The Michigan Daily I michigandaily.com I April 19, 2010
After a runner-up
finish last season, the
Michigan men's
gymnastics team won
its sixth national
title, while junior
Chris Cameron
took home the
all-around title.
Despite slumping start,
Santander finds his role
m
By AMY SCARANO
Daily Sports Writer
WEST POINT, New York - Competing
to his potential never was his forte. But in
his last competition for the Michigan men's
gymnastics team and on the biggest stage,
senior Mel Anton Santander laid four years
of hard work in the gym out on the floor.
He finished with a
score of 88.900 Friday at NOTEBOOK
the team NCAA Cham-
pionships, good for third
in the all-around competition, his first-
ever All-America honors. His high scores
qualified him for the parallel and the high
bars in the individual championships on
Saturday where Santander placed second
on the parallel bars with 15.050 points and
tied for third on the high bars with a score
of 14.475.
Santander spent most of his freshman,
sophomore and junior years in a slump.
Notorious for sitting quietly at meets, mull-
ing over his routine in his head and letting
the pressure build up inside him, it wasn't
until the end of his junior season that he
began to excel in competition.
"It's just been a journey for me,"
Santander said. "To come all the way from
the beginning and I just feel like I peaked
at the right time, and it's just awesome. To
finally be an All-American is just absolute-
ly amazing. I'm pretty speechless."
Before the end of his junior season,
Michigan coach Kurt Golder sat down
with the whole team to discuss staying
loose when competing. It took Santander
a few meets to take Golder's advice toj
heart, but when he hit every routine at last
season's NCAA team finals-in which the
Wolverine's finished second-it was clear
he had set the pressure aside and just had
fun.
"People would say that he under-
achieved for his first three years," junior
.and fellow All-American Chris Cameron
said. "At this point in the year, he's been
10 times what many teams hope out of one
of their gymnasts. He's just been a rock.
And seeing Mel do that, it feels so great to
watch my teammate realize his potential
like Mel did this year."
See SANTANDER, Page 3B
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Clockwise from bottom left: Sophomore Adam Hamers, junior Thomas
Kelley, junior Chris Cameron, senior Ryan McCarthy and senior Mel
Santander compete at the NCAA Championships in West Point, New
York. The Wolverines took home their sixth-ever national championship
in men's gymnastics and their first since 1999.
By MICHAEL LAURILA
Daily Sports Writer
WEST POINT, New York -
Fifth-year seniors Ryan
McCarthy, Kent Caldwell and
Phillip Goldberg made that extra
year well worth it Friday when
they won the national champion-
ship.
After a successful season last
year, all three chose to return
for one last shot at a title. Having
finished as the NCAA runner-up
last year, they easily could have
walked away satisfied with that.
"It wasn't all in vain," Gold-
berg said. "I remember last year
at NCAA, Ryan and me started
talking and we were like 'dude
we got to come back'. I kind of
already had the mindset that I
was, but with that NCAA run-
Fifth-year seniors
cherish title win
ner-up finish, I knew we had a
chance to win it all. So, I came
back with that mission to do what-
ever I could to help the team."
In the trio's first year on the
squad as freshmen in 2006, the
Wolverines failed to make the
top six at NCAA for the first time
in nine years and the first time
in Michigan coach Kurt Golder's
tenure at Michigan.
Prior to Golder's arrival in 1997,
they failed to make the NCAA
Tournament for 12 years in a row.
"When us fifth years came in,
we had a lot of hardships," Gold-
berg said. "We were one of the
laughingstocks of all the NCAA
teams. And to come from the bot-
tom all the way to the top, and
take it to the promise land, feels
real good."
See SENIORS, Page 3B
-a
FOOTBALL
Converted safety Cam
Gordon makes debut
By JOE STAPLETON
Daily Sports Editor
While most of the 35,000 sets
of eyes huddled in the cold at Sat-
urday's Michigan football spring
game were focused on the quarter-
backs, one player
was making his NOTEBOOK
debut at a posi-
tion that was far more troubling for
the Wolverines last year.
Saturday's spring game meant
the much-anticipated public debut
of redshirt freshman Cameron
Gordon at safety, where he was
moved from wide receiver this
spring.
For weeks, the reports out of
practice had indicated it was a
smooth transition. At one point
Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez
said it was one of the better person-
nel moves the staff had made.
Before the game, Gordon was
recognized as the team's breakout
player of the spring. And during
the game, he seemed comfortable
at the safety spot - not spectacu-
lar, but he didn't seem to blow any
coverages.
"I feel like I transitioned over to
a new position in a good way," Gor-
don said. "Playing offense last year,
that's where I wanted to stay at, but
I felt like I had to help the team."
Gordon played on both sides
of the ball his entire high school
career. He didn't practice as a safe-
ty last year, but the position isn't
entirely unfamiliar to him.
Gordon's continued progress
should be a huge help for a Michi-
gan team that had its share of trou-
bles at the safety position last year.
"I did good in the spring ball,
could have been better," Gordon
said. "Still, got things to learn,
hopefully when camp come along
with more practices I can keep on
moving forward."
PUNTING PROBLEMS: Marty
Bodnar, Michigan's ticketing
director who was one of the many
athletic department staff members
lining the sidelines during Satur-
day's game, ended up being the
unintended target of many of the
Michigan specialists' punts during
See NOTEBOOK, Page 3B
Robinson
By RYAN KARTJE
Daily Sports Editor
A year ago, as the Michigan
football team took the field for its
annual spring game, high school
senior Denard Robinson stood on
the sidelines at the Big House.
Donning his bright red and yel-
low Deerfield Beach High School
letterman jacket, the dual-threat
quarterback looked on as early
enrollee quarterback Tate Forci-
er impressed Michigan fans and
coaches to the tune of three touch-
downs through the air.
But in this year's edition, Robin-
son didn't spend much time on the
sidelines.
The sophomore, who contribut-
ed mostly with his legs last season,
threw three touchdowns and ran
for one Saturday while working
with the first-team offense, stand-
ing out in comparison to the other
two quarterbacks in contention to
start - Forcier and early enrollee
Devin Gardner.
"He's developed a whole new
aspect of his game as far as mak-
ing great reads and making great
throws," senior defensive line-
man Ryan Van Bergen said. "His
throws are on lasers now, he's not
throwing balls up for grabs. He's
shows off
putting it right on receivers. ...
He's dangerous and he's probably
made the most progression (this
spring)."
"He's always had the ability to
throw it," Michigan coach Rich
Rodriguez added.
Backed up to his own three-yard
line, Robinson stood comfortably
in the pocket and delivered a rope
straight into the hands of sopho-
more wideout Roy Roundtree
who had been streaking on a post
route over the middle of the field.
Roundtree took the catch the dis-
tance, completing the scrimmage's
most electrifying play- 97 yards
long - and solidifying Robinson's
impressive performance.
After the game, Roundtree
insisted that Robinson's improved
passing ability has become obvi-
ous over the course of the spring,
as he has focused more on adding
touch to his throws.
Without that necessary touch
last season, Robinson threw four
interceptions to just two touch-
downs.
"His arm is way better than it
was freshman year," Roundtree
said. "He's not throwing it as hard
like he was, jamming people's fin-
gers."
See ROBINSON, Page 3B
arm at spring game
Sophomore quarterback Denard Robinson accounted for four touchdowns at
Saturday's spring game and continues to push for the starting quarterback job.
BURNIN' RUBBER
0 0 After dominating its first game with
Illinois, the Wolverines took the Illini to the
rubber match and prevailed yet again to stay
atop the Big Ten. Page 3B
: Against one of the Big Ten's better teams,
the Wolverines showed that they could pull
together a complete effort as the bats led the
way past Northwestern. Page 2B
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