8A - Thursday, March 13, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Curtis's leadership big on beam for Blue By NICOLE AUERBACH Daily Sports Writer As an adventurous four-year- old, Sarah Curtis used to try out her own flips and tumbles on the sidelines of her older sister's gym- nastics practices. "Eventually, my mom decided it'd be safer to put me in the sport rather than me doing it on the side," Curtis said with a laugh. Sixteen years later, that flexible little girl has become one of Michi- gan's elite gymnasts. The sophomore has dominated the competition all season. Curtis and fifth-year senior LindseyBruck have finished 1-2 in the all-around three times this season - includ- ing in crucial wins over Minnesota and No. Georgia. Curtis's 39.600-point all-around score last week against the Gym Dogs was the highest total in the Big Ten this season, and bested her previous career-high by.200. But lastnyear was a very different story. The Reno, Nev., native spent her freshman year sidelined by an Achilles tendon injury suffered just three weeks into the season. Bruck experienced the same injury in last year's season-opening meet. The two rehabilitated together, but neither was at full strength until this fall. "(Curtis) had a different role last year, sidelined with her Achilles," senior Katie Lieberman said. "She would cheer us on during meets and stay really supportive. This year, she still has that supportive role, but also she's able to help the team gymnastically." Curtis' efforts have earned her positions in all four event lineups this season. She and Bruck are the only two gymnasts who compete in the all-around for the Wolver- ines. Curtis said the balance beam has been her most improved event, and her progress is evident with her 9.820 average score on the event. "Everyone respects her because of how hard she worked to come back from the injury and do what she's doing today," Michigan coach Bev Plocki said. Plocki and Lieberman both say Curtis "leads by example." She's a quiet motivator in the gym who works with teammates who are having a rough day. But during competitions, Curtis offers vocal support and even an occasional joke to ease the tension. She has also silently but steadily collected a slew of event titles this season, including three each on floor exercise and vault. Curtis's vault routine has been the same for years, and she said it comes very naturally to her. Against Georgia, Curtis earned a career-high 9.950- point score on the apparatus. Curtis was named Big Ten Gym- nast of the Week three times this season, most recently after cap- turing last weekend's all-around crown. ,Even though she's finally had a chance to prove herself, a year removed from hobbling on crutch- es, Curtis doesn't like to talk about her personal achievements. "She'saveryselflesscompetitor," Plocki said. "When you mention to her anything about individual accolades, she just kind of shrugs her shoulders and giggles." Sophomore Sarah Curtis celebrates with senior Lindsey Bruck after excelling against No.1t Georgia last week at Crisler Arena. Sitompul's road to 'M' winding After poor seasonjunior rebounds By MATT JOHNSON DailySports Writer For freshman Alexander Sitom- pul, the adjustment to collegiate golf has been easy, but his recruit- ment was anything but smooth for Michigan men's golf coach Andrew Sapp. Sapp couldn't directly con- tact Sitompul because none of his listed phone num- bers worked. SITOMPUL He eventu- ally e-mailed Sitompul's father, who lived in Indonesia, to let him know that he wanted his son to come to- Michigan. But it was still difficult to get Sitompul to visit Ann Arbor. He didn't take the SAT until October of his senior year, so he wasn't allowed to take an official visit. Instead, Sitompul had to come on an unofficial visit to Michi- gan with his mother. He eventu- ally committed in November after Sapp visited him in Florida, where he went to high school after grow- ing up in Indonesia. Although he signed late in the year, Sitompul said it didn't take him long to decide he wanted to be a Wolverine. "Basically, I just came here, met the guys and coach and looked around," Sitompul said. "It just fit right." Sitompul has emerged as one of Michigan's top players this sea- son. He already owns the team's low- est scoring average and finished in the top five at Michigan's final two tournaments of the fall season, The Prestige and The Wolverine. Still, Sitompul has made some minor tweaks to his game to fully adjust to college golf. "The courses are not as forgiv- ing," Sitompul said. "I had to kind of change my style a little bit. I haven't been playing as reckless." But Sapp said Sitompul's aggres- sive approach has helped him suc- ceed. In November at The Wolverine, which was hosted by Michigan, Sitompul prepared to tee off on a long par four with a creek crossing the fairway about 310 yards out. During the first two rounds, he had laid up and then hit over the creek. But after failing to make par using that approach, he elected to See SITOMPUL, Page 9A Catrambone regains confidence, climbs to No. 1 on high bar By COLT ROSENSWEIG Daily Sports Writer It's one of the first sounds you hear walking into the Newt Loken Gymnastics Training Center: the "sonic boom." The explosive blast of junior Joe Catrambone's laughter can over- whelm almost any background noise. It signals the start of another day at practice - and that Catram- bone's feeling good. A 5-foot-3 ball of energy, especially after chug- ging a Mountain Dew Code Red, Catrambone can affect everyone in the gym with his mood. And this season, Catrambone has rebounded dramatically from a frustrating sophomore year to become the No. 1 high bar perform- er in the country. "When he's having a good day in the gym, there's just this positive energy and atmosphere that every- one feels," freshman Ian Makowske said. "I think that's the beginning of a leader, in that you can see his influence on the team." Warming up on high bar, his best event, Catrambone resembles a swinging frog. With his limb fly- ing in all directions, the fact that he actually possesses proper joints suddenly seems questionable. "He's pretty much like a human pretzel," sophomore Torrance Laury said. But as easily as flipping a switch, Catrambone snaps into perfect form. Though he's the third-short- est gymnast on the team, his exten- sion on high bar is so pronounced that he seems long-bodied. He smoothly executes difficult skills, including a stretched Yamawaki release, where he throws himself over the bar like a dolphin, and a dynamic triple backflip dismount. But it's been a long and difficult return to the top of the high-bar rankings -.and to that happy-go- lucky personality. 4 As a freshman, Catrambone's smile seemed permanent and his confidence unshakable. Not only was he one of the team's best high- bar men, he also competed in the all-around in most meets. But last year, he slumped severe- ly. Early on, Catrambone was cut backtojustthree events: rings, par- allel bars and high bar. A rock-bot- tom parallel-bars routine in March triggered his removal from that See CATRAMBONE, Page 9A ail I Take a bite out of the Big Apple and have a taste of your dream career in the city that never sleeps. We're taking all the excitement of the Michigan Apprentice program on the road to New York City. Four lucky Michigan students will have the opportunity of a lifetime, spending a day shadowing high- profile alumni. If you're a junior or senior you could be one of the lucky four selected for an all-expenses-paid one-day internship in New York with one of these Michigan success stories: Marketing: Lisa Weiss, '92, senior marketing manager for Elite Traveler Law: Samantha Mahoney , '91, New York commercial litigation attorney Finance: Todd Rosenbluth, '97, Wall Street equity analyst at Standard and Poor's JournaLism: Bill Schmidt, '67, and Richard Berke, '80, assistant managing editors at The New York Times The appLication deadline is Wednesday, March 26. Get details on how to apply at www.umaLumni.com/students. 0 ALUMNI ASSOCIATION UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN 4