Men are favorites to win at championships

All good things must come to an end. This cliché is more fitting in sports than many areas of life. In sports, no matter how good a season or dynasty is, eventually it must end. For the Michigan men's gymnastics team, the end of this season is near.

The Wolverines have enjoyed their best season in 25 years. Michigan has moved up the rankings, occupying one of the top two spots nearly all of the year. The Wolverines were crowned the 1999 Big Ten champions, and on Saturday finished second in the East regional, just missing another title.

After years of imperfect routines and falls, Michigan fans probably never want this team to stop competing. There is only one thing that is making the end of the season attractive - the possibility of a national championship.

Michigan travels to Nebraska to take on the country's best teams, and to claim the coveted title of the nation's best - something it hasn't been since the Nixon administration.

Claiming a national championship won't be easy though. Six teams will be fighting for the crown, and all are ranked in the top 15 in the country.

The three teams from the East region will be the favorites to win it all - Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State have been ranked in the top four nearly all of the season. All three teams have enjoyed time ranked No. 1.

The West region advances three teams that have not performed as well as the Big Ten contingent. Stanford and Brigham Young qualified along with the host school Nebraska. Nebraska has been in the top ten all year long, and should gain some confidence having the home crowd behind them.

Michigan in recent weeks has already seen teams take an advantage from competing at home. At the Big Ten championships, Iowa performed one of their best meets of the season, and claimed second place. At the NCAA regionals in Illinois, the Illini were inspired by their fans to finish fourth, just missing qualifying for championships.

"I thought that Iowa would have a great advantage by competing at home, but we went in there and won anyways," Michigan coach Kurt Golder said. "I do think that the title will come down to the three Big Ten teams and Nebraska though."

The two favorites for the competition will be Ohio State and Michigan. The Buckeyes and Wolverines have recorded the top scores this year, and are the only teams that have scored above 231.

The top three teams on Thursday will advance to the team finals on Friday night where the 1999 champion will be crowned.

The all-around champion will be determined from competition on Thursday night. Michigan has some of the best all-arounders in the country this year, maybe too many.

Four Wolverines have a legitimate chance to win the all-around title, Daniel Diaz-Luong, Lalo Haro, Justin Toman and Scott Vetere. All four won't be able to compete in the all-around competition though.

The men's gymnastics team has a philosophy that places program first, followed by, team, all-around and individual. In the interests of the team, Golder may keep some gymnasts off routines on Thursday to ensure their ability to compete on Friday in the team finals.

Because of slight injuries, Diaz-Luong and Toman might be left off events during the Thursday competition. Vetere and Haro could be left off their weakest events if Golder deems it best for the team's success.

"They can't all compete in the all-around. Probably one or two of them will compete for the (all-around) title," Golder said. "They all want to compete, and they are certainly all capable of winning. They understand though that we need to do what is best for the team, we have talked about it all year."

In terms of individual titles, the Wolverines have many chances to win. Kenny Keener is the Big Ten champion on still rings, and has recorded some of the best scores on the event this year. Toman's best event is parallel bars, and also claimed the Big Ten title. Diaz-Luong won the vault at Big Ten's, and if he is healthy, will be one of the favorites. Vetere has excelled at various events throughout the year, and could claim a title in any of five events.

Michigan is in a position that is hasn't known in many years, it is possibly the best team in the country. In Nebraska, the team will have its chance to claim the title officially.

"If we hit all of our routines to our capability, and we're judged fairly, then I will be happy," Golder said. "And if we do that then we're going to win."

04-20-99