TEmmis ous ED
The Michigan men's tennis team hosted
the Big Ten Championships last week-
end only to be eliminated by their first
opponent. Page 13.
SPORTS
Tuesday
May 4, 1999 1~t
Leaders and best
Toman tops field in parallel bars
By Dan Dingerson
Daily Sports Writer
LINCOLN, Neb. - The goal for
the men's gymnastics team this year
was to win a team national champi-
onship. On April 23, the team accom-
plished that.
The season was not over though for
the Wolverines, as the following night
they had to prepare for individual
championships.
Michigan had 1 I routines that qual-
ified for the event championships,
more than any other team. Sophomore
co-captain Justin Toman and freshman
Scott Vetere led the Wolverines by
qualifying for three events each.
The competition determined not
only the event individual champions,
but the top six qualifiers in each event
were also named all-America.
During the team qualifying round,
the all-around national champion was
crowned. The Wolverines had three
gymnasts competing in the all-around
with Toman, Vetere and junior Lalo
1-aro.
At NCAAs - just as he had two
weeks earlier at Big Tens - Toman
fell just .15 short of the title, this time
with a 57.9.
"It was disappointing, to finish so
close again, but the team title makes
up for it," Toman said. "It was like
dria vu when they were announcing it
it was just like at Big Tens."
On April 24, Toman rebounded
from the disappointment of finishing
second to take the national champi-
onship on the parallel bars with a
9.8375.
Haro was scheduled to only com-
pete in five events the previous day,
but when it looked like Michigan rs
certain to qualify for the team finals.
coaches Kurt Golder and Mike Burns
decided to give Ilaro the chance to
place in the all-around competition,
where he finished 13th.
Vetere started strong, but finislrh"
See LEADERS, Page 13
Golder n Coach oft/icsYear;
Burns named topy ass istant
By Dan Dingerson
lDably Sportrs Writer
LINCOLN, Neb. As the Michigan
men's gymnastics team basked in the
glory of its first national championship
since 1970, one man stood out as the
proudest of all.
Coach Kurt Colder, the NCAA
Coach of the Year, is the one person most
responsible for the revitalization of the
men's gymnastics program at Michigan.
Although Colder would be the first to
credit his gymnasts for winning the
national championship, he would be
mistaken if he did not acknowledge what
he has done for the team in his three
years in Ann Arbor.
Colder inherited a team that had fall-
en on misfortune after winning a corn-
bited 18 NCAA championships both
indisidual and team betwnseen 1963
and 1970. In that time. Wolverines wer
named all-America 26 times, sine
1970, only nine times did Michigan
gymnasts achieve the same.
When lie took over the team, it had
ust finished a season that saw Michigan
go winless, finishing last in the Big Ten.
General consensus amongst the
holdovers was that the team might have
been the worst in the country that year.
Golder, who had competed for
Michigan in the 1970s was coaching at
Iowa at the time. He was spending a co
ple of years as an assistant there, afi
coaching internationally.
"It was hard to see Michigan go
See COACH, Page 13
Justin Toman scored a 9.8375 on the parallel bars to capture the national title. In
all, five Wolverines returned to Ann Arbor with all-America honors.
April 6, 1996 May 1, 1996 January 18, 1'
'M' lases to Michigan State and Coach Bob Darden resigns ater a 3-22rcord 'M' begins new era un
Western Michigan; in his final two seasons. Ahtic Department owa assistant Kurt ,
condudes 0-16 season. considendopping progran goes on to finish sea
997
der former
tGolder;
ason 7-25.
February 14, 1998
'M'defeats Minnesota to
secure its fit Big Ten victory
in three seasons.
April 4, 1998
Wolveines sneak into NCAA East
Regional as No. seed;
conclude 8-12 season.
March 20, 1999
'M' ears No. 1 ranking after
defeating Michigan State with a
scare of 231.85.
March 26, 1999
No. 1 Michigan wins firt
Big Ten championship
since 1973.
AprI 23, 1999
NAroNAL
CHAMPIONS!
Women nearly dethrone Georgia
By Stephen A. Rom
Daily Sports Writer
SALT LAKE CITY -Michigan's
hid to attain its first women's national
championship fell just .300 of a point
short last week at the NCAA women's
gymnastics championships.
That slim margin was all that stood
between Michigan and last year's nation-
al champion, Georgia, who won the meet
196.850 - 196.550 to secure its first
back-to-back title. In addition, the Lady
Bulldogs went undefeated for the second
straight season, pushing their consecu-
tire win streak to 64.
The last time Georgia lost was at the
1997 NCAA championships when
UCLA took the honors. Michigan, who
had survived the opening day of compe-
tition on April 22to advance to the Super
Six, kept things close the whole way
t t:ough.
So close in fact that Georgia coach
Suzanne Yoculan found it necessary to
keep abreast of the Wolverines' running
score throughout the meet.
"I have our little spy Sandi Karchlmer
(Georgia's Sports Information Director)
get me all the scores. I need to know,"
she said.
Be that as it may, Yoculan must have
known that Michigan was hot on the
Bulldogs' heels going into the final rota-
tion. Prior to that, Michigan's Christine
Michaud had just hit a season-high
9.900 on the vault to give it a chance to
win at the end. Senior Lisa Simes also
earned that same score on the vault to
help put the third-ranked Wolverines
only .325 of a point behind the top-
ranked Bulldogs going into the home
stretch.
Of all the thinrgs that Georgia's coach
had to tend to at the time, one thing that
she may not have been made aware of is
the fact that the uneven bars -
Michigan's last routine - is its best.
Michigan coach Bev Plocki, however,
was well aware.
"I knew it was a long shot but I still
thought there was a chance," Plocki said.
"I'm just glad my team fought until the
end"
That fight was led by freshman Erin
McWatt, who solidified herself earlier in
the season by consistently leading off the
bar routine with good scores. The cham-
pionships were no different, as in the
clutch, McWatt produced a 9.800 at her
first Super Six appearance.
Michigan's final punch was supplied
by senior Nikki Peters, who had already
won the uneven bar crowns at the Big
Ten and Regional Championships. In
what would be her final competition in
See RUNNERS-UP, Page 15
Blue still in'
playoff hunt
after sweep
By Chris Grandstaff
Daily Sirorts Eitouri
The Michigan baseball team enter
its weekend series against riv,
Michigan State with something to
prove. The Wolverines still had the rot-
ten taste of last Tuesday's 14-4 defeat at
the hands of Notre Dame in their
mouths, and they were now facing a
Michigan State team who had won 10
of its last 12 games, moving it into fifth
place in the conference. With a sub-par
performance against the Spartans this
weekend, Michigan would fall outt
the fourth and final Big Ten playoff
spot.
See BASEBALL, Page 15
Michigan catcher David Parrish had a
career day Saturday as the Wolverines
swept Michigan State.