Wolverines Top UIC to Complete Perfect Regular Season

Saturday, March 22

Ann Arbor, Mich. (Crisler Center)

7:00 PM

Michigan

445.850

401.750

UIC

Wolverines Top UIC to Complete Perfect Regular Season

3/22/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics

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March 22, 2014

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Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Crisler Center)
Score: #4 Michigan 445.85, UIC 401.75
Next U-M Meet: Fri-Sat., March 28-29 -- at Big Ten Championships (Lincoln, Neb.), 7 p.m. CDT

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 4-ranked University of Michigan men's gymnastics team completed its first undefeated regular season since 1974, cruising to a 445.85-401.75 victory over the UIC Flames Saturday (March 22) Crisler Center. Michigan now sets its sights on defending its 2013 Big Ten championship next Friday and Saturday (March 28-29) in Lincoln, Neb., where action starts at 7 p.m. CDT each night.

The Wolverines (19-0) were led on the night by senior Sam Mikulak (Corona del mar, Calif./Corona del mar), who took home four individual event titles on the night (floor, pommels, vault and high bar). In addition to the season-best team score, Michigan scored season bests on vault and parallel bars and high bar. Additionally, U-M swept all six event titles.

Michigan began the night on floor, where Mikulak scored a career-high 15.85, and junior Stacey Ervin (Taylor, Mich./Truman) scored a 15.80. Classmate Hub Humphrey (Kalamazoo, Mich./Kalamazoo) took third on the event with a 14.50, as U-M scored a 74.85 in the first rotation.

In rotation two on pommels, Mikulak once again led with a 15.25, while seniors Matt Freeman (Canton, Mich./Plymouth) took second (14.60), and Dylan James (Valencia, Calif./William S. Hart) scored a 14.40 for the event sweep. U-M led the Flames 146.15-131.20 after the second rotation.

Michigan then went on to sweep the next four events and led by as many as 36 points heading into the final rotation.

The Maize and Blue scored 73.35 on rings, with Freeman taking the title, and 74.90 on vault, as Tristian Perez-Rivera (Caguas, Puerto Rico/Notre Dame) marked a 15.25 for his second career vault win. Sophomore Konner Ackerman (Des Moines, Wash./Mount Rainier) equaled the score, as the pair shared the event title.

U-M then closed out the night with a 76.70 on parallel bars and a 74.65 on high bar, as Mikulak secured his sixth career parallel bars title and 11th high-bar win of his stellar career.

Team Standings	FX	PH	SR	VT	PB	HB	Final
Michigan	74.95	71.30	73.35	74.90	76.70	74.65	445.85
UIC	66.90	64.30	66.75	70.65	66.45	66.70	401.75

Event Winners/U-M Finishers

FLOOR EXERCISE (74.95)Hub Humphrey           14.50 (3)Tristian Perez-Rivera  14.50Syque Caesar           14.20Stacey Ervin           15.90 (1)Sam Mikulak            15.85 (2) POMMEL HORSE (71.30)Nick Hunter            14.05Matt Freeman           14.60 (2)A.J. Schottstaedt      13.00Dylan James            14.40 (3)Sam Mikulak            15.25 (1) STILL RINGS (73.35) Hub Humphrey         14.55Colin Mahar            14.55 (3)Matt Freeman           15.15 (1)Jordan Gaarenstroom    14.75 (2)Alex Bubnov            14.35 VAULT (74.90) Anthony Stefanelli     14.40Syque Caesar           15.05 (3)Paul Rizkalla Jr.      14.95Tristian Perez-Rivera  15.25 (1)Konner Ackerman        15.25 (t1) PARALLEL BARS (76.70)Jordan Gaarenstroom    14.75Stacey Ervin           15.30Nick Hunter            15.40 (3)Syque Caesar           15.55 (2)Sam Mikulak            15.70 (1) HIGH BAR (74.65)Konner Ackerman        14.30Stacey Ervin           14.40Nick Hunter            15.30 (2)Syque Caesar           15.15 (3)Sam Mikulak            15.50 (1)

N O T E S

• The last defeat Michigan suffered was on March 9, 2013, and the Wolverines are now 36-0 over that span.

• Michigan improves to 11-2 all-time against the Flames.

• The meet in Crisler Center was the first for the squad since the 2009 Big Ten Championships and the first dual meet in the venue in more than a decade.

• Sam Mikulak won the Newt Loken Award for his overall performance on the night.

• The night also served as Senior Night for U-M, as the team's seven seniors were honored, as well as support staff members Mike Begin, Kyle Thomas and Corbett Schmitz.