Gymnasts prepare for home finale

By Rohit Bhave

Daily Sports Writer

After posting a national-best score of 231.15 against Massachusetts last Saturday, the Michigan men's gymnastics team storms into Cliff Keen Arena tonight coming off its most consistent performance of the season.

Unfortunately for Michigan State, the Spartans must not only face a defending national champion, they must contend with a No. 1 team sending off their seniors in the season's final home meet.

For seniors Ethan Johnson, Lalo Haro, Adam Hattersly and Jesse Coleman, this is the final home meet of their Michigan careers. The close-knit senior class comprises head coach Kurt Golder's first recruiting class at Michigan. Arriving on campus on the heels of a dismal 0-11 mark the previous season, the 1996 recruiting class constituted the framework for recent Wolverine success.

"That year, our freshman class created the tight-knit team atmosphere that set the standard for the years to come," Johnson said. "We dreamed greatness, and then we made it happen."

Golder's prize catch of that season was Lalo Haro, from Puebla, Pue, Mexico. A five-time Mexican National all-around champion, Haro became the first Michigan star in the Golder era. This year, he won the Newt Loken Scholarship in tribute to his dedication to Michigan gymnastics.

Haro has helped the Wolverines most this year by solidifying their weaknesses on high bar, maintaining a meet average of 9.642 with a season high of 9.8 against Iowa. In last year's NCAA championships, he posted a 100 percent hit rate on five events and racked up a 9.775 on floor exercise.

Throughout his Michigan career, Haro has proven to be a clutch performer, especially during the Big Ten and NCAA championships.

Going into March, peak performances will be at a premium for the Wolverines.

As Michigan heads into the last three meets of the dual meet season, it will continue to search for its best postseason line-up.

Last week, Daniel Diaz-Luong powered the Wolverines on pommel horse with a 9.875, but the real boost will be felt in his top two events, vault and high bar.

It remains to be seen whether Diaz-Luong can maintain his mental focus in subsequent meets, but his teammates attest to his mental toughness.

"He is one of the strongest people mentally I've ever seen," junior co-captain Justin Toman said.

As they kick their skills into high gear, the Wolverines are not merely competing against their opponent, they are competing against their own lofty standards.

"There is no way anyone on the team is going to let the Spartans come into Keen and push us around. This is a meet I feel we all want to dominate from beginning to end," junior Tim Dehr said.