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The following year Barry began getting more success in recruiting athletes and this was important because after the 1992 season Barry lost Scott Green, Steve Runyon, Eric Smith, and Darian Turk to graduation. Gymnast recruited during this time were Jeremy Baryza, Brycen Counts, Ryan Dermody, Brian Fox, Steven George, Jason Melbourne, James Guay and Scott Wong. These were all talented gymnast, but many lacked competitive recognition. This season was an improvement from the 1992 season as the Bears finished with a 16-7 record and qualified Jason Bertram for the Pommel Horse, where he finished 2nd, and James Guay for the All-Around.
The recruiting done for the 1994 season was a very successful one. Barry recruited highly recruited athletes such as David Kruse and Andrew Mason, both were recruited heavily by schools such as Penn State and Stanford. Other gymnast recruited at this time were Allan Fusilero, C.J. Faust, Trent Wells, Tabor Cowden (Penn State transfer), and Justin McCue. Along with the recruits from the previous year and the veteran all-arounders such as Steven George and James Guay and senior Evan Richmond, the team looked as if it could possibly find a berth at the 1994 NCAA Championships. However, due to injuries the Bears had a rough season. The bear's strongest all-arounder, James Guay, suffered from a stressed sternum, and Steven George suffered from ankle injuries. The team finished that year with a 20-11 record and placed fifth at the Conference Championships. Gymnast Trent Wells, David Kruse, Andrew Mason, and Jason Bertram all qualified for the NCAA Championships as individuals . Jason Bertram was the first gymnast since Randy Wickstrom to win an NCAA Championship.
After the 1994 season Barry Weiner aggressively recruited some of the top recruits in the country. Puff Sincharoen, a five year veteran on the Junior National Team, Josh Birkelbaw, 1994 US National Junior Champion, Jeff Stein, National team member 1993, Josh Landau, Chris Toy, another five year veteran of the Junior National Team, and 1993 Junior National Champion Tim Dalryple. All the gymnast that he recruited came to Cal except Tim Dalryple who went to Stanford. The Cal team now had depth and some of the most talented gymnast in the U.S.. At the beginning of the season the Bears defeated the Defending National Champions, Stanford, at Harmon Gym. Many people felt that Stanford won the meet and bais played a factor, so the bears went to Stanford a few weeks later and tied them on their home court. A few weeks after that at the Santa Barbara Invitational the Bears defeated the 1991 NCAA Champions, Nebraska, and other very strong teams such as Ohio State and New Mexico.
These competitions were extremely significant, the Bears hadn't defeated Stanford or Nebraska in many years, these meets gave the impression that Cal would qualify for the NCAA Championships. However, at the NCAA Regional Championships the Bears would be denied from the NCAA Championships finishing fourth by less then .20. The Bears were in first place after four events and felt that they were assured a spot into the NCAA's. However, in their last event slight mistakes and judging bias' were factors that the Bears felt were the reasons for their defeat. The bears felt as if they were cheated out of the final meet. Although the Bears did not qualify as a team many individuals qualified such as David Kruse, Trent Wells, and Josh Birkelbaw.
The 1996 season has seen many glimpses of excellence. Barry recruited a highly recruited athlete by the name of Alex Chansky, the Bears are much more competitvely mature and wiser about competitions, and physically the bears have never looked better. This year's team is one of the nation's best, and if the Bears can keep healthy and stay focused the 1996 season should be a success.
Copy by Allan Fusilero
