16 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, March 13, 1998 Michigan divers begin quest for NCAA Championships berth By Jacob R. Wheeler Daily Sports Writer Luckily for Brett Wilmot, divers aren't large, heavyset athletes. Wilmot might collapse under pressure if they were, because he all but carries Michigan's entire diving squad on his back, meet after meet and week after week. The junior from Wayne, Penn., shoulders the Wolverines' load again at the Diving Zone Meet in Miami, Ohio. The meet began yesterday and continues through Saturday. ..But this is no ordinary meet. This might as AvelI be the official trials for NCAA Championships, because only the top 'six men's finishers and the top seven women's finishers move on to the season's climax in 'two weeks in Auburn, Ala. Wilmot clearly has the best shot at quali- fying for the meet in Auburn. An honorable mention All-American a year ago on the 10- meter platform, he was the only Wolverine who competed in the national champi- onships last year. And he made the most of the opportunity. Wilmot finished 16th on the platform - his best event - and also placed 31st on the one-meter springboard and 18th on the three-meter springboard. Michigan's most valuable diver is also coming off a strong performance at the Big Ten Championships two weeks ago in WI LDCATS Continued from Page 14 After a short break, more teams come out to participate in light prac- tices. Michigan's practice was more of a-slam-fest, showcasing their leaping, showboating skills in front of photogra- phers and television cameramen. And it was the thunderous Traylor, of all peo- ple, who missed a dunk. His penalty: five (weakly executed) pushups. Besides Jerod Ward making a half- court shot and a playful 3-point contest Won by Michigan sharpshooter Louis Bullock, the other entertainment was the clean-shaven haircuts sported by Macco Baston, Brandon Smith, Ron Oliver and Donte Scott. "We all just kind of decided to go bald," Baston said. "We wanted to start off the tourney fresh with a clean scalp and make a good run at this thing. "We tried to get Travis (Conlan) to ao it and Rob (Traylor) to do it. It's tough to get Travis and Jerod ... we'll MIt just have to tie them down" "La As the Michigan players leave the 1 dium, they disappear - yup, you men' guessed it - behind another curtain. Michigan fans can only hope that M behind the next curtain will be a trip to I the Sweet 16 rather than another early ci exit from the NCAA Tournament. Cliff w Minneapolis. Wilmot cracked the top five in all three events and finished second on the platform, though it was only an exhibition event at the Big Ten meet. "I'm going into the Diving Zone Meet with a lot of confidence coming off a good Big Ten meet," Wilmot said. "Especially since I made it to NCAAs last year. "I was injured early in the season, so it got off to a slow start. But I've been pretty con- sistent lately." Wilmot's second-place finish on the plat- form at Big Tens this year was somewhat of a surprise, especially since he won the event at last year's Diving Zone Meet and auto- matically qualified for all three events at NCAAs. "The only good platform divers are in the Big Ten, and I got second at Big Tens," he said. "But the guy who won is definitely beatable." Even if Wilmot doesn't bring home the 10- meter crown this weekend, he still has an excellent shot at Auburn because the top two finishers on the platform will advance. The outlook for the other Michigan divers is not as optimistic, however. No other Wolverines made the national championship cuts last year, and no one else placed in the top six in any event at the Big Ten Championships. "Of all my divers, Brett has the best chance of qualifying," Michigan diving coach Dick Kimball said. "But this weekend is really going to be a difficult meet, because only 35 divers in all go to nationals. No women's divers have an easy road to Auburn ahead of them. But a couple of them have outside shots. "Jill Unikel has the best chance of our women," Kimball said. "She's got a shot at the tower event because she's got the most experience." Unikel finished 13th on the 3-meter springboard and 17th on the one-meter event in Minneapolis. But, like Wilmot, her strength is in the higher dives. The chances of any men's divers comple- menting Wilmot and making the top six are slim. But sophomore Josh Trexler has a slim hope. "Josh has a shot on the platform," Wilmot said. "We all had a pretty good practice last Thursday and that lifted our spirits." Even if no one besides Wilmot secures a spot in the NCAA Chanpionships, plenty of value can come out of the Diving Zone Meet. "It's a great experience because you see what's out there," Wilmot said. "Teams like Notre Dame and Toledo offer a lot of depth, and we as a team have to sift through it. But someone like Amanda Crews is only a fresh- man going in. She'll see what she has to shoot for next year." FILE PHOT( The Michigan men's and women's diving teams traveled to Oxford to compete in the Diving Zone Meet. The top six men and the top seven women will qualify for the NCAA Championships. State nips 'M' gymnasts By Daid De~erde By David DenHerder Daily Sports Writer It was a tale of firsts and lasts at Cliff Keen Arena last night. For the seniors of the Michigan men's gymnastics team, the contest with No. 9 Michigan State marked the last home dual meet of their careers. It was also the last dual meet for either team before the Big Ten Championships next weekend. And maybe most important, it was Michigan's first chance to reach the .500 mark in more than three years. But sixth-ranked Wolverines, favored heading into the competition, could not overcome missed routines early in the meet, and fell to the Spartans 229.475-229.15. According to Michigan coach Kurt Golder, how- ever, the loss did have a silver lining. "We reached a seasonal best, and it's certainly going to help our ranking and help our chances of qualifying for the NCAA Eastern Regional," Golder said. "There's a Iot to be happy about, but we lost, and we lost to an in-state rival," Maybe so, but Michigan's team score is some- thing else to add to the firsts of the night. The sea- son-high total of 229.15 is the first time Michigan has scored above 229 in more than three years. It also marks the first time the Wolverines have com- bined to break 32 points on vault in several seasons. "It's definitely mixed feelings" Michigan senior and co-captain Ed Ledgard said. "It is a loss for us, chigan's Jose iLo" Halo and the Michigan s gymnastics team fell to ichigan State ast night in a ose match at I Keen Arena. NARRENZINN/Daily but at the same time it's a great team achieveml This is the highest score that we've gotten in quit few years. We're really proud of ourselves, but w know we can do better' Ledgard turned in a strong performance for the Wolverines, hitting all his routines while addinga new move to his high bar routine, which resulted i a 9.35 in the event. Michigan senior Tim DeGraw captured the Boo exercise in impressive style with a 9.75, edging ou Michigan State's Tommy Housley. Senior Tim Lauring tied with freshman K4 Roulston to lead the Wolverines on the vault with 9.7. Roulston also won the all around competitioi with a 57.35. And scores aside, what Michigan-Michigan Stat contest would be complete without a few ooohs ani aaahs? In the middle of his high bar routine, with a: attentive Ann Arbor crowd looking on, Michigat State redshirt freshman Chris Weedon hurled him self toward the ceiling of Keen Arena, missing th single horizontal bar on his way back to earth. Weedon's ensuing crash onto the hard mats everybody but Michigan State coach Rick Atkinso worried. "He's from Canada. that wvas nothing for himn, Atkinson said. "tie's probably the toughest guy I'v ever met, so him wiping out doesn't worry me in th least." es faced Thomas, who prides herself on he ng front improved defense this season, led th inois on Big Ten in steals, averaging 3.1 p per game. own the Thomas also averaged better tha s, allow- 11 points per game. heeler to The last time Michigan was play 3 boards. ing this late into March was in 199( es hung when coach Bud VanDeWege led h aine, the Wolverines into the second round tint win, the NCAA Tournament. The 1989-90 team won a schoo similar record 20 games and defeate Johns. Oklahoma State in the openin tips the round of the tournament. 0 This year's Wolverines hope t ara said. fare as well, if not better, than the ebounds, Michigan predecessors. If the k up and defeat the Bruins, they would mo likely face host Alabama, a No, will be seed in the region. Thomas, For now, however, the Wolverine in of the are concentrating on UCLA and the mez, also first NCAA Tournament game z scored eight years. r way to "The officials are going to hav -10 first put on their track shoes," Guevar said. "Because both teams are gon e Pac-10 to get up and down the floor. It'llI a good first-round game." BRUINS Continued from Page 14 10 rebounds each game. She became the first Michigan player ever to be named to the all-Big Ten first team. Murray thrived in her role as a co- captain this season. She earned a starting spot about a quarter of the way into the season and pushed her scoring average to double digits. In the Big Ten Tournament, Murray scored 15.5 points per game on her way to being named to the all- Tournament team. While Michigan relies on its seniors to lead the team, UCLA is very young. Four of UCLA's five starters are sophomores, including three who average better than 10 points per game, The Wolverines, who start three guards, might have trouble matching up against the tall UCLA front line. The Bruins' three leading scorers, Maylanna Martin, Marie Philman and Janae Hubbard, are all more than 6 feet tall. The last time the Wolverin a team with a similarly stro line was at then-No. II Ill Jan. 11. Michigan failed to shut d Fighting Illini's taller player ing 6-foot-3 center Alicia St pour in 22 points and grab I Although the Wolverini tough for much of the ga Ilhini pulled out a three-po 66-63. Hubbard will present a challenge to Michigan's Hubbard stands 6-4 and scales at 245 pounds. "She leans on you," Guev "She gets lots of offensive r and she's able to put it bacl in." Another key matchup between Michigan's Stacey last year's Big Ten freshma year, and UCLA's Erica Got a sophomore guard. Come 7.6 points per game on he being named to the Pac team. Gomez was second in th in assists as well, 0MTTEEC(HAR FJITON AVAILnpLE Build your resume, Work with dynamic groups like Amazin Blue, Viewpoint Lectures, The Rude Mechanicals, and others, Develop leadership and marketing skills, Become part of U of M's largest student-run org.! The deadline for applications is March 18th. Applications are available at 4002 Michigan Union. For more info, call 763-1107 or visit our website at www.umich.edu/-uac