4 - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, January 31, 1994 With small steps, women tumblers continue climb to top By MELANIE SCHUMAN DAILY SPORTS WRITER Since coming to Michigan, Coach Bev Plocki has taken the women's gym- nastics team from the basement of the Big Ten to one of the elite teams in the country. But.if you had foretold the future when she arrived in Septemberof 1990, you may have been dismissed as an-, other employee of the Psychic Friends Network. In order to carry the program uR through regional and national rankings; Plocki -now Michigan's winningest women's gymnastics coach -optedto take baby steps. Even with her success, maintaining a realistic set of goals is the key to victory: Greeted by a team whose commit- ment and basic performance level were at best questionable, Plocki restructured the training program for her athletes and introduced afresh concept-win- ning.In one season, the team improved on its 2-19 recordof 1989 to a mark of 7-15. Herself an All-American gymnast and record-holder at West Virginia, Plocki knows what it's like to win. The time had come for her to relay that prosperity to her new team. I ppsingadjustmentsforbothatti- tude and performance, she began to take grander steps toward improvement, and seized the responsibility of person- ally selecting the members of her team, not just coaching them. Plocki's first recruiting class con- sisted of now-senior standouts Nicole Simpson, Wendy Wilkinson (junioreli- gibility) and Kelly Carfora (junior eli- gibility). The cycle of winning had be- gun as the Michigan gymnastics pro- gram began attracting Level 10 and national competitors such as Carfora and Wilkinson. To draw women who had already competed at levels rated beyond college was a stride in itself. "Since them, every year we've been able to take a step up in the level of athlete we can recruit,",Plocki said,. And so the climb towards champi- onships continued when Plocki's sec- ond recruiting class joined the Wolver- ines at a time which she described as "a major step in our program.'' "This was the first time we could recruit and attract elite level athletes," she said. This leap broughtDebbie Berman, Li LiLeung, May May Leung and Beth Wymer to Ann Arbor. Since then, the realistic goals have been achieved and the door to the top has been unlocked. "The junior class can carry up and takeover the motivational role," Plocki said: 4t already has. In its freshman year, the current juniors helped the Michigan program gain national exposure when the Wol- verines won the Big Ten Champion- ships. Every year since, Plocki's ex- pectations have grown as the talent level of her athletes has. Gymnasts who didn't possess the highest level of ability began working harder to lift themselves to that level of competition, and the Wolverines were creating ateam to be reckoned with. In just two seasons, the group has risen from a national ranking in the upper 40's to its current No.9, and now they are striving to reach the Super Six elite. Performances by Wymer, Berman and Li Li Leung at NCAA nationals are the individual efforts which will carry thesehopefuls toaranking among the top six teams of the country. In one sense, the junior class is described as the heart of the team. It is a diverse group whose friendship and loyalty extends outside the gymna- sium. The bonding which occurs within this group creates a support system not uncommon to the rest of the squad. These women have become role models for the rest of the team to emulate. "My (freshman) year everyone im- proved when our class came in. We raised up the skill level of gymnastics (at Michigan)," Wymer said. In her first year, Wymer earned NCAA first team All-American and Big Ten Gymnast-of-the-Year honors. Wymer Continuing this success, she collected one national and three Big Ten event titles last season. She is not alone in these accom- plishments. Berman achieved personal best scores at nationals, and through- out her freshman and sophomore sea- sons. A former Level 10 and California state champion, Berman believes the junior class has been rather powerful. But she regards her peers' support through the ups and downs as the most valuable contribution to the team. "It's easy when you see someone go down in front of you to get freaked out and you want everyone else to pick it up," she said. Wymer and Berman's friendship dates back to their freshmen year when they were roommates. They have stuck together to overcome obstacles both in and out of the gym. "Outside the gym...(Debbie, May May and Li Li) do a good job of staying away from gymnastics," Wymer said. "We get personal with each other's lives. It's not only in the gym we help each other." In gymnastics, help can be defined as spotting, or assisting a teammate in stretching exercises. But for these gym- nasts, help had to be redefined. "There are always going to be obstacles...injury, personal and aca- demic," Berman acknowledged. Yet help does come from friends outside the junior circle. Besides the other 11 women on the team, the squad has a following forecasted well over 1,000 per home meet, averaging more than any other non-revenue sport. Thousands of fans have flocked to the sidelines since Plocki's first season with the Wolverines, when their suc- cess began. May May Leung believes the jun- iors are the core of this success, but when they came in and won Big Tens her first year, their "goals were lofty." An alternate to the U.S. National Team while in high school, May May was awarded Michigan's Most Coura- geous Award in 1992 when she missed most of the seasonwith an injury. Leung was also unable to compete last year, and again this yeardue to achilles inju- ries. Twin sister Li ..i knows about in- jury because she his been plagued by them as well. A member of th> 1991 U.S. Olym- pic Festival champion team, Li Li's biggest accomplishnent since coming to Michigan has beet her persever@e to overcome injuries. She came back from foot and achiles injuries, and scored personal bests at Big Tens and NCAA Regionals,not to mention mak- ing it to the NCAA mtionals last sea- son. So despite injuries and obstacles outside the gym, these four women have stuck together and continue tobe' the life of this team. And when leave, what wit happen? "Of course, we will hate to lose them," assistant;oach Melissa Kutcher said. "That's wiere recruiting comes in. Hopefully wecan get people to pick up the slack whe they leave." Andso Plockisresponsibiitiescon- tinue. She will bein taking those baby steps again over he next two years in preparation for the juniors' departure. While the foui juniors accredi e whole team with ;very success of the Michigan program, there's no denying that these individials have lifted the women's gymnaste team to the top of its class. p Wolverines favored to repeat as champs By TIM MINT. DAILY SPORTS WRITER If there is such a thing as king of the hill in gymnastics, the Michigan women's gymnastic team would be sitting on that throne. After winning the Big Ten crown last season, the Wolverines are expected to be the target in every team's sights. Although only seven women's gymnastics teams are in the Big Ten, a survey of the conference's coaches reveals a competitive balance. Michigan is considered by most to be the solid favorite, with Penn State slated as the runner-up. After the Wolverines and Nittany Lions, however, the conference seems to be marked by parity. Any one of the other five - Ohio State, Michigan State, Minnesota, Illinois and Iowa - have an opportunity to inflict some damage before season's end. However, Minnesota coach Jim Stevenson has said that the teams other than Michigan may have their days in the sun sooner than expected. "I think in the very near future the other schools in the conference are going eta tt eyP ichigan finds itself noW" Stevenson said. "I think the Big Ten is they fastest developing gymnastics conference in the country." The following are listed in the Daily's projected order of finish: 1. Michigan - The Wolverines look ready to capture the conference crown once again, with the major task of ignoring the pressure to repeat ahead of them. "Trying to 'win the Big Ten championship for a second time puts more pressure on us as a team than actually going out and winning the first one," Michigan coach Bev Plocki said. Plocki feels that bars will be the team's strongest event, and the Maize and Blue lack any apparent weaknesses. "Provided that everybody is healthy, our starting lineups on all events are going to ibe strong." Plocki said. All-Americans Beth Wymer and Wendy Marshall will lead Michigan. Other Wolverines to keep an eye on are Debbie Berman, Kelly Carfora, Li Li Leung and Wendy Wilkinson. 2. Penn State - The Nittany Lions do not want to sit back and just hand Michigan the Big Ten title. Even though the team is slated by most to finish second, the goal of claiming the Big Ten title will fuel them all season. "I think we'll be competing for the top spot," Penn State coach Steve Shephard said. "We have just as good a.shot as anyone to win." Penn State's bars and beams will be its major strengths this season, with the floor exercise and vault needing a little work. .The Nittany Lions will be lead by April Polito, Bridgette Foley and Tracy Kerner. Shephard said freshman Leigh Capello has been coming along nicely and should help the Lions in their quest for the title. 3. Ohio State - The Buckeyes are a team on the rise, especially after recruiting a strong freshman class. The rookies, combined with the already experienced team members, may make Ohio State a surpise team in the conference. "I think they have a lot of talent, but I think they're really nconsistent right now," Shephard said. "I think if they pull it together and get coisistent, they can give everybody a run for their money." 4. Michigan State - The Spartans look to break thi streak of two consecutive third-place finishes by coming out and surprising some people. "We're tired of that position," Spartan coach Kathie Kiges said. "We would like to see us move up." Michigan State opened with a shaky start, and has sufered numerous injuries. Although they have six solid competitors, the Spartan' lack of depth may pose a problem. "We have a number of athletes that are recovering from injuies who are out of the lineup right now," Klages said. "I anticipate it gettingstronger as the season progresses." The Spartans, whose strength will be their balance-beam team, will be lead by sophomore Jodi Blotcher and transfer Sherry Larson. 5. Iowa - The Hawkeyes come into the season with a strongteam, and they have just as much of a chance to challenge for the No. 3 spot a; the rest o'e field. Sophomore Kim Baker, who took third in the overall cenpetition lasi weekend in the Bahamas Sunshine Invitational, heads the Haveye lineup, 6. Illinois - The Fighting Illini are coming off a last-place finish in the Big Ten, and they are hoping that 1994 will find them climbing ou of the cellar Led by first-year coach Lynn Crane, Illinois is in a state of tranition, but that won't stop them from working hard. "The girls are doing a great job," Crane said. "'We're trainirg really hard right now. The girls are probably in the best shape they've ever teen in." The Illini may be a little inconsistent this year but Crane said tle leaderj of freshman Nicole Viernes should help them to achieve their pcential. Showing a little first-year brashness, Crane won't be satisfrd with ,the team's expected low finish. "We're going after Michigan and Penn State," Crane said. 'That's ou goal." 7. Minnesota - The Golden Gophers will have a tough go of it :his season as five of their 11 gymnasts are freshman. Stevenson's team does iot have ar exceptionally strong team leader or performer, but he feels that spreading hii gymnasts around to many events will be to his team's advantage "I don't have somebody who's corralling this group and tigging then along," Stevenson said. "I really have a pretty evenly delegated stuation Of people. They all seem to be working together and are on the sane page wit] everything." Junior Debbie Berman, here performing the floor exercise, is one of the reasons why the Michigan gymnastics team is a conference favorite. - Besides opponents, women gymnasts battle G-forces to avoid injuries By TOM BAUSANO DAILY SPORTS WRITER A broken foot, three ruptured Achilles tendons, four reconstructive knee surgeries, tailbone fracture, dis- located elbow, torn liganheints in thumb, and chronic back and shoulder pain. At first glance most people would associate this list of injuries with the offensive line of a professional foot- ball team, but in fact these are just some of the injuries the women's gym- nastics team have overcome in the last three years. The athleticism of gymnastics of- ten goes unnoticed because the gym- nasts make the routines seem so ef- fortless. D11r-ino , the crse of af i mneti- ability to cope with these realities of the sport. Almost every gymnast onthe team has persevered through a serious in- jury. The experience of going through the longionths of rehabilitation has not only strengthened the individu- als, but it has also made the team closer. "I don't think the number of inju- ries are a positive thing," senior Wendy Wilkinson said, "but it was inspiring to see others come back. It all comes down to team. I just had so much support from the team and with- out it I'm not sure if I would have come back." Coach Bev Plocki has incorpo- rated the supportive nature of the team into the r mmptiti flhDring the letes, inevitably the ability to come "One thing that helps in back from injury depends on the drive back is determination and of each gymnast. ment," sophomore Dianna coming said. "I knew that whatever was in the commit- way it wasn't going to stop me. You Ranelli know that there are people who want you back and if you need someone to talk to at any time you know they will be there." "Injury is part of the sport - it's expected," junior Li Li Leung said. "The sport is in my blood. When you're hurt and you see the team pull together and work hard to close the gap it gives you the fighting spirit to come back. "If I sustained an injury and gave up I would consider myself a quitter and I wouldn't want to do that." Gymnasts learn at the lowest lev- els of the sport to take the proper precautions to reduce the chance of kr injury. F "I think the number of hard land- Strength, flexibility aid enduranc are just prerequisites foi entering in gymnastics. The Wol7erines11 learned that coping w.th fears an dealing with injury are essential success in the sport. ,r ."::::