2B — April 13, 2015 The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com SportsMonday BY THE NUMBERS Michigan Men’s Gymnastics 3.11 Average finish for the Michigan men’s gymnastics team in 18 NCAA Tourna- ments under coach Kurt Golder 1 Finish outside the top six in the nation (in 2006, when the Wolverines did not qualify for the NCAA Championships) 4 National championships under Golder, including the last two seasons, once at Crisler Center 2008 Last time Michigan finished worse than second in the Big Ten until this year, when it finished third ‘M’ misses three-peat Wolverines finish fourth behind Oklahoma, Penn State, Stanford By CAROLYN KODIS Daily Sports Writer The third time wasn’t the charm for the Michigan men’s gymnastics team. Friday night, the second- ranked Wolverines aimed for a three-peat as national champions, but came up short, landing in fourth place out of six teams. Michigan’s final tally was 437.650, behind eventual champion Oklahoma, Penn State and Stanford. “Obviously I’m disappointed because we didn’t perform up to our capabilities,” said Michigan coach Kurt Golder. “I don’t think we were a good enough team to get past Oklahoma. We would have had to be perfect and they would have had to falter in order to get by them.” Keeping in stride with their last two titles, the Wolverines went with the same event order that had worked so well in the past two years. Their first rotation of the night was the pommel horse, where senior Adrian de los Angeles led the way with a 15.00, followed closely behind by junior Nolan Novak, who scored 14.85. Despite these strong efforts, Michigan couldn’t keep up with its competition and found itself sixth after its first event. That deficit proved to be too much, as Michigan never rose higher than fourth on the night. The Wolverines made up for lost points on the still rings. With big scores from seniors Hub Humphrey and Colin Mahar, Michigan tallied its highest rings score of the season with a total of 73.90. However, the Wolverines were still in a disappointing fifth place, and would stay there during their best event of the season — the vault. Despite high scores from senior Paul Rizkalla and sophomore Anthony Stefanelli, their points were not able to make up for a pair of missed landings. Michigan moved up to fourth place after a strong parallel bars performance. Freshman Dmitri Belanovski made a major contribution to the Wolverines’ fourth rotation with a 14.85. “It’s no surprise,” Golder said. “Dmitri is always a steady guy in practice. I’m so impressed with his consistency, and he’s only a freshman.” Michigan ended its night with an exclamation point on floor. Senior Stacey Ervin and Rizkalla led the way with 15.50 and 15.30, respectively. Both exercises played a key role in earning a season-high total of 75.60 in the event. Unfortunately for Michigan, the scores weren’t enough to push the Wolverines out of fourth place. Four gymnasts represented Michigan the following day in the individual event finals. Novak and de los Angeles competed on pommel horse, and Novak, with a stunning 14.77, finished second in the event. Belanovski wowed again on the high bar, where he tied for third with 15.025, just 0.1 points away from first. Also tying for third, Ervin earned 15.575 on floor. He, Belanovski and Novak all earned All-American honors. “I find it interesting,” Golder said. “(Ervin and Belanovski) have been roommates on the road all season and they both end up tying for third in their events. It’s funny how that worked out.” A pure coincidence between a freshman and senior ended the disappointing weekend on a more positive note. And as Ervin steps down as a team leader, Belanovski steps in as a new star of the team and, possibly, a sign of things to come. SPORTSMONDAY COLUMN Jim Hackett’s indefinite tenure N early half a year into his indefinite tenure as Michigan’s interim athletic director, Jim Hackett hasn’t been very vocal about his stay. One of his only clues as to how long his term will last is that it’s contingent on a discussion with his wife, Kathy. He noted it at a press conference on Nov. 22 and now, most recently, on April 1 after a fireside chat. Maybe he hasn’t had time to finish that talk. After all, he has been busy hiring a new football coach and working to revitalize the fan and player experience at football games. But there’s something disconcerting about one discussion impacting the athletic department’s future. It’s considerate that Jim Hackett is taking on such a big responsibility with his partner. He hasn’t been more transparent about his stay since expressing that sentiment, though, as the athletic year comes to an end with work still to be done. Because as well as Hackett has handled everything, you, the fan of Michigan athletics, should be aware of the impact of his tenure on the greater vision of the Athletic Department — the things that don’t relate to Jim Harbaugh. Jim Hackett says he won’t think of his term as a matter of time; he says it’s about accomplishing his priorities before he figures out his future. That’s a nice policy for building a house or cooking for your housemates, but not so much for the athletic director of a program that saw fans protest at the University President’s house just half a year ago. He has received praise from fans for his work with the team, but before you get too excited, consider that his interim tag could create problems on the execution of that vision. During Dave Brandon’s tenure, the University’s Board of Regents announced an initiative to expand and revamp its athletic campus for smaller sports. Part of it, including offices and facilities for field hockey, softball and both basketball teams, was already completed before Hackett started on Oct. 31. The proposed renovations would impact two-thirds of Michigan’s 27 athletic teams, including the construction of a new track and new rowing facility as well as the expansion of Canham Natatorium and Cliff Keen Arena. You can still see the effort to bring in donations, which is a hefty, long-term project that features teams of associates spread out across the country. Those teams need someone to commit to seeing them through, which can be made easier by setting a timetable. The funding for the project is a task in itself, and it requires the help from donors, people like Stephen M. Ross. Last year, Ross donated $100 million to the athletic campus, in part because of his close relationship with Brandon — he told The Detroit News in a report published Thursday that he was in favor of Brandon staying. Ross told the paper, “Michigan now needs to hire the next athletic director because Jim is the interim one. That’s what everybody is expecting, and you can see what happens when people don’t agree with something at Michigan.” If the biggest donor to the athletic department, the one who the athletic campus is named after, is expecting a new athletic director, then it’s important to clarify his intentions for others. Many people are already on board with what’s done, but it isn’t made easier when he hasn’t set a timetable for how long he’ll be around. It might be tough to convince a donor to give money when they have no idea how long he’ll be around to utilize it. And how does he build the relationship between the administration, including a president that still has little experience in athletics, to trust bigger decisions about the expansion of facilities or fundraising efforts? It might be tough to approve something knowing the athletic director might be out to see the project through. Hackett has already worked to bring back the tradition in the football program, letting Jim Harbaugh make the calls on music played at the Big House or even the color of the cleats. These things please donors, because they’re a return to some of the program’s core values, but how much more can Hackett finish before time is up? Music and cleats are quick fixes. Athletic facilities and stability are long-term projects that become more important in the grand scheme of things. If he were to leave now, then the department would already be set back to rebuilding relationships with coaches and players again. But being transparent about his stay is helpful in picking the next leader. Then the replacement process doesn’t have to be rushed. Maybe that person is Hackett, who has filled in admirably. But the athletic year is coming to an end, and you don’t know what’s coming next because you don’t know how long the leader will be there. And if he does know more, you don’t know what it is because he hasn’t shared. There’s no harm in setting a timetable for everyone. But what’s the benefit to keeping his tenure a mystery? As head of one of the biggest branches of the University, Hackett has managed things as well as he could have been asked. Imagine how much more he could do with one discussion. Garno can reached at ggarno@umich.edu or on Twitter: @G_Garno. ZACH MOORE/Daily Dmitri Belanovski earned All-American honors as a freshman Saturday. GREG GARNO women’s boxing, though, and without connections in the sport, Johnson was unable to find a foe. She finally booked her first fight during her junior year — without telling her parents until after, when she told them she won. “We said, ‘If you’re gonna do something, put everything you have into it,’ and she has,” Sandy Johnson said. “After, when we see the film, we know that she’s won. That makes it a lot easier.” Friday, Sandy and Ed Johnson watched their daughter box in person for the first time at the Intramural Sports Building, which hosted the USIBA College National Championships. And Johnson got all she could handle early from her opponent, Army’s Gaby Barrera-Gutierrez. Barrera-Gutierrez came out with a series of frantic punches, looking to wear down Johnson. But Johnson, who, according to her father, runs eight to 10 miles per day, withstood the flurry. She stood her ground and went into the first break looking confident, while Gutierrez looked already fatigued. Normally, Johnson said, she respects her opponents so much that she doesn’t hold grudges during or after a match. This one was different, though. Johnson was actually supposed to fight Barrera- Gutierrez on Thursday, leaving her open for a different match Friday and an appearance at the Golden Gloves tournament in Detroit on Saturday. But Gutierrez didn’t arrive at the tournament, delaying their match to Friday and forcing her to choose between Golden Gloves and another USIBA fight. “I was mad at her,” Johnson said. In the second round, Johnson used that anger as fuel and capitalized on Barrera- Gutierrez’s exhaustion. Taking control of the pace, she landed combo blows and jabs to the side of Barrera-Gutierrez’s head, leading to a standing eight count just before the second bell. With her winning formula already established, she backed Gutierrez into the ropes at the start of the third round. Pushing her along the edge of the ring, Johnson landed a series of combos to the body and head, relentlessly exploiting openings until the referee called the match. “I realized she had a pause when she was swinging when she was tired,” Johnson said. “I figured she probably couldn’t take hard punches. So that’s what I tried to do — just clean, hard shots.” Outwardly unassuming and modest, Johnson is a tactician in the ring, strategizing while dodging open fists and ducking closed ones. And if she seems surprisingly proficient for a boxer with just two years of live fighting experience, her other role might be even more shocking. Since women’s boxing doesn’t technically have club sport status at the University, Johnson also serves as one of the team’s volunteer coaches. When she wasn’t fighting, she was ringside, cheering the other Michigan women to the team title. Five Wolverine women won individual titles over the weekend, knocking two-time defending champion Army from its pedestal in resounding fashion. And it’s no wonder why they were able to rise to such heights so fast. Johnson’s workout routine is so intense that a SWAT team once trained with her and, as first reported by WCBN, it was so intense that some of the members threw up from it. The small, redheaded senior helped build the program to a national title contender, even without school funding or a full coaching staff, which the Michigan men have. Next year, even though she will have graduated, she hopes it will finally get some of the same advantages the men do. Johnson will hit her head on a brick wall if that’s what it takes. Maybe five individual titles and a team national championship will do the trick instead. It might save the brick wall some embarrassment. JOHNSON From Page 1B ALLISON FARRAND/Daily Kate Johnson is a volunteer coach as well as an individual national champion.