Michigan
Minnesota
Wolverine Tumblers Defeat Fourth Top-10 Opponent
1/15/2000 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
Site: Minneapolis, Minn. (Sport Facility)
Score: #3 Michigan 195.175, #4 Minnesota 193.200
Records: Michigan (4-2, 1-0 Big Ten), Minnesota (1-1, 0-1 Big Ten)
Attendance: 2,179
Next U-M Meet: Thursday, Jan. 20 -- vs. Michigan State (Cliff Keen Arena), 7 p.m.
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- The third-ranked University of Michigan women's gymnastics team defeated its fourth top-10 opponent this season with a 195.175-193.200 road win over fourth-ranked Minnesota on Saturday (Jan. 15). Senior tri-captain Sarah Cain (Grand Island, Neb./Grand Island HS) paced the Wolverine victory by winning the all-around with a season-best score of 39.200.
Cain, who won the vault (9.825), led a Michigan vault lineup which earned the top four individual places and gave the Wolverines a team score of 48.575, compared to 48.150 for the Golden Gophers. Janessa Grieco (Mahopac, N.Y./Carmel HS), Sarah-Elizabeth Langford (Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) and Christine Michaud (Mill Valley, Calif./The Branson School) all tied for second (9.700).
Michigan, which is annually one of the strongest teams in the country on the uneven bars, struggled on that event tonight with a meet-low team score of 48.550. In fact, it was the only event Minnesota outscored Michigan in for the meet as Minnesota notched a team total of 48.725. Junior Bridget Knaeble (New Hope, Minn./Totino-Grace HS) notched a personal season-best 9.825 to lead Michigan's bars lineup.
With Minnesota nipping on Michigan's heels, the Wolverines put some distance between themselves and their competition with a great performance on the balance beam. Michigan, which struggled to a meet-low 48.075 on the balance beam a week ago at the Super Six Challenge, outscored Minnesota on the beam 49.025-47.425. Freshman Cami Singer (Monument, Colo./Lewis Palmer HS) tied Cain for top honors on the beam with a mark of 9.850. Michigan also owned the next three places on the balance beam as Grieco, Kate Nellans (Mundelein, Ill./Mundelein HS) and Shannon MacKenzie (Midland, Mich./Midland HS) tied for third on the beam (9.775).
Michigan scored a 49.000 or better on the floor exercise for the second straight meet as the Wolverines outdueled Minnesota 49.025-48.900 on that event. No Wolverine scored lower than a 9.700, while junior Karina Senior (Markham, Ontario/Milliken Mills HS) paced Michigan with a career-high 9.875. Also aiding the Wolverine cause was freshman Grieco, who followed up her collegiate debut of 9.900 on the floor exercise at the Super Six Challenge with a score of 9.825 tonight.
Michigan's next meet is its home opener, on Thursday, Jan. 20 (7 p.m.) vs. Michigan State at Cliff Keen Arena.
Final Results
TEAM SCORES Vault Bars Beam Floor Total 1. Michigan 48.575 48.550 49.025 49.025 195.175 2. Minnesota 48.150 48.725 47.425 48.900 193.200
Event-By-Event U-M Individual Scores
ALL-AROUND Sarah Cain 39.200 (1) Karina Senior 37.900 VAULT Amy Kuczera 9.575 Janessa Grieco 9.700 (T2) Karina Senior 9.650 Sarah-Elizabeth Langford 9.700 (T2) Christine Michaud 9.700 (T2) Sarah Cain 9.825 (1) UNEVEN BARS Amy Kuczera 9.675 Kate Nellans 9.575 Tara Tagliarino 9.725 Karina Senior 9.125 Bridget Knaeble 9.825 (T1) Sarah Cain 9.750 (T4) BALANCE BEAM Janessa Grieco 9.775 (T3) Cami Singer 9.850 (T1) Shannon MacKenzie 9.775 (T3) Karina Senior 9.250 Kate Nellans 9.775 (T3) Sarah Cain 9.850 (T1) FLOOR EXERCISE Jodie Rosenberg 9.775 (T5) Melissa Peterson 9.700 Cami Singer 9.775 (T5) Janessa Grieco 9.825 (3) Karina Senior 9.875 (1) Sarah Cain 9.775 (T5) ( ) denotes place in the Top 5
NOTES
• Karina Senior's win on the floor exercise was the first of her career on that event.
• Cami Singer, competing in just the second meet of her career, placed first in an event for the first time. Singer tied teammate Sarah Cain for top honors on the balance beam with a 9.850.
• Michigan is now 4-2 on the season, with all six opponents having been rated in the top 10.
Players Mentioned
