The NCAA men's gymnastics championships will get under way Friday, with two Flames taking center stage in prime time.

Sam Montague and Kaleb Booth will compete in the evening session.  Each is a first-time qualifier for nationals.  They qualified as individuals; Montague in the all-around and Booth on floor exercise.  Starting at 7:00 pm, their session will be the second of two qualifying sessions.  Each session will send the top three teams, and the top three individuals (not on a qualifying team) in each event, to Saturday's finals.

Montague and Booth discussed their preparations and expectations for nationals with UICFlames.com:


Montague qualified for nationals with an average of 74.163.  His high score of 76.900 was recorded in a tri-meet with Cal and Oklahoma.  Montague also set season highs on pommel horse, parallel bars, and high bars in the same meet March 23.  He will encounter the Sooners again Friday, as he will rotate with the four-time defending national champions. 

Montague is the Flames' first all-around qualifier since 2015.

Booth had a 13.538 national qualifying average on floor.  Once he got his bearings at the beginning of his freshman season, he was a model of consistency.  In UIC's last six meets, he scored over 13 each time, peaking with a 13.950.  He will perform on floor with Illinois in the third rotation.

Booth is UIC's first freshman to qualify for nationals since 2012.  He is also an alternate in vault.

A dedicated live stream will be in place for each event, allowing fans to ensure they don't miss a single routine.  A seventh, whiparound stream with commentary will also be available.  Links to all streams, as well as live scores, are in the blue box above.