Michigan
Penn State
No. 2 Michigan Edged by Top-Ranked Penn State
2/5/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
Site: State College, Pa. (Rec Hall)
Score: #1 Penn State 226.500, #2 Michigan 226.175
Records: U-M (6-4), PSU (4-0)
Next U-M Event: Fri-Sat., Feb. 12-13 -- Winter Cup Challenge (Las Vegas, Nev.) 7 p.m. MST
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- In a matchup of the top two ranked teams in men's college gymnastics, No. 1 Penn State slipped past second-ranked Michigan 226.500-226.175 on Friday (Feb. 5) in front of 2,048 fans at Rec Hall. Michigan is now 6-4 on the season, while Penn State remained undefeated at 4-0 and extended its Rec Hall winning streak to 11 in a row, dating back to Feb. 17, 1996.
Although the Wolverines won the parallel bars (38.375-37.650) and the high bar (37.700-36.700), Michigan could not climb to the top after a 36.350 performance on the vault. Michigan's 36.700 on the high bar at the Windy City Open (Jan. 16) was the Wolverines' only other team score below 37.000 this season. Penn State pulled from a four-tenths overall lead to a solid two-point advantage after outscoring Michigan by 1.65 points (38.000-36.350) on the vault.
Freshman Daniel Diaz-Luong (Harrisburg, Pa./Bishop McDevitt HS) won the all-around competition with a 56.475, which included his first-place finish on the high bar (9.60). Penn State sophomore Tobias Ekman finished second (55.800) in front of Wolverine junior LaLo Haro (Puebla, Pue. Mexico/Instituto Iberia), who received third with a 55.700, and freshman Scott Vetere (Pennsburg, Pa./Quakertown HS), who took fourth (55.200).
Sophomore captain Justin Toman (Wallingford, Conn./Lyman Hall HS) led Michigan in individual events with first-place honors on the floor exercise (9.600), parallel bars (9.700) and high bar (9.600). Sophomore Kenny Keener (Maryville, Tenn./Maryville HS) contributed a third-place finish on the still rings, matching his career high with a score of 9.700.
The Wolverines return to action on Friday and Saturday (Feb. 12-13) at the Winter Cup Challenge in Las Vegas, Nev., at 7 p.m. MST.
Final Team Standings
| Team Scores | FX | PH | SR | V | PB | HB | Total |
| 1. Penn State | 38.100 | 37.500 | 38.550 | 38.000 | 37.650 | 36.700 | 226.500 |
| 2. Michigan | 37.950 | 37.450 | 38.350 | 36.350 | 38.375 | 37.700 | 226.175 |
Event-By-Event U-M Individual Scores
FLOOR EXERCISE Brad Kenna 9.200 Randy D'Amura 9.350 Justin Toman 9.600 (T1) Daniel Diaz-Luong 9.550 (4) LaLo Haro 9.150 Scott Vetere 9.100 POMMEL HORSE Tim Dehr 9.300 (5) Justin Toman 9.100 Josh Levin 9.500 (3) Daniel Diaz-Luong 9.200 LaLo Haro 9.400 (4) Scott Vetere 9.250 STILL RINGS Randy D'Amura 8.850 Ethan Johnson 9.500 Kenny Keener 9.700 (3) Daniel Diaz-Luong 9.500 LaLo Haro 9.350 Scott Vetere 9.650 (T4) VAULT Josh Levin 9.000 Kenny Keener 9.100 Randy D'Amura 9.200 (5) Daniel Diaz-Luong 9.000 LaLo Haro 9.000 Scott Vetere 9.050 PARALLEL BARS Josh Levin 9.200 Kenny Keener 8.900 Justin Toman 9.700 (1) Daniel Diaz-Luong 9.625 (2) LaLo Haro 9.500 (4) Scott Vetere 9.550 (3) HORIZONTAL BAR Kenny Keener 9.150 Josh Levin 9.350 (3) Justin Toman 9.600 (T1) Daniel Diaz-Luong 9.600 (T1) LaLo Haro 9.000 Scott Vetere 8.600 ALL-AROUND Daniel Diaz-Luong 56.475 (1) LaLo Haro 55.700 (3) Scott Vetere 55.200 (4)
( ) denotes place in the Top 5
Players Mentioned
