As a Division III school competing against some of the giants of the country, that has not stopped the Springfield College men’s gymnastics program from achieving unprecedented success. Last April, the Pride competed in the NCAA National Championships for the third straight season, and they will look to make it four this season.
Led by head coach Matthew Davis, the Pride are already the only Division III program to compete in the National Championships multiple times.
The Pride had three student-athletes last year compete in the individual championships as well. Peyton Cramer finished fifth on the pommel horse at the meet, earning the program their first All-American honor in a decade. He was joined by Owen Carney, who competed in the vault and Evan Reichart on the floor exercise.
Cramer and Reichart will be two players that are key to the Pride’s success. They were both first-years last season, and with a year of collegiate experience to their names, they will be poised to collect some more local and national recognition.
Cramer was also the ECAC Rookie and Specialist of the Year last year for his dominance on the pommel horse, and he will look to improve on the fifth place national finish.
Carney is a two-time individual finalist now and enters his junior season. He is one of two captains on the team, along with senior Carter Cochardo.
Carney’s classmate Will Wilson is poised to also have a big year, with his emphasis being on the rings. Along with Cramer, Wilson was nominated for the CGA All-Star meet on Jan. 3, 2025, and is hoping to enjoy a breakout season kicking off with that meet.
Senior Noal Dhaliwal is another key contributor to the team, as are his classmates Cochardo and Felix Kriedemann. Junior Tyler Beekman also finished fourth on the parallel bars at the ECAC Championships last season.
The Pride did lose some talent, notably the reigning ECAC Men’s Gymnast of the Year Sam Kaplan. Kaplan announced his intentions to transfer to the University of Illinois, a men’s gymnastics powerhouse. Dominic Ramalho and David Handron also used up their eligibility, but the Pride’s returners and newcomers should be able to fill some of the gaps left behind.
They will kick off their season over the winter break with trips to West Point, N.Y. and Annapolis, Md. at Army and Navy, respectively. They have three home meets this season, against Michigan and Army on Jan. 25, William & Mary on Feb. 16 and they host Simpson on March 16.
Their season concludes with the USAG Championshis and ECAC Championships in late March and early April, before possibly a fourth-straight trip to the National Championships after that.
Photo courtesy of Springfield Athletics.