Consistency.
Following the Michigan men's gymnastics Maize and Blue Intrasquad meet Friday - the first meet of the season - that was the word topping the list of what the tumblers needed to work on.
"I was disappointed in the consistency," Michigan coach Kurt Colder said. "But looking at the scores, and considering the fact that we're competing under new (International Gymnastics Federation) rules for the first time, I'm pleased overall."
Senior co-captain Flavio Martins also cited consistency as a goal for the team.
"We must work on getting more difficulty in the sets and on our consistency," Martins said. "We're not going to be doing big tricks too much, so if we're going to win competitions, it's going to be because of consistency."
Martins, who competed in the all-around, had many bittersweet moments. During his 8.95 pommel horse performance, his legs dropped low on more than one occasion. While he never fell and his successful scissor half bolstered his performance, his outing was more of a tooth-and-nail fight with the horse rather than a graceful flurry of movements upon it.
His rings performance was most disappointing, however. Martins's attempted pressed invert fell completely flat, costing him a major deduction. Martins's score (6.6) was the lowest of the four Wolverines who tackled the rings, while senior Edwin Ledgard's 9.25 performance was exemplified by one virtually perfect maltese followed by another, no less precise.
But it was freshman Jose Haro who stole the night, as his crisp performance on the rings earned him a 9.65. He would again receive a 9.65 for his parallel bar routine. The scores were the highest given at the Maize and Blue.
"(Haro) is an extremely exciting guy to watch," Colder said, citing the fact that Haro, unlike the other Wolverines, has seen international action. He competed in the World Championships last year on the Mexican national team.
But even Haro, who competed all-around, was hurt a few times by judicial deductions. On the floor, he received a four-tenths deduction for performing an extra layout. He stepped out once, slipped on a front full and took a step on a double full twist. But due to the high difficulty of his routine and few other flaws, Haro managed to earn a 9.05 from the judges.
On the high bar, his two Kovac attempts (a highly difficult double-back over the bar) ended in two falls, and two major deductions. Later, his two reverse hechts were followed by a failed gienger attempt, which led to another fall and another major deduction. His 7.0 score was the lowest on the high bar and the second-lowest score given throughout the meet.
Senior co-captain Jason MacDonald's ankle, which was stretched last season did not seem to affect his exercises on the floor (9.0) or on the parallel bars (8.15).
But following his 9.0 layout on the vault, MacDonald was limping visibly.
"My ankle's just sore," he said. "And until I'm done with the sport of gymnastics it'll be with me. So I'll just push through it."
Sophomore Randy D'Amura also had problems with an ankle he sprained in early November. The injury was one of several that which contributed to his 6.6 performance on the pommel horse, which included four falls and a weak attempt at a scissors routine.
"I wasn't aggressive enough," he said. "I lost intensity after the first fall."
Freshman Ethan Johnson was equally unhappy with his performances. While he received an 8.55 on the rings, he garnered only a 7.95 and a 7.5 on the pommel horse and parallel bars, respectively.
"I need to get my confidence up," he said. "This was my first college meet, and things were a little nerve-wracking. But things can only go up from here."
The team's total hit percentage was 71.4 for the meet.
With 10 of the 16 gymnasts being freshmen or transfer students, Johnson said the team is still working on its collective chemistry.
"With this many new team members, you have to expect a few kinks and glitches," he said.
"But once we get comfortable, we'll definitely kick some ass."
Margaret Myers/Daily
The Michigan men's gymnastics team will have to work on its pommel horse routines once the Wolverines begin competing against other squads. At Friday's Intrasquad meet, the scores on the horse accounted for some of the team's lowest.