Michigan
Alabama
Wolverines Post Season-High Score in Loss at Alabama
1/31/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
Site: Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Coleman Coliseum)
Score: #2 Alabama 197.200, #11 Michigan 196.525
Records: U-M (2-2)
Attendance: 8,709
Next U-M Event: Sunday, Feb. 2 -- State of Michigan Classic (East Lansing, Mich.), 4:30 p.m.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- An injury-plagued University of Michigan women's gymnastics team fought through pain and a lack of depth to post its highest team score of the season in a 197.200-196.525 loss to No. 2-ranked Alabama tonight (Friday, Jan. 31) in front of 8,709 fans at Coleman Coliseum. With just eight student-athletes who could perform, junior Calli Ryals (Elyria, Ohio/Midview HS) won the balance beam (9.975), earned a share of the floor exercise title (9.950) and tied for second in the all-around (39.550), while freshman Becca Clauson (St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall HS) took a share of the vault title (9.925) to help the No. 11 Wolverines to their best performance of the season.
Ryals set or tied team season highs in the all-around, floor exercise and balance beam.
Michigan (2-2, 2-0 Big Ten) opened the meet on the uneven bars, but it was a rough start. A fall in the first routine by Janessa Grieco (Mahopac, N.Y./Carmel HS) put the pressure on the remaining performers, but Chelsea Kroll (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny HS) came through and posted a 9.750 to get things on track. Ryals earned a season-high 9.850 to capture fourth place, while Jenny Deiley (Dayton, Minn./Elk River HS) tallied a season-high 9.875 for third place. Lauren Mirkovich (Burlingame, Calif./Notre Dame HS) helped the Wolverines by posting a 9.800, and Erica Rubin (Chatsworth, Calif./Harvard Westlake HS) closed out the rotation with a 9.700. U-M tallied a season-high 48.975 on the bars in the first rotation, but Alabama took the lead with a 49.200 on the vault.
The Wolverines followed their bars performance with another season-high score, a 49.300 on the vault. Mirkovich led off with a 9.750. Grieco put together another vault with outstanding height and execution to tie her season high with a 9.850 and finish in a tie for fourth place. In the third spot, Clauson's form and stuck landing earned her a career-high 9.925 and gave her a share of first place. After a 9.775 by Ryals, Kroll posted a season-high 9.850 to tie Grieco for fourth place. Deiley added to the freshman influence by finishing third with a career-high 9.900. Michigan's 49.300 on the vault was higher than Alabama's vault score, but the Crimson Tide posted a 49.325 on the uneven bars to take a 98.525-98.275 lead at the halfway point of the meet.
After back-to-back season bests, the Wolverines literally stumbled through the start of the floor routine in the third rotation. Two falls in the first three routines gave Michigan a big obstacle to overcome, but Grieco's veteran leadership guided her to a 9.900 and brought back the momentum from the second rotation. Her performance set up Ryals, who tied her season high with a 9.950 to earn a share of first place. With the falls, Kroll, who was going to be given a rest on the floor, had to perform. She came through and earned a 9.775 to help Michigan to a 49.075 in the rotation. The score kept the meet close, as Alabama totaled a 49.150 on the balance beam to give the Tide a 147.675-147.350 lead after three rotations.
In the fourth and final rotation, Kara Rosella (Ann Arbor, Mich./Greenhills HS) opened the balance beam with a 9.750. Clauson chipped in by tying her career high with a 9.850. Grieco continued her recovery from the first rotation by posting a season-high 9.900 and tying for third place on the apparatus. Her score set the stage for Ryals' outstanding performance. She nailed her routine for a career-high 9.975 and took first place. The balance beam scores added up to 49.175, another season high for the Wolverines, to give them a season-high team score of 196.525. Despite the high mark, it was Alabama that took first place with a team score of 197.200 after totaling a 49.525 on the floor exercise in the final rotation.
Michigan returns home on Saturday before heading to the State of Michigan Classic at 4:30 p.m. Sunday (Feb. 2) in East Lansing, Mich.
Final Results
| Team Scores | Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor | Total |
| 1. Alabama | 49.200 | 49.325 | 49.150 | 49.525 | 197.200 |
| 2. MICHIGAN | 49.300 | 48.975 | 49.175 | 49.075 | 196.525 |
Event-By-Event U-M Individual Scores
ALL-AROUND Calli Ryals 39.550 (t2) Jenny Deiley 39.100 (4) Janessa Grieco 38.825 (5) VAULT Lauren Mirkovich 9.750 Janessa Grieco 9.850 (t4) Becca Clauson 9.925 (t1) Calli Ryals 9.775 Chelsea Kroll 9.850 (t4) Jenny Deiley 9.900 (3) UNEVEN BARS Janessa Grieco 9.175 Chelsea Kroll 9.750 Calli Ryals 9.850 (4) Jenny Deiley 9.875 (3) Lauren Mirkovich 9.800 Erica Rubin 9.700 BALANCE BEAM Kara Rosella 9.750 Becca Clauson 9.850 (t5) Jenny Deiley 9.700 Janessa Grieco 9.900 (t3) Calli Ryals 9.975 (1) Lauren Mirkovich 7.925 FLOOR EXERCISE Kara Rosella 9.550 Becca Clauson 9.825 Jenny Deiley 9.625 Janessa Grieco 9.900 (t4) Calli Ryals 9.950 (t1) Chelsea Kroll 9.775
( ) denotes place in the Top 5
N O T E S
• Tonight's meet is Michigan's first regular-season appearance at Alabama. The Wolverines' previous trips to Tuscaloosa, Ala., were for NCAA Regional and National Championship events.
• Junior co-captain Elise Ray (Columbia, Md./Wilde Lake HS) missed tonight's meet, her fourth consecutive, after re-injuring her shoulder during the week at practice. Sophomore Kallie Steffes (Naperville, Ill./Central HS) also missed the meet due to injury.
• Chelsea Kroll did not compete in the all-around for the first time this season. She was not in the balance beam lineup in an effort to rest her for Sunday's meet in East Lansing, Mich.
Q U O T E S
Junior Calli Ryals
On the team's performance ... "We were really nervous in practice because everyone has been hurting a lot. We just decided to come in here with the best attitude we could. I think knowing that everyone was hurting gave everyone that extra little push to hit our routines. What we did today was unbelievable for the amount of pain and injuries that we have."
On her balance beam performance ... "It felt awesome. I've had a little bit of a rough go on beam lately, and I just decided that I'm not going to do that anymore. It also had a lot to do with my team hurting. I've felt like I have a little extra responsibility to the team. So, I have been really working on those little wobbles and other little things in practice."
Players Mentioned
