Michigan
Penn State
Michigan Tops No. 1 Penn State in Convincing Fashion
1/23/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 4-ranked University of Michigan men's gymnastics team ended No. 1-ranked Penn State University's unbeaten season Friday (Jan. 23) with a convincing 215.725-212.000 win at Cliff Keen Arena. The Wolverines took the lead early in the first event and never gave the Nittany Lions a chance to catch up.
The Wolverines began the meet in control with Justin Laury (Marietta, Ga./McEachern HS) winning the floor exercise (9.3) and Geoff Corrigan (Colorado Springs, Colo./Palmer HS), Andre Hernandez (Round Rock, Texas/Round Rock HS) and Aaron Rakes (Lexington, Ky./Dunbar HS) placing second (8.7), third (8.7) and fourth (8.5), respectively, on the pommel horse. Andrew DiGiore (Buffalo, N.Y./City Honors School) returned to his NCAA championship form of 2003 by winning the vault (9.5), while Corrigan took the runner-up spot (9.35) on that event and placed first on the parallel bars (9.05).
Heading into the last rotation the Wolverines held the advantage by a full point but refused to let up. The team's strong high bar lineup, anchored by standout performances from Laury (9.575), who placed second, and Hernandez (9.5), who placed third, proved too much for the Nittany Lions to overcome. With a stuck dismount from Laury, Michigan sealed its win over the nation's top-ranked team.
In upcoming action, several Wolverines will travel to Las Vegas, Nev., Feb. 6-7 to compete in the USA Gymnastics-sponsored Winter Cup. Six of the top finishers at the event will be named to the U.S. Senior National Team. The next team competition for Michigan will be Saturday, Feb. 14, when the Wolverines host the No. 8-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers at 7 p.m. in Cliff Keen Arena.
Final Team Standings
| Team Scores | FX | PH | SR | V | PB | HB | Total |
| 1. MICHIGAN | 36.500 | 34.050 | 36.450 | 36.950 | 35.050 | 36.725 | 215.725 |
| 2. Penn State | 34.400 | 33.700 | 37.150 | 36.450 | 34.150 | 36.150 | 212.000 |
Event-By-Event U-M Individual Scores
FLOOR EXERCISE Derek Croad 8.800 (t5) Luke Bottke 9.200 (2) Andre Hernandez 9.050 (3) Geoff Corrigan 8.950 (4) Eddie Umphrey 8.650 Justin Laury 9.300 (1) POMMEL HORSE Aaron Rakes 8.500 (4) Kevin George 8.150 Andre Hernandez 8.700 (3) Geoff Corrigan 8.700 (2) Andrew DiGiore 7.800 Justin Laury 8.000 STILL RINGS Aaron Rakes 8.650 Kevin George 8.950 Andre Hernandez 8.750 Eddie Umphrey 9.250 (t3) Geoff Corrigan 9.250 (t3) Justin Laury 9.000 VAULT Luke Bottke 9.000 Andre Hernandez 9.050 (t5) Eddie Umphrey 9.050 (t5) Geoff Corrigan 9.350 (t2) Justin Laury 8.600 Andrew DiGiore 9.500 (1) PARALLEL BARS Andrew Elkind 7.450 Aaron Rakes 8.450 Eddie Umphrey 8.700 (5) Andre Hernandez 8.800 (t3) Geoff Corrigan 9.050 (1) Justin Laury 8.500 HORIZONTAL BAR Dave Flannery 8.500 Brian Berends 7.950 Aaron Rakes 8.800 Andre Hernandez 9.500 (3) Geoff Corrigan 8.850 (5) Justin Laury 9.575 (2) ALL-AROUND Geoff Corrigan 54.150 (1) Andre Hernandez 53.850 (3) Justin Laury 52.975 (4)
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Kurt Golder
On his team's performance ... "I feel great. I'd like to give Penn State credit. They were off like we were last week, but they're a real good team. We've proved we're a real good team too, and there's still room for improvement. If we could hit a few more routines, our scores would improve. It sure feels nice to get a win. We finally put out some of our big guns and that was great."
Contact: Dave Vitatoe (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
