The Michigan Daily - Friday, April 7, 1995 - 13
Five 'M' gymnasts prepare for regionals
By Chris Murphy
Daily Sports Writer
This weekend, five members of
the Michigan men's gymnastics team
will travel to Penn State for the NCAA
East Regional. Saturday, seniors Rich
Dopp, Royce Toni and Brian Winkler,
and juniors Bob Young and Kris
Klingler will represent the Wolver-
ines in a competition that will feature
some of the top teams and gymnasts
from the region.
With a sixth place in the Big Ten
Championships two weeks ago,
Michigan finished off a successful
season. However, due to the tough
competition in the league, the Wol-
verines were unable to qualify for
Regionals as a team.
Four teams from the Big Ten were
selected, signifying the caliber of
gymnastics competition in the con-
ference
"The Big Ten Championship is a
very closely-contested event, and the
judges know that," head coach Bob
Darden said. "It's very difficult to
separate seven teams within several
points of each other."
Michigan's performance this year
proved to be strong at times. How-
ever, it seemed circumstances beyond
the team's control were conspiring
against it.
"This year's team was tons better
than last year's team," Darden said.
"But for a whole litany of concerns
we just didn't put together a strong
effort during the part of the season we
needed to."
The team had trouble shaking the
injury bug. Senior Chris Onuska was
out of competition in February with a
torn Achilles' tendon and senior cap-
tain Raul Molina was in and out of
competition due to a sprained ankle.
"It's one of those years, but I'm
not disappointed in [the season],"
Darden said. "We tried, and the guys
we expected to go on are moving on.
The teams we put on the floor were
very good teams. We just didn't have
the full complement of athletes on the
floor competing."
Regardless, the Wolverines com-
peting will look forward to represent-
ing their team and their school with
some strong showings.
Young, perhaps the team's most
consistent performer, qualified for
the all-around competition. He fin-
ished with an average all-around
score of 56.52 on the season and
will compete in all events this
weekend.
Winkler and Dopp were the one
and two qualifiers respectively on
the floor exercises. The floor proved
to be one of the Wolverines' top
events all year.
Winkler and Toni will compete
on the parallel bars, with Winkler
being the number one qualifier. Dopp
and Klingler will compete on the
parallel bar. Toni is an alternate for
the rings competition.
The Michigan gymnasts will ben-
efit from a favorable rotation of the
events. While Young will be com-
peting in all events, the others will
be able to wait, as their events shall
be the last three in the rotation.
"We're in the best rotation we
could have drawn," Darden said.
MARK FRIEDMAN/Daily
*Michigan will send Rich Dopp, Royce Toni, Brian Winkler, Bob Young and
Kris Klingler to the NCAA East Regionals at Penn State this weekend.
Tumblers to host Central Regionals 4
Second-seeded Michigan among seven teams competing at Crisler Arena
By Michael Joshua
Daily Sports Writer
This Saturday, Crisler Arena will
be the site for some of the best
gymnastics in the country. For the
first time in its history, the Michi-
gan women's gymnastics team will
be hosting the NCAA Central Re-
gional Championships.
Seven teams will be vying to win
the region. However, only one will
walk away with the title.
The No. 4 Wolverines (24-2
overall) are seeded second, between
top seed and third-ranked Alabama
(19-1) and No. 5 Louisiana State
(14-4).
The teams that are being over-
looked and that are hoping to pull
Doff an upset are not pushovers them-
selves; all are ranked in the top 25.
These include Southeast Missouri
State, Northern Illinois, Illinois
State and Illinois-Chicago.
The title, however, should be de-
cided among the top three seeds,
considering all three have been
ranked among the top five since
Feb. 7. Each team has been on a roll
and hopes to keep its momentum
going.
"It's going to be a tough and
tight meet," Wolverine co-captain
Beth Wymer said.
Two weeks ago, the Crimson
Tide (196.175) edged out the Tigers
(196.125), top-ranked Georgia, No.
6 Florida and No. 10 Kentucky to
win the Southeastern Conference
Wymgr
"Obviously it's going to be an
advantage," Michigan coach Bev
Plocki said. "But the officiating is
really going to be the determining
factor, and the officials are being
flown in from different parts of the
country.
"The kids are going to feel less
intimidated and hopefully (will) per-
form better because it's being hosted
by us. Definitely the fan support
will be a factor."
The seedings for the meet were
determined by the teams' Regional
qualifying score. The Wolverines
trailed the Tigers for most of the
season.
However, they finally passed
LSU with a number of school-best
scores over the past few weeks.
Michigan's school-record 197.225
on March 18 helped secure the sec-
ond seed.
Alabama ended with a qualify-
ing score of 196.3375, followed by
the Wolverines (196.2635) and the
Tigers (195.85). The rest of the
teams ended with scores below
193.5.
"We won't be doing anything dif-
ferent in this meet than we've done all
year," LSU coach D-D Pollock said.
"We have been consistent all year,
and we just want to go out and hit our
same routines."
Receiving the higher seed means
the Wolverines will be going in their
most comfortable rotation. Michigan
will be on the bars first, followed by
Championship. At that meet Ala-
bama set an NCAA record -in the
vault with a score of 49.750.
LSU is hoping to get some sweet
revenge by winning the Regionals.
"We are out for blood now," LSU
junior Jennifer Wood said. "We are
very frustrated by the outcome of
the SEC meet.
"Because we lost by so little, it
will mean more if we win at
Regionals."
Michigan is poised to make a
strong showing after winning the
Big Ten Championships two weeks
ago.
The Wolverines believe being at
home should have a great impact on
the outcome of the meet.
"We are out for
blood now We are
very frustratedR Pby
the outcome of
the SEC meet."
- Jennifer Wood
LSU junior gymnast
the beam, floor and the vault.
"It's not that it makes that much of
a difference," sophomore Andrea
McDonald said. "You just feel you
have the mental edge because you get
to get your two harder events over
with."
With the top three teams consis-
tently scoring around the 196 mark,
the team which emerges as the win-
ner has to make the least amount of
mistakes, and also needs a bit of
good luck.
"I guess we are the underdog be-
cause we are the third seed," Wood
said, "but I think people will be sur-
prised with our performance."
Michigan, Alabama and LSU all
understand that they have to stay fo-
cused for all four routines and not
become intimidated by the high caliber
of competition.
"The philosophy and the hard work
that you put in -- you have to trust
that the payoffs will be there," Plocki
said.
PRINTING
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FILE PHOTO
The Wolverines will host the NCAA Central Regionals this weekend.
Tennis shoots for fifth straight
By Alan Goldenbach
Daily Sports Writer
With its tough non-conference
schedule now finished, the Michigan
women's tennis team turns its heads to
four Big Ten foes as it closes out the
regular season over the next two week-
ends.
Tomorrow, the Wolverines travel
to Evanston to take on 29th-ranked
Northwestern. On Sunday, the com-
petition doesn't get any easier, as
Michigan battles perennial nemesis
Wisconsin in Madison.
The Wolverines (5-1 Big Ten, 11-
5 overall) are currently sitting in sec-
ond place in the Big Ten, trailing only
an undefeated Indiana club. The Wild-
cats and Badgers follow Michigan in
third and fourth, respectively.
With a victory tomorrow, Michi-
gan will have strung together a season-
best five-game winning streak. A 12th-
ranked Kentucky team ended the first,
sending the Wolverines on their de-
scent from the Rolex Top 50 rankings.
Ironically, when Michigan plays
Northwestern, it will be the second
time that the Wolverines will be going
for their fifth straight victory playing a
team of Wildcats. However, the cir-
cumstances will be significantly dif-
ferent.
"It's true that it's similar in that we
won four straight matches to start off
the year, but the level of play wasn't
very good," Michigan coach Bitsy Ritt
0 said. "(The streak) came against two
non-conference teams and two middle
of the pack Big Ten opponents.
Northwestern (4-1 Big Ten, 9-4
overall) brings with it a balanced at-
tack with no single dominant player.
,Ii.
TRUNK SHOW"1
ON FRIDAY, APRIL
7,
1995
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'K-
THE US REPRESENTATIVE FOR
BADA INTERNATIONAL WILL BE IN
OUR SHOWROOM TO INTRODUCE THE
OKIO AND BADA EYEWEAR COLLECTIONS.
A /'1
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