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NCAA Nationals Wrap-Up
Apr. 26, 2008 Update
Results : mgoblue

On Saturday evening, the Michigan Wolverines cheered on two of their own in the NCAA Individual Event Finals - freshman Kylee Botterman and junior Becky Bernard. With 18 gymnasts qualifying for the bars finals, the group was split into three flights of 6 gymnasts. Kylee competed first in the second flight, or seventh overall. Her bars set included a high reverse hecht and a full-twisting double layout dismount and scored a 9.850 among 6 judges (one handstand was short - a 0.1 deduction) for a share of 8th place. Becky competed first in the third flight, or fourteenth overall. Her bars set included a hop full, a giant double pirouette, and a double layout dismount. The routine was going well, but a step on the dismount and the resulting 0.1 deduction resulted in a 9.8375 score and a share of 12th place. UCLA senior Tasha Schwikert won the event with a 9.9375.

In other great news, Assistant Coach Scott Sherman was recognized as the 2008 NCAA Women's Gymnastics Assistant Coach of the Year! Congratulations Scott! In addition, fifth-year senior Lindsey Bruck was named one of the finalists for the Honda Award. Congrats Bruck!

Proud to be a Wolverine
Apr. 24, 2008 Update
Results : mgoblue | georgia

Fith year senior Lindsey Bruck and redshirt freshman Sarah Curtis posted all-around scores of 39.225 and 39.050, respectively in Thursday's evening preliminary session, but it was not enough to propel our Michigan Wolverines into the NCAA Super Six finals. U-M scored a 196.075 on Thursday night to finish 5th in their session (0.825 from third place) and tied for 8th overall as a team. Florida, Alabama, and LSU advanced from the afternoon session, while Georgia, Utah, and Stanford advanced from the evening session.

After a bye, the team began the night on floor and scored a 49.100 overall. Freshman Kylee Botterman led the Wolverines on the event with a 9.850 and Lindsey, Sarah, and Senior Katie Lieberman posted 9.825s, respectively. The third rotation found Michigan on vault (48.950), where steps on landings were deducted heavily. Again, Kylee led the team with a 9.875 on the event - earning her NCAA Second-Team All-America honors! After a bye in the fourth rotation, the Wolverines moved to their signature event - the uneven bars - and showed why they were ranked in the top 3 in the nation on the event for most of the regular season. The team posted a 49.375 and 6 scores of 9.850 or higher. Junior Becky Bernard and Kylee anchored the rotation with dual 9.90's - earning them NCAA First-Team All-America honors on the event and a spot in the Individual Event Finals on Saturday night. Congratulations ladies!

Michigan concluded the night on the balance beam, where inconsistent scoring from the judges stalled the Wolverines momentum. Despite solid beam routines from 5 of our gymnasts - the team earned only a 48.650 on the event. Becky posted the highest score for the team - a beautiful routine that only earned her a 9.775.

NCAA Nationals Info
Apr. 18, 2008 Update
More Info : mgoblue | georgia

Our Wolverines will compete in the evening preliminary session on Thursday April 24th. The top three teams from both the afternoon and evening sessions will advance to the NCAA Super Six Finals on Friday night. The winner of the all-around competition will be decided on Thursday during the preliminaries, while the individual event winners will be determined on Saturday evening. UMgym.com will post detailed updates on how the team is doing each night so stay tuned. GO BLUE!

Michigan Advances to Nationals!
Apr. 12, 2008 Recap
Results: mgoblue | scores

The Wolverines posted a 196.375 on Saturday night to advance to the NCAA National Championships on April 24-26th. Oregon State placed first with a 197.1 and will also advance. Michigan State (195.125), Washington (194.075), San Jose State (193.850), and Sacramento State (193.575) rounded out the competitive teams.

The Wolverines began the night on a bye. In the second rotation, Michigan moved to bars and scored a 49.050 team score - led by a 9.850 by redshirt freshman Sarah Curtis and a 9.825 by fifth-year senior Lindsey Bruck. U-M rotated to beam and rallied for a 49.100 on the event. Co-captain Lindsey shined with a 9.900 on her signature event while senior standout Megan Moore posted a 9.850. After two rotations, Michigan was in second place, 0.45 points behind regional host Oregon State and 0.90 points ahead of third place San Jose St. In the fourth rotation, our Wolverines were on a bye. In the fifth rotation, Michigan went to the floor and posted a 49.300 team total! Freshman Kylee Botterman, Sarah, and Lindsey led the Wolverines with 9.875s on the event. In the final rotation, U-M moved to the vault and scored a 48.925 to secure the second and final spot to nationals. The Wolverines were led by dual 9.825s by Kylee and Sarah.

We believe that the Wolverines will compete in the evening preliminary session against Georgia, Stanford, Utah, UCLA, and Denver, while the afternoon preliminary session should consist of Florida, LSU, Alabama, Oregon State, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. However, official placements will not be announced until Monday.

Off to Oregon State!
Mar. 31, 2008 Update
Results: mgoblue | ncaa

On Monday afternoon, the NCAA announced the pairings for the NCAA Regional Championships Michigan will be the top seed at the West Regional at Oregon State, competing against Oregon State, Michigan State, Washington, San Jose St., and Sacramento State. The competition will begin at 6pm pacific time on Saturday April 12th. The top two teams from this region, along with the top two teams from each of the other five regions, will advance to the NCAA National Championships at Georgia on April 24-26th. Click on the NCAA link above for full details about the pairings.

Wolverines Defend Big 10 Title!
Mar. 29, 2008 Recap
Results: mgoblue | scores
Photos: mgoblue | umgym 

On Saturday afternoon, the Michigan Wolverines posted a 196.750 to defend their Big Ten Championship! The University of Illinois built on their third place finish in 2007 to place second with a 195.750. 2007 Big Ten runner-up Penn State placed third overall with a 195.625. Michigan State (195.050), Iowa (194.775), Minnesota (194.425), and Ohio State (194.075) rounded out the seven competing teams.

The Wolverines began the afternoon on a bye, then proceeded to the balance beam, where they totalled a 49.050. Highlights included a second place finish by fifth-year senior Lindsey Bruck (9.875) and a fifth place finish by redshirt freshman Sarah Curtis (9.850). The third rotation had Michigan on another bye, while the fourth rotation led Michigan to the floor exercise. The team posted a 49.050 overall, highlighted by freshman Kylee Botterman's 9.900 for her first Big Ten title (with PSU's Brandi Personett).

After their third bye of the night in the fifth rotation, Michigan moved to the vault, where they posted a 49.225 - led by two 9.90 performances by senior Katie Lieberman and Kylee, who shared second place on the event. The Wolverines concluded their evening on their strongest event, the uneven bars - and they didn't disappoint (49.425). Highlights included sophomore Maureen Moody's return to the lineup (9.850), junior Tatjana Thuener-Rego's 9.925 for second place on the event, and Sarah's 9.950 for her first Big Ten title of her career. She also finished second in the all-around (39.450).

Lindsey was honored as the Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and Coach Bev Plocki was recognized as a Big Ten Coach of the Year! GO BLUE!

All Big 10 Honorees
Mar. 29, 2008 Update
Results: mgoblue  

Eight Michigan Gymnasts were honored this weekend as either a First or a Second Team All Big 10 Awardee. Fifth-year senior Lindsey Bruck, Junior Becky Bernard, redshirt freshman Sarah Curtis, and freshman Kylee Botterman were recognized with First Team honors, while senior Katie Lieberman, sophomore Kelsey Knutson, freshman Kari Pearce, and freshman Trish Wilson were recognized with Second Team honors.