8 - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, March 28, 1994 Wolverine gymnasts finish fifth place at Big Ten meet By TONYA BARTOW FOR THE DAILY UNIVERSITY PARK - In a season filled with emotional ups and downs, the members of the No. 5 Michigan men's gymnastics team came to the Big Ten Championship with the hopes of improving on the success they've had so far this year. No. 2 Ohio State finished first with a score of 286.975, which is the highest score for a Big Ten Championship since the scoring format was re- vised in 1982. Other team places were: Iowa (280.6), Penn State (279.125), Minnesota (276.25), Michigan (274.55), Illinois (274.525), and Michi- gan State (270.6). This is the second year Michigan placed fifth, somewhat ofa disappointment since the team was ranked nationally. "I think that what we learned from this expe- rience will prove how good we really are,"junior Raul Molina said. Ohio State freshman Drew Durbin finished first in the all-around, and cane away with the honor of Big Ten Gymnast of the Year. "I was definitely surprised to win the all- around," Durbin said. "I wasn't even thinking about winning that." The Wolverines started off the competition on the rings, a change of pace for them. "Scores were really tight, but we competed well," junior Rich Dopp said. "Reaction to the routines was positive and the scores so negative. This difference sums up where we got started off on the wrong foot. We were never able to go six for six." Going into the last event Michigan was in contention for second place. "I guess that last event is our Achilles' heel, no matter what event it might be," Michigan coach Robert Darden said. "You've got to be proud. The guys have been riding on a real emotional sea- son." But the team could not dwell on the down side of Saturday's meet. They had to look ahead to Sunday. The top eight finishers in Saturday's meet advanced to compete in the Individual Event Finals. Seven Wolverines earned the right to compete, three in two events, and four in one event apiece. The crowd on Sunday was tame compared to past meets, but Michigan's fans were as loud as ever. They cheered on as their teammates competed and even for their opponents when they did well. Dopp had an outstanding meet, tying for second on the high bar with a career high score of 9.8. He also placed second on the floor exercise. "Today was just great," Dopp said. "I did the best I could, and I can't think of a better time to do it." Junior Brian Winkler finished a strong sec- ond on the vault. He also competed on the floor 'What we learned from this experience will prove how good we really are.' - Raul Molina Michigan gymnast exercise where he finished 7th. "The individual effort was outstanding," Winkler said. "Vault was a surprise to me." Senior Ben Verrall was the third Wolverine to compete in two events. He placed fifth and sixth on the floor and rings, respectively. Other single event competitors for Michi- gan were in the pommel horse and the parallel bars. Senior Michael Mott tied for sixth in the pommel horse. On the parallel bars, senior Royce Toni and juniors Bob Young and Molina finished 10th, 11Ith and 12th, respectively . Darden earned a share of the Coach of the Year award with Ohio State coach Peter Kormann. "I'm accepting this award more on the be- half of the guys," Darden said. Men's . program may stay By JOSH KARP DAILY SPORTS WRITER UNIVERSITY PARK - Is the glass half full or half empty? Well, forthe No. 5Michigan men's gymnastics team, it's half full. Sure, the Wolverines finished in fifth place in theBigTenChampionships and had a lower score (274.55) than last year (275.05). Butthe squad has been riding on an emotional rollercoaster all sea- son long. Theteam had entered its 50th cam- paign with an understanding that it would be cut after the season hadended. With only six athletic scholarships and no money topublicize their meets, the Wolverines seemingly had a long year ahead of them. But instead of suc- cumbing to the pressure of losing its program, the squad pulled together and had one of its best seasons ever. Bob Young emerged as Michigan's top gymnast, becoming its leading all-arounder. Brian Winkler and Royce Toni fought through back injuries to excel on floor exercise and high bar, respectively. In addition, the Wolverines scored a school record 282.25 against Ohio State. Coach Bob Darden has kept his team together during these hard times, and through the squad's closeness, Michigan has@ emerged as one of the superior pro- grams in the nation. But as good as the Wolverines are, they've had to face the reality of waving goodbye to a rich tradition of gymnastics at Michi- gan - until now. In Friday'sAnnArborNews, it was reported that new Michigan athletic director Joe Roberson requested a re- prieveofthecuttingofWolverinegym- nastics. If President Duerstadt and the Board of Regents approve Roberson's proposal, Michigan men's gymnastics willreturn. Earlier this year, Michigan regent Paul Brown said that in April, he'd introduce a resolution placing a four- year moratorium on the University dropping sports until gender equity is clearly defined. But Roberson, work- ing with the Board in Control, is reportedly trying to reverse the deci- sion to cut men's gymnastics right now. However, Michigan gymnastics will have to become a non-scholarship sport in order to remain varsity. Al- though the program can continue to support those gymnasts who already receive scholarships, it will not offer new ones to incoming athletes. This doesn't help Michigan recruit the gym- nasts it needs to compete with other schools, but for now, the team will take anything it can get. "I love (the decision) because it means a future for us," junior Rich Dopp said. "The future (of our pro- gram) can be fantastic. (It looks) very optimistic." Optimism is the only thing that the Wolverines can rely on now. Through- out the season, Michigan has tried to perform perfectly in order to catch the eyes of the regents. Now, despite a fifth place finish at the conference meet, the Wolverines are more hope- ful than ever about their fate. SARAH WHITING/Daily Kris Klinger competes on the high bar at the Big Ten meet in University Park, Penn. GYMNASTICS Continued from page 1 University ofIowa and the University of Illinois placed fifth through sev- enth, respectively. Wymer captured four individual titles and now holds all of the Big Ten records for individual performances. Wymer placed first on the vault with the first-ever 10.00. She took top honors on the uneven bars with a 9.925. In addition, she won the floor exercise (9.90) and all-around with a 39.450. "I was really excited because vault is my weakest event," Wymer said. "The whole meet I was really excited, because our team was doing well and avoiding distractions." Junior Kelly Cafora was the only captain healthy and able to compete. She led the team by example through- out the competition. Cafora placed second in the all- around with a 39.20 and won the balance beam title with a 9.875. "It means a lot to win three titles," Cafora said. Going into the last event, I wanted to show the rest of the team what it takes to be champions." Sophomore Wendy Marshall was the third Wolverine to capture all-Big Ten honors. She placed fourth in the all-around with a 38.80. Despite all of the individual ac- complishments of the top three gym- "asts, the title was won with the strength of the rest of the squad. Sophomore Dianna Ranelli and Junior Debbie Berman both had solid performances. "The whole team worked hard for it," Berman said. "It feels very good." Junior LiLi Leung had a tough few weeks prior to Saturday's com- petition. Leung battled a serious vi- rus to compete on the vault. "Deep down it feels good to con- tribute physically to the champion- ship," Leung said. "I just wanted to hit and get the ball rolling." The Wolverines did an outstanding job blocking out the crowd noise and distractions. McDonald was particu- larly focused during her beam routine. Despite the deafening noise, she turned in a clean set in the crucial last event. "I don't think the crowd affected us negatively," McDonald said. "We were prepared for it prior to coming into this arena." The Wolverines set a new school and Big Ten record on the vault with a 49.325. The old record was nearly two years old. The strength of the team was epito- mized by its ability to hit six for six when the pressure was on. The Wol- verines scored a new record of 48.950 on the beam. The team hopes to carry the momentum of its record-setting conference title into the Regionals at Alabama April 9. Leadershp key for Wolverines Senior captains lead women tumblers to third straight title By TOM BAUSANO DAILY SPORTS WRITER UNIVERSITY PARK - Senior leadership was an integral part of the championship for the women's gymnastics team. The three captains - Wendy Wilkinson, Nicole Simpson and Kelly Carfora - each have a different leadership style and this has made this team unique from past years. These three individuals were a part of the team before all of the champi- onships. They remember the .500 sea- sons and basement finishes. The most important aspect of their leadership is their emphasis on team unity over individual suc- cesses. It is this quality that sepa- rates Michigan from most other schools. This season, Carfora has been the quiet leader who tries to show the younger athletes how to become champions. "She's always leading by ex- ample," former teammate Debbie Geiger said. "Kelly is always the first person in the gym and the last one to leave." Carfora certainly led by example at the Big Ten Championships. The Wolverines needed to hit all of their routines in the last event in order to win. Carfora won the event and fired up her teammates. "I just try to give people the men- tal strength to win," Carfora said. "I just want to show my teammates what it takes to win." Prior to her re-occurring knee in- jury, Wendy Wilkinson contributed not only as a motivating teammate but also as agreat athlete. I just want to show my teammates what it takes to win.' --Kelly Car fora Michigan tri-captain "Wendy is a really important part of our team," freshman Andrea McDonald said. "She wears a ring of mine during the meets and I think the team strives to win not just for our- selves but for Wendy." Wilkinson is always the first per- son to hug the gymnast when they come off a routine and is always pre- pared to give them the word of en- couragement that they may need. "I try to help keep everyone psyched up," Wilkinson said. "I try to instill confidence in the competitors to believe in themselves. Even though I wasn't in the lineup, this was the best championship. There is no better way to go out than on top." Simpson provides most of the ver- bal leadership for the team. "Nicole is a little more calm than Wendy," coach Bev Plocki said. "She just has a knack for knowing the right thing to say to everyone." Anyone who talks with Simpson understands how important keeping the winning tradition is to her and the rest of the captains. "I just try to be real careful to read everyone's feelings," Simpson said."I try to keep a positive, straight forward outlook. As a captain you look at the other people to keep what you produced going. One of our biggest concerns is to make the rest of the team feel the way we do about individual sacrifice for the team." As a package, these three pro- vide the leadership necessary to win three consecutive Big Ten champi- onships. 1-800-777-0112..M_ The world's largest student & youth travel organization STA TRAVEL CYPRESS TAN B AWES ME DE0LI!i I ® T n Till * 25 Sessions i .a il S(in 30c days) ISCHOOLSbuT!I $29.95 $34.95 220 S. UNIVERSITY 747-9400 I * 20 Exp. 4/14/94 Exp. 4/14/94 C21® hmmnmmmmmnunmmmmmmmi TIME TO STORE YOUR WINTER CLOTHES Don't ship your clothes home this spring. We'll store your coats, jackets ... everything FREE Compare & GIORGIO ARMANI Save! alain rikrl, a POLICE FOR YOUR EUROPE BY RM. We speciaizein-student and faculty travel to Europe! EURLPmS= $250 5-Day Flexipass mmmm m m mm , i 11 -r A II-M A& I