles and Suni Lee, runs on Friday and Sunday.
–Field Level Media