UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The incredible freshman season for Trevor Howard continued last weekend when he placed 19th in the all around competition at the US Gymnastics Winter Cup and on Monday (Feb. 11) he earned his fourth Big Ten Freshman of the Week award of the season for that performance.
In just his fourth weekend as a college gymnast, Howard has claimed the top rookie honors each week in the Big Team and picked up the College Gymnastics Association Gymnast of the Week award last week.
He boasted a 19th place finish in the all around at the US Gymnastics Winter Cup, which is a qualifying event for the US Senior National Team, and was one of two freshman to claim a top-20 finish in the rigorous competition. His top-20 finish made Penn State the only school/organization with three competitors in the top-20 of the all around at the Winter Cup.
Howard scored 81.400 in the finals of the all around after posting a tally of 79.850 in the prelims. He claimed three top-10 individual event finishes and added one top-15 finish, as well. The freshman tied for fifth in the floor exercise (14.550), placed seventh on the parallel bars (14.350), tied for eighth on the vault (14.500) and placed 12th on the still rings (14.300).
Penn State has won the Big Ten's Freshman of the Week award 14 times since the distinction was installed during the 2010 season, which is the most in Big Ten history. Howard is the fifth Nittany Lion to earn the award on multiple occasions and sixth overall to win the award, both the most of any Big Ten institution in men's gymnastics. With four weekly top rookie distinctions, Howard is now tied for second in Big Ten history, trailing only C.J. Maestas of Illinois who won six during the 2012 campaign.