Weekly Release #11
4/2/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
Upcoming Schedule
Thu-Sat., April 4-6 -- at NCAA Championships (Norman, Okla.)
Thursday, April 4 -- National Qualifier, 1 p.m. CST
Friday, April 5 -- Team Finals, 7 p.m. CST
Saturday, April 6 -- Individual Event Finals, 7 p.m. CST
Wolverines Look to Regain Team Title
The No. 8-ranked University of Michigan men's gymnastics team looks to regain the NCAA title at the 2002 NCAA Championships on Thursday through Saturday (April 4-6) in Norman, Okla. Michigan was selected by the NCAA to compete in the first session of the national qualifying meet, which will be held at 1 p.m. CST on Thursday (April 4) at Lloyd Noble Center on the campus of the University of Oklahoma. The top three teams from each of the two qualifying sessions will advance to the team finals and all-around finals on Friday (April 5) at 7 p.m. CST. The weekend of championship competition concludes on Saturday (April 6) at 7 p.m. CST with the individual event finals, where the top eight gymnasts in each event from Friday's competition will compete to be named the national champion.
ESPN to Broadcast NCAA Team Finals
The team finals of the 2002 NCAA Men's Gymnastics Championships will be broadcast tape-delayed on Saturday (April 13) at 6 p.m. EDT on ESPN2. It will then be replayed on ESPN on Tuesday, May 7, at 2:30 p.m. EDT.
Michigan vs. Session I Opponents
Michigan will compete in the first session of the national qualifying meet on Thursday (April 4). The Wolverines will face five other schools, including four Big Ten Conference foes. No. 1 Ohio State, No. 4 Illinois, No. 5 Minnesota, No. 10 Temple and No. 11 Stanford are the other early-session competitors.
The Wolverines have not faced Temple or Stanford this season and hold a 4-2 record against the remaining opponents. Michigan split the season series with Ohio State, winning at the Windy City Invitational (Jan. 12) while falling to the Buckeyes at last weekend's Big Ten Championships (March 22). The Wolverines also split the season series with the Fighting Illini, falling to them in the opening weekend (Jan. 12) but avenging that loss at the Big Ten Championships. The Wolverines defeated Minnesota in all three meetings this year (Jan. 12, Jan. 19 and March 22).
Last Year at the NCAA
The Wolverines finished in fourth place at the 2001 NCAA Championships as host Ohio State University used a 1-2 finish in the all-around competition to capture the team championship with a score of 218.125. The Maize and Blue holds three team championships in the 58-year history of the program (1963, '70, '99).
Returning All-Americans
The Wolverines will return six All-Americans to the NCAA Championships, five of whom will look to continue their reign. Three of the four seniors look to add to the multiple All-America distinctions they have earned over the last four years. Daniel Diaz-Luong (Harrisburg, Pa./Bishop McDevitt HS) and Kris Zimmerman (Winnetka, Ill./New Trier HS) return to try adding on to the pair of all-America distinctions they each earned at last year's NCAA Championships. Senior Justin Toman (Wallingford, Conn./Lyman Hall HS) returns after redshirting last year to try and regain the parallel bars championship he captured in 1999 and shared with Zimmerman in 2000.
Senior Brad Kenna (Barberton, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit HS) and Conan Parzuchowski (Northville, Mich./University of Detroit Jesuit HS) also return after capturing All-America honors on the vault and still rings, respectively, last year. Scott Vetere (Pennsburg, Pa./Quakertown HS), who earned All-America honors in the all-around and on the still rings, parallel bars and horizontal bar at last year's NCAA Championship, is an eight-time All-American but is redshirting this season due to injury.
Wolverines Finish Second at Big Ten Championships
Led by seniors Daniel Diaz-Luong and Justin Toman, the Wolverines finished in second place at the Big Ten Conference Championships on March 22 at the University of Minnesota's Sports Pavilion. With a team score of 215.100 -- their best of the season against collegiate opponents -- the No. 8-ranked Wolverines finished runner-up for the second straight year behind No. 2 Ohio State, which ran away from the field with a winning score of 218.100. Penn State (214.600) finished third.
Diaz-Luong captured fourth place in the all-around with a score of 53.625 to earn a spot on the All-Big Ten team. Contributing to his all-around score were a second-place finish on the parallel bars (8.950) and a fifth-place effort on the horizontal bar (9.200). Toman also qualified for the All-Big Ten team by finishing sixth in the all-around with a 53.050. He finished fourth on the still rings (9.350) and tied for sixth on the parallel bars (8.850).
Hertza Shares Big Ten Pommel Horse Title
Junior Jamie Hertza (West Bloomfield, Mich./West Bloomfield HS) earned his first pommel horse championship at the individual event finals of the 2002 Big Ten Championships on March 23. Hertza finished the event in a tie for first with a score of 9.400.
Individuals Compete in Event Finals
In addition to pommel horse champion Jamie Hertza, six other members of the Wolverines' team competed in the individual event finals of the 2002 Big Ten Championships on March 23. Conan Parzuchowski finished runner-up on the still rings (9.550), while Justin Toman (Wallingford, Conn./Lyman Hall HS) finished fourth on the parallel bars with a 8.800. Also finishing in the top five for the Wolverines were senior Brad Kenna and freshman Edward Umphrey (Albuquerque, N.M./La Cueva HS) on the vault (9.2375) and floor exercise (8.8000), respectively.
Diaz-Luong and Toman Named to All-Big Ten Team
Due to stellar performances at the Big Ten Championships, seniors Daniel Diaz-Luong and Justin Toman were named to their fourth All-Big Ten team. The All-Big Ten team consists of the individual event winners and the top six all-around competitors. Diaz-Luong and Toman finished fourth and sixth respectively, in the all-around competition.
Wolverines Hold On to No. 8 Ranking
In the latest GymInfo national rankings (March 25) the Wolverines remained in the No. 8 spot for the fourth consecutive week with an average score of 212.150. The Maize and Blue is currently ranked second on the still ring, fifth on the parallel bars, sixth on the floor exercise, seventh on the horizontal bar, eighth on the vault and ninth on the pommel horse. Big Ten teams hold six of the top eight spots in the team rankings -- No. 1 Ohio State, No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Illinois, No. 5 Minnesota, No. 7 Iowa and No. 8 Michigan. The top 12 teams have been selected to compete in the 2002 NCAA Championship. The rankings are currently based upon the NCAA average.
GymInfo National Rankings (3/25/02)
(by NCAA Average)
1. Ohio State 216.392 2. Oklahoma 216.067 3. Penn State 215.383 4. Illinois 214.000 5. Minnesota 213.792 6. California 213.725 7. Iowa 213.008 8. MICHIGAN 212.150 9. Massachusetts 209.650 10. Temple 209.200 11. Stanford 208.275 12. William & Mary 207.083 13. Nebraska 206.025 14. Santa Barbara 204.525 15. Illinois-Chicago 204.467
Individual Gymnasts Ranked Nationally
Individually the Wolverines continue to be among the nation's elite. Leading the way for the Wolverines is junior Conan Parzuchowski, who is ranked sixth on the still rings with a 9.467 average. Also ranked in the top 10 are senior Justin Toman, who is eighth on the parallel bars, and junior Jamie Hertza, who is seventh on the pommel horse after sharing the Big Ten title last weekend.
Individual Season Bests
| Gymnast | FX | PH | SR | V | PB | HB | AA |
| Brian Berends | -- | -- | -- | 8.450 | -- | 8.600 | -- |
| Geoffery Corrigan | 7.600 | 8.800 | -- | 8.850 | 8.600 | 8.900 | -- |
| Daniel Diaz-Luong | 9.050 | 9.600 | 9.200 | 9.150 | 8.950 | 9.200 | 53.6250 |
| David Flannery | 7.550 | -- | -- | -- | -- | 8.450 | -- |
| Chris Gatti | 8.700 | 8.400 | 9.050 | 8.400 | 8.950 | 9.000 | 51.500 |
| Kevin George | -- | 8.800 | 8.900 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Jamie Hertza | 9.000 | 9.400 | -- | -- | -- | 8.350 | -- |
| Brad Kenna | 9.400 | 8.350 | -- | 9.375 | 9.150 | 9.200 | -- |
| Conan Parzuchowski | 8.700 | -- | 9.700 | 9.150 | 8.200 | 8.400 | -- |
| Brian Skvarla | 7.200 | -- | 8.500 | 8.700 | -- | -- | -- |
| Justin Toman | 9.100 | 7.800 | 9.300 | 9.350 | 9.050 | 9.050 | 53.050 |
| Edward Umphrey | 9.150 | 8.350 | 8.900 | 9.350 | 8.350 | 8.300 | 49.450 |
| Scott Vetere | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Kris Zimmerman | 9.000 | 9.050 | 9.300 | 9.200 | 9.150 | 9.575 | 52.550 |
Team Season Bests
| Event | Score | Date | Site |
| Team Total | 216.800 | 3/15/02 | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Team Total | 216.800 | 3/15/02 | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Floor Exercise | 36.200 | 2/16/02 | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Pommel Horse | 36.100 | 3/3/02 | Berkeley, Calif. |
| Still Rings | 37.075 | 3/15/02 | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| | 37.075 | 3/22/02 | Minneapolis, Minn. |
| Vault | 36.850 | 3/15/02 | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Parallel Bars | 35.750 | 2/16/02 | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Horizontal Bar | 36.825 | 3/15/02 | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
Contact: Louis Levine (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
