WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah – Rising sophomore Isaiah Drake of the Navy gymnastics team turned in a standout performance on the national stage this past weekend at the 2022 U.S. Classic and earned himself the opportunity to advance and compete again at the 2022 U.S. Championship in Tampa, Florida on August 18-21. Drake recorded a pair of top-10 event results, while claiming a third-place finish in the all-important 10-point standings at the Maverik Center on Sunday.
 
One of 47 elite junior and senior gymnasts from across the nation at the event, Drake's focus was squarely on obtaining one of the top-six scores in a unique 10-point program and grabbing a berth for the upcoming U.S. Championship. Over the six rotations on Sunday, Drake was at or near the top of nearly all of his events netting 13.65 points on the floor exercise, 11.05 points on the pommel horse, 13.3 points on the rings, 14.2 points on the vault, 13.6 points on the parallel bars and 13.05 on the high bar. His rings and high bar routines each placed him 10th overall in the field, while his vault was 12th best and his floor and p-bar outputs ranked 14th overall. Those five results helped Drake earn 33 points in the 10-point scoring system to finish third behind Penn State's Matt Cormier and Olympian Donnell Whittenburg, who posted scores of 48 and 42, respectively.
 
Additionally, Nebraska's Taylor Christopulos, Ohio State's Kameron Nelson and Stanford's Blake Sun received qualifying bids to the U.S. Championship later this month in Tampa.
 
"The coaching staff is very proud of Isaiah's performance this past weekend against the top gymnasts in the country," remarked head coach Kip Simons. "Qualifying for the U.S. Championships, while completing his summer military training requirements took a tremendous amount of grit and determination. The coaches have seen growth in Isaiah both as a midshipman and as an athlete which will serve him well with the demands of our mission here at USNA.
 
"Having our program represented at the U.S. Championships is another step in building a national caliber program."
 
Drake will be back in action at the 2022 U.S. Gymnastics Championships in Tampa, Florida, August 18-21.