The Michigan Daily- Sports Monday - February 1,1993- Page 7 Undefeated women tumblers destroy Illinois Young 'M' tumblers show strength in loss by Thom Holden *Daily Sports Writer The Michigan women's gymnas- tics team took on the Fighting Illini of Illinois Friday night at Cliff Keen Arena. All the Wolverines did was break two team records and one in- dividual record en route to a 191.75- 181.15 thrashing of Illinois. What a difference a week makes. Last week, the Wolverines, while performing very well on the vault and uneven bars, committed several mental errors on the floor exercise. Not so this week. "We needed for this to go well, to reinforce what we've been telling them, about how good they are and what they're capable of," Michigan coach Bev Plocki said. Michigan began the evening on a record-breaking pace, posting a 41.70 (a team record) on the vault. The vault was more than just one person posting one high score. This was a case where everybody pitched in. Led by rookie Wendy Marshall's 9.65, no Wolverine turned in a score of less than 9.50. Consistency, some- thing Michigan had been striving for, was found early, and carried on throughout the meet. The uneven bars were the next event of the evening. As on the vault, no score came in under a 9.50. All-American Beth Wymer led the way with a 9.85, followed by sophomores Wendy Wilkinson and Li Li Leung both notching 9.60. Af- ter two event, the Illini had become a non-factor, falling behind the Wol- verines 95.75-90.20. Michigan performed well on the beam, scoring an impressive 47.50. Then the fun began. Wymer broke the individual school record on the floor exercise with a 9.90, leading the Wolverines to a 48.50. Senior Ali Winski, with several very strong tumbling runs, lit up the scoreboard with a 9.80. Three of the four events showed no scores under a 9.50. Wymer, though pleased with her performance as well as the team's performance, said she was not totally satisfied. "We can do much better," she said. "We plan on breaking the school record over and over again" Plocki agreed with her All- American. "Once they set their minds to it, this is what they're ca- pable of and more," Plocki said. "This team has the possibility of be- ing big." When the dust had settled, Michigan had not only improved the record to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the Big Ten, but had also broken its overall team record of 191.70, which it had posted at the 1992 Big Ten Championships. When asked if her team has a shot of making the NCAA tourna- ment, Wymer confidently replied, "Most definitely." by Brian Hillburn Daily Sports Writer HEATHER LOWMAN/Daniy Bob Young negotiates the pommel horse in Saturday's meet against Illinois. "Who are these guys?" Illinois men's gymnastics coach Yoshi Hayasaki asked Michigan coach Bob.. Darden. The answer to the question is Raul Molina, Bob Young, Chris Onuska, Rich Dopp, and Mike Mott. Last Saturday, these gymnasts and other Wolverines squared off against the Fighting Illini in Ann Arbor. Even though Michigan post- ed its highest score of the season, the team did not walk away with a 'w', but lost by three points. The Wolverines' score of 270.3 continues their streak of improve- ment from meet to meet. In their first meet of the season, the Wolverines scored 256. They followed that performance up with consecutive scores of 259 and 268. "One of our goals has been to improve in every meet," Darden ex- plains. "But it's going to get tougher and tougher." Although the Illini ultimately won the meet with a score of.273.4, Michigan's coaching staff was not concerned with the loss, because the team is presently focusing on the NCAA regionals. Making it to re- gionals is accomplished by averag- ing the Wolverines' top three scores of the season, so winning a meet is secondary to scoring well. Should the Wolverines perform as they did this weekend, they will most likely get the high scores they desire. "The guys are getting better. They're performing better and im- proving the level of their routines," Michigan assistant coach Mike Milidonis said. Leading the pack is sophomore Molina, who tied Illinois' Sean Henderson for first place in last Saturday's all-around competition with a 54.65. "He's taking his level of perfor- mance to a new level," Darden said of Molina. "He's hit six of six for the last two meets." "That's like batting 1.000 in baseball for two weekends," Milidonis explained. Of the four Wolverines among the top performers this weekend, three were underclassmen. Junior Mike Mott won in the pommel horse event and came in second in the vault. Sophomore Rich Dopp finish- ed second on the horizontal bar.- Freshman Young came in second in the still rings and fourth in the all- around and rookie Chris Onuska. finished third in the parallel bars. "Mott won for the last two weeks," Darden said. "He can be A national finalist." "His routine is as difficult as" anyone's in the country," Milidonis added. The coaching staff is especially proud of the team's high scores be- cause most of this year's roster is made up of underclassmen who are working under the new rules and codes passed by International Feder- ation of Gymnastics. "They're competing very smart Darden said. "We're working with the code, trying to maximize a gym- nast's individual efforts. We're able to cut our losses by going to the smart cover-ups. It's damage con- trol-that's the sign of a mature team."- This weekend the Wolverines drew close to 1,150 people at Cliff Keen Arena, which the coaches are" quick to point out is the highest spectator draw at any Michigan non- revenue sport. They attribute the, high turnout to people realizing that they have an opportunity to see some of the future stars in men's gymnas- tics. "We have some of the best emerging gymnasts in the country," Darden said. "Some of the athletes here are going to be in international competitions." Injury-riddled spikers split a set in West Lafayette by Erin Himstedt Daily Sports Writer Plagued by injuries and personnel changes, a struggling Michigan men's volleyball team managed to return from West Lafayette with a victory and a defeat. The Wolverines defeated Wisconsin in five games, but fell to Purdue in only four during a tri- match at Purdue Saturday, bringing their record to 3-4. Three team members could not attend the event due to conflicts and injuries, and three others played with ailments. Another three players re- cently left the team, necessitating a second team try-out last week. Such difficulties hindered the young team's cohesiveness. "We weren't deep (this weekend) in terms of our bench. We haven't played yet with a full team this year," sophomore captain Stan Lee said. "Once we figure out who's go- ing to play where, we can start to get it together as a team." Wisconsin, although considered to be one of the weaker teams in the Big Ten, surprised the Wolverines with its improved play. This devel- opment, combined with sluggish play from Michigan, allowed the Badgers to capture the second and third games of the match. "We didn't play as well as we could have. I don't think we were mentally prepared for the game be- cause they weren't a very intense team last year; they didn't have that competitive spirit." Lee said. At this meeting, the tables were turned. Michigan's greater talent should have allowed it to defeat the Badgers in three or four games, but its lack of intensity stretched the match to five. "I don't know why, but we started real slow," Wolverine co- coach Pam Griffin said. "It should never have been a match that went five games." Sophomore Paul Kosir agreed. "We were a lot better team than Wisconsin; we proved that in the first game. We slowed down, play- ing to the level of our competition. The enthusiasm wasn't there. Everyone was pretty quiet on the floor; no one was really pumped up. We knew we would win, so it was just a matter of time." Immediately following their vic- tory over the Badgers, the Wolverines faced a strong Purdue team. Although Michigan charged forward to capture the first game, the Boilermakers then responded by winning the next three in a row. Griffin said the team unraveled because it abandoned its game plan. "We had restructured our hitting and defense for Purdue from the last time. In the second game they forgot all that. It was a combination of that and people being sore and tired. Purdue is just a better team. They had us beat in every position." The Boilermakers often earned points due to Michigan mistakes. "One of the main factors was that we weren't consistent; we had a lot of unforced errors. We should have taken it more to them. We didn't give ourselves a chance to play at their level." I SPR ING BR EAK at the Sandpiper-Beacon Hotel on beautiful Panama City Beach, " 650' Gulf Beach Frontage .2 outdoor/1 heated indoor pool " Sailboat, Jet Ski & Parasailing * Color cable TV, gameroom * Tiki Beach Bar, Volleyball For reservations call tol-free now: i i i i i 1 i LA RAZA firmuta Sports Nutrition & Body Building Products z - ' Natural Body Care Products Vitamins & Minerals WEST Come and enjoy Ann Arbor's Best Chinese Restaurant 2161Stadium 769-5722 P4 0~ 00 II Chicano History Week 1993 Feb. 2 - Feb. 11 Tues. Feb. 2, Keynote Address. 8:00 p.m. Trotter House. 'The Future of Empowerment of the Chicano and Latino Community" Keynote speaker, Mr. Andy Hemandez - Southwest Voter Registration Education Project Understanding our Indigenous Heritage Today "Achievements of Indigenous People in 1992" speaker, Huetochtli, Cristino Perez, Aztec Spiritual Leader I w t r i f! A Michigan's Kelly Carfora performs on the balance beam last weekend in a meet against Illinois in Cliff Keen Arena. 1677 Plymouth Rd. 665-7688 Located in the Courtyard Shops North Campus Plaza 10 I eutfStu ns s ae COW University of Michigan Winter Blood Drive The American Red Cross is in dire need of your blood. The sick andinjured of Southeastern Michigan are depending on U-M students. Giving blood is easy and takes less than an hour. Please take time to give the gift of life- PLEASE DONATE BLOOD! (Note: You are eligible to donate blood every 56 days) M Feh 1 Mnrth Camnus Commons 12-5:30 pm Fri. Feb. 5 1iGran Baile!! join us and dance to some super hot Mexican Rhythms "EL GRUPO ESTILO" (also hear Salsa, Merengue, Reggae, and Rap during breaks) Thurs. Feb. 11. "Yo Soy Chicana" 7:00 p.m. Nat Sci. Aud. Chicana Perspectives through Film and Poetry "How else Am I Supposed to know I'm Still Alive" "Tanto TIempo" Induding discussion with Ms. Cheryl Quintana Leader, director of "Tanto Tiempo" Presented by: The Socially Active Latino Student Association (SALSA) Sponsored by: The University of Michigan Office of Minority Affairs FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION CALL: 763-9044 OR STOP BY: Minority Student Services, 2304 Michigan Union -rWe encourage all people to join us to celebrate Mexican-American history i