Wolverines Ranked Fourth in 2004 CGA Preseason Poll
10/29/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan men's gymnastics team is rated as the fourth best team in the nation according to the College Gymnastics Association's 2004 preseason poll released Wednesday (Oct. 29.) The Wolverines finished the 2003 season with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships.
Head coach Kurt Golder will enter the season without a senior on his roster. The Wolverines will rely on their young and talented gymnasts to develop over the course of the 2004 season with hopes that they once again can challenge at the NCAA Championships (April 1-3) in Champaign, Ill.
Sophomore Andrew DiGiore (Buffalo, N.Y./City Honors School), the reigning NCAA and Big Ten Conference champion on the vault, returns this season for the Wolverines. Other key returnees for Michigan are 2003 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and All-American in the all-around Justin Laury (Marietta Ga./McEachern HS) and junior captain Chris Gatti (Chelmsford, Mass./Chelmsford HS), who will be looked to for leadership following a medical redshirt year in 2003.
The season kicks off with the annual Maize and Blue Intrasquad exhibition on Saturday, Dece. 13, at the Cliff Keen Arena.
2004 CGA Preseason Coaches Poll
Rank, Team (1st-Place Votes) 1. Ohio State (9) 2. Oklahoma (3) 3. Illinois (1) 4. MICHIGAN (1) 5. Penn State 6. Iowa 7. California 8. Minnesota 9. Stanford 10. Nebraska 11. Temple 12. William & Mary 13. Army 14. Illinois-Chicago 15. Air Force
Contact: David Vitatoe (734) 763-4423
