FORT WORTH, Texas – Just six days after securing a win in the 2026 Star Meet over Army, the Navy men's gymnastics team added to its tab of service academy conquests this season as the Mids pulled off a dramatic 0.05-point victory over the Air Force Falcons at the three-team All-Academy Championship. Hosted as part of the Horton Challenge at the Fort Worth Convention Center, the Mids edged the Falcons in as close of a margin as you can have in the sport, 310.15 to 310.10. The Black Knights were slightly off the pace and came in third at 301.60 on Friday night.

The team victory was the first for Navy at the All-Academy Championship since 2022 as Air Force had captured the three most recent titles.

Junior Benjamin Thurlow Lam (San Francisco, Calif.) led a standout floor exercise performance by Navy as he placed first in the event with a career-high score of 14.0. Matthew Petros (Sr., Broadview Heights, Ohio) also turned a strong individual effort as he tied Army's Nick Lester for the title of best vault on Friday night. Additionally, Colby Prince (Sr., Lithia, Fla.) and Daniel Gurevich (Jr., Frisco, Texas) tied for runner-up honors on the floor exercise, the same as Garrett Lawless (Sr., Grimesland, N.C.) on the rings and Boone Washburn (So., Lake Oswego, Ore.) on the high bar.

As a team Navy scored 55.45 points on the floor exercise, 51.5 on the pommel horse, 50.15 on the rings, 54.35 on the vault, 49.4 on the parallel bars and 49.3 on the high bar. The Mids' combined efforts on the floor and p-bars were new season-highs.

"This was one of the greatest wins that I've been a part of in the last 20 years of my coaching career," exclaimed head coach Kip Simons. "There was so much pride on the line with all three of the academies firing on all cylinders. We weren't perfect and made a few mistakes, but we at the end of the day we found a way to get the win.

"I'm so happy for Boone Washburn to hit the routine of his life on the high bar to secure the win for Navy. It was a total team effort out there tonight; we need everyone to pull out the win by the slightest of margins. I can't tell you how proud I am of this team!"

Similar to last weekend's Star Meet versus Army, Navy set the tone for the competition with a dominant turn by its floor exercise team. One week after sweeping the top four positions of an eight-man field versus the Black Knights with a then- season-high score of 54.25, the quartet of Thurlow Lam, Prince, Gurevich and team captain Danilo Viciana (Sr., Marietta, Ga.) surpassed that combined total by 1.2 points as once again they swept the top of the leaderboard. Thurlow Lam was nearly perfect with a 9.1-point execution score plus a 0.1-stick bonus of his routine that had a 4.8-point start value. His 14.0 score was severely challenged by Prince and Gurevich who also posted career-best results of 13.95 on Friday night. Viciana completed the clean sweep with a 13.55-point effort. The next closest competitor was Army's Thomas Morrow and his 13.45 score.

Navy kept up its fast start with a solid effort on the pommel horse that was led by Jonah Soltz' (So., Tacoma, Wash.) 13.4-point score that ranked sixth overall. Gurevich was one spot back in seventh with a respective score of 13.05.

The Mids continued to hold a lead over the Falcons and Black Knights going into the third event, the rings. In his first All-Academy Championship, Lawless performed the best routine of his career earning 12.9 points and tying for second overall with Air Force's Jared Fry. Julian Galvez (Jr., Burtonsville, Md.) made it two Navy gymnasts in the top five as he posted a 12.7 result that ranked fifth in the field of 12.

After losing a bit of their advantage over the previous two events, the Mids out-scored their opponents on the vault to increase their lead once again. A deep and consistent approach by Navy saw three of its gymnasts finish among the top six. Petros led the way as he tied Army's Nick Lester with a score of 13.85. Gurevich continued his strong multi-event effort as he finished in a draw with Air Force's Jared Fry in third at 13.7. Brian Solomon (Jr., Lynnfield, Mass.) rounded out the trio with a 13.55 mark that left him sixth in the standings.

Petros and Solomon headlined Navy's results on the parallel bars as the duo placed fourth and sixth respectively with scores of 13.05 and 12.75. Petros' outcome was a season-high for the senior as his previous best in 2026 was a 12.2 last week versus Army.

With the Falcons nearly pulling even with the Mids, the sixth rotation was where the championship would be decided. One week after a disappointing personal result in the Star Meet, Washburn played the role of hero for Navy as he turned in a crisp, clean routine that netted the Mids 13.25 important points. Individually, that left Washburn just 0.1 points shy of Air Force's Tai Gopaul, who claimed the event win at 13.35. Petros concluded his strong day with a fifth-place score of 12.35.

Navy will be away from team competition for two weeks as the 2026 Winter Cup national meet lies ahead next Friday and Sunday for Brian Solomon in Louisville, Kentucky. The next time the full squad will be in action is Saturday, February 28 in Champaign, Illinois in a tri-meet with the University of Illinois and Greenville. First touch is scheduled for 2 p.m.