Tuesday, April 20, 1999 - The Michigan Daily - 23 CONTENDING FOR THE TRIPLE CROWN BY STEPHEN A. ROM u DaY SPORTS WRITER is weekend, Michigan senior Nikki Peters will have the opportu- nity to attain the individual Triple Crown on the uneven bars when the Wolverines travel to Salt Lake City to compete in the NCAA Championships. The Triple Crown is the moniker given to a team or individual who wins the conference, NCAA Regional and NCAA titles. In addition to Peters, the entire team also has the same opportunity - they've already locked up the Big Ten and regional titles, too. As rewarding as it would be to win e uneven bars championship, Peters doesn't seem at all concerned about achieving individual accolades. Her true hopes lie with her team, and its quest to win a national championship. "To finally show that the women's teams are fighting just as hard as the men's teams are would be a great accomplishment," Peters said. "It might be one of the greatest feelings in the world." And that's saying a lot, considering Peters has had many great feelings in her life. She has received nine perfect 10's in all four events throughout her career - most recently on the uneven bars at the Big Ten Championships. But Peters has to look back four years to remember her first true Michigan memory. Michigan coach Bev Plocki traveled to visit Peters in her hometown of Willingboro, N.J. to offer her Michigan's last gymnastics scholarship for 1996. Peters' ensuing 48-hour visit to Ann Arbor to meet the team and observe the facilities is what locked up the decision for Peters. Originally, the Willingboro High School standout was recruited to Oregon State, but opted to stay closer to During her four years as a Michigan gymnast, Peters has compiled a list of accolades as long as any other top gym- nast in the country. And with only one meet remaining in her illustrious career, she is home, and be part of t h e Michigan tradition - and family. T h i s family affair is what really inspired 'at might be one of the greatest feeling's in the world. " --- Nikki Peters, on winning a national championship keeping remark- ably calm, under the circum- stances. "I'm not ner- vous," Peters said on Sunday after- noon as she relaxed in a local Peters to make Ann Arbor her home for more than four years. "I like being part of a team. In club (gymnastics) I traveled by myself," Peters said. "Everyone here is treated with respect and as a member of the family." Peters has competed in club gymnas- tics ever the age of five. It was actually her club coach who got Nikki the oppor- tunity to compete at Michigan. "It was an out-of-the-blue kind of thing," Peters said. "My coach knew that Bev had another scholarship. She got a hold of her." And it was a match made in heaven. This gave Peters the opportunity to compete in one of the best programs, and for one of the best coaches, in the country. In addition, Peters has managed to take advantage of the academics that a top-ranked academic school like Michigan has to nffC-.r In 1996 she received the University's athletic academic achievement award. Currently, Peters is enrolled in the Division of Kinesiology and will walk in this spring's graduation commence- ment ceremony at Michigan Stadium. From there, she hopes to earn a spot in a veterinary school, for which she is currently filling out applications. coffee shop. "Come Thursday morning, I will be though." On that day, Michigan will begin day one of a two-day competition that will hopefully earn the women their first National Championship and conse- quently their first Triple Crown ever. But in order to make that happen, Peters and the rest of her team will have to deal with what will perhaps be the most pressure they have faced all sea- son, if not ever. When asked how she is going to deal with an amount of anxiety that could bring the strongest to their knees, Peters reverts back to what Plocki has routine- ly instructed her to do through out her career. "We try to minimize the pressure. We have to perform within ourselves," Peters said. "The pressure comes from you."t And will the thousands of fans that are going to be cheerino nt of their minds for the other 11 teams at this year's competition play a role in the anx- iety? "That's the fun part. It wouldn't be a meet without the fans," she said. And there wouldn't be any fans if it weren't for the joy and amazement brought to them by athletes like Nikki Peters. DANA LINNANE/Daily This is the pose that Nikki Peters and the Michigan women's gymnastics team , p to take when they compete in the NCAA Championships this weekend. NCAAs last stop on women's wild ride JEREMY MENCHIK/ DAILY Already on her way to one of the most impressive seasons in Michigan women's gymnastics history, next weekend Nikki Peters will try to accomplish something few gymasts have ever done - notch a triple crown. SUMMER EMPLOYMENT METROPARKS/HAVE OVER 500 JOBS AVAILABLE THIS SUMMER IN A DELIGHTFUL PARK ENVIRONMENT LIFEGUARD, NATURALIST, PUBLIC SERVICE ATTENDANT. MAINTENANCE AND MORE -. ;APPLY AT THE METROPARK NEAREST YOU OR CALL OUR TOLL FREE NUMBER 1-800-47-PARKS. AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER HURON-CLINTON METROPOLITAN AUTHORITY NCAAS Continued from Page 21 following week. This time against the 1997 national champion UCLA Bruins. No. 15 UCLA is one of the 11 other been competing as of late, Plocki is far from complacent. She realizes that the competition in Utah will be far more fierce than that which her team ran into at the Big Ten or Regional championships. schools that finished in the top two pIaces at its respective regions to earn a ticket THIS Wj to compete in the nation- *ls. Who:. One team that perhaps Women's g could have been consid- at NCAA ered a lock to make it a~AT this far is No. 1 Georgia, Where: which the Wolverines Salt Lake C faced twice this season. When: B Michigan lost both 8p.m. on Fr meets, however, but by Notable: only a combined 3.625 points. soaks to wi The Lady Bulldogs women s N are last years national champions champions and will no doubt be looking to put the bite on any who try to lay claim to their title. Rounding off the top six - and thus the favorites to advance past the prelim- inary round of competition on Thursday, to the "Super 6" on Friday - are No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Utah, No. 5 LSU and No. 6 Penn State. The Wolverines have a combined 16- 16 record against those schools - including Georgia - and hope to push that mark above .500 come this week- end. Regardless of how well Michigan has "They al EEKEND ymnastics ournament ity eginning riday Michigan in the first ICAA team 'hip. 1 are going to put pressure on us to have to win. The only difference is there will be 12 teams in Utah instead of six," Plocki said. "But you can't get caught up in that. You have to focus on your own performance." Senior Lisa Simes has additional thoughts on what has to be done to beat top-caliber programs like Georgia and Alabama, as well as the home favorite Utah. "We need to become perfectionists and think about every detail,"Simes METRO BEACH METROPARK near Wt. Clemens (810) 463-4581 HURON M (800) 477-3172 STONY CREEK METROPARK near Rochester (810) 781-4242 (800) 477-7756 INDIAN SPRINGS METROPARK near Clarston (810)625-7870 (800) 477-3192 KENSI MEADOWS METROPARK near Brighton (810)231-4084 (800)477.3193 V1 JNGTON METROPARK near Word (810) 685-1561 (800) 477-3178 DSON MILLS METnOPARK (734) 426-8211 (800) 477-3191 LOWER HURON METROPARK WILLOW METROPARK OAKWOODS METROPARK near Belleville (313) 697-9181 (800)4773182 LAKE ERIE METROPARK Hear Gibraftar (313) 379-5020 (800) 477-3189 said. Michigan's journey to Salt Lake City for the postseason meet will be its first since the 1994 NCAA Championships were held there. That season the Wolverines finished fourth in what had only been Michigan's third trip to the finals under Plocki. Now, five years later, she has four more trips to the championships under her belt and hopes that experience will help her team secure the honor that. has eluded Michigan throughout its history. JEREMY MENCHIK/Daily Beth Amelkovich and the Michigan women's gymnastics team have made it to NCAA competition for the fifth straight season, but haven't won a national champi- onship In that period. a . TUESDAY SPECIAL Wing It! At Thanks to everyone on our Senior Staff management team who has made it a great year for The Michigan Daily Nathan Rozof, Lindsay ger Associate Display Mankr. Kadish Monica Tam1Seciai Sections Manager Phil CanSitk Manager Assistant CMassifieam C line Sales Manager Courtney RF Finance .angt.rik mA9Ast finance Manager RESTAURANT s V S ;Pont$ $AN 1220 South University 665-7777 -4 wings 25C I - - mm Ar - A I- I