Michigan
NCAA Northeast Regional
Host Michigan Places First at NCAA Northeast Regional
4/8/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Gymnastics
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- After a disappointing Big Ten Championships, the ninth-ranked University of Michigan women's gymnastics team placed first at the NCAA Northeast Regional with a 196.000 on Saturday night (April 8) to advance to the 2006 NCAA Championships. Fifth-year senior Lauren Mirkovich (Burlingame, Calif./Notre Dame) captured her third career regional event title on the uneven bars (9.900), and junior Lindsey Bruck (Marietta, N.Y./Marcellus) placed second in the all-around (39.300) for the Wolverines.
The University of Utah also advanced to nationals with a runner-up score of 195.700, while New Hampshire's Amanda Hall and Auburn's Julie Dwyer earned nationals spots as the top two all-arounders not on a qualifying team, and Auburn's Lindsey Puckett (vault) qualified for NCAAs as a regional event champion.
Michigan took a 0.100 lead over second-place Utah after the first rotation, posting a 49.050 on vault. Mirkovich led off the Wolverines with a 9.750 and Bruck followed with a beautiful Yurchenko full for a 9.800. Senior Jenny Deiley (Dayton, Minn./Elk River) earned a 9.825 in the fourth spot, while sophomore Katie Lieberman (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) anchored the lineup with a sky-high, stuck Yurchenko full for a 9.875 to tie for second overall on the event.
Coming off a bye in the second rotation, the Wolverines extended their lead over Utah to 0.325 and over third-place Auburn to 0.450 after the third rotation with a solid showing on the uneven bars. Sophomore Nellie Kippley (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech) posted a 9.800 in the leadoff spot, while Big Ten Freshman of the Year Tatjana Thuener-Rego (Miami, Fla./American School) nailed her double layout dismount to earn a 9.850 and second place overall on the event. Mirkovich wowed the judges with her stuck full-twisting double layout dismount for a 9.900 in the fifth spot for the event title.
In the fourth rotation, balance checks early in the lineup narrowed Michigan's lead over Utah to 0.125 after three events. Highlights included a solid 9.800 for Kippley in the third spot and nearly flawless routines from senior Becca Clauson (St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) and Bruck to close out the rotation.
Coming off a bye in the fifth rotation, the Wolverines marched onto the floor exercise determined to maintain their lead, and U-M did just that. Despite stumbles in the middle of the lineup, the Wolverines posted four scores of 9.825 to secure the NCAA Northeast Regional championship.
Bruck led off the rotation with a solid 9.825, followed by Deiley, who in her last routine at Crisler Arena earned a 9.875 and a share of second place for her performance. After stumbles in the final passes of the third and fourth competitors, Thuener-Rego brought the Wolverines back on track with a 9.825 in the fifth spot. Lastly, Lieberman dazzled the judges in the anchor spot, garnering a 9.875 for a share of second place on the event.
Michigan earns a trip to the NCAA Championships, which will be held April 20-22 in Corvallis, Ore., on the campus of Oregon State.
Final Results
| Team | Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor | Total |
| 1. MICHIGAN | 49.050 | 49.175 | 48.875 | 48.900 | 196.000 |
| 2. Utah | 48.950 | 49.075 | 48.725 | 48.950 | 195.700 |
| 3. Auburn | 49.150 | 47.700 | 47.575 | 48.625 | 193.050 |
| 4. New Hampshire | 48.575 | 46.925 | 48.425 | 48.575 | 192.500 |
| 5. Pittsburgh | 47.750 | 48.075 | 47.575 | 47.500 | 190.900 |
| 6. Rutgers | 47.350 | 46.450 | 47.475 | 47.700 | 188.975 |
Event-By-Event U-M Individual Scores
VAULT Lauren Mirkovich 9.750 Lindsey Bruck 9.800 Carol McNamara 9.775 Jenny Deiley 9.825 Tatjana Thuener-Rego 9.775 Katie Lieberman 9.875 (t2) UNEVEN BARS Nellie Kippley 9.800 Tatjana Thuener-Rego 9.850 (t2) Lindsey Bruck 9.800 Jenny Deiley 9.800 Lauren Mirkovich 9.900 (1) Becky Bernard 9.825 BALANCE BEAM Carol McNamara 9.075 Jenny Deiley 9.650 Nellie Kippley 9.800 Tatjana Thuener-Rego 9.700 Becca Clauson 9.850 (t4) Lindsey Bruck 9.875 (t2) FLOOR EXERCISE Lindsey Bruck 9.825 Jenny Deiley 9.875 (t2) Becca Clauson 9.425 Carol McNamara 9.500 Tatjana Thuener-Rego 9.825 Katie Lieberman 9.875 (t2) ALL-AROUND Lindsey Bruck 39.300 (2) Jenny Deiley 39.150 (t5) Tatjana Thuener-Rego 39.150 (t5) ( ) denotes place in Top 5
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Bev Plocki
On the regional title ... "I have so many mixed feelings right now. We're just happy to have qualified for nationals, and it's great to get that No. 1 seed going into Oregon State. It was a hard meet because our team was naturally disappointed from our finish at Big Tens and we had to wait two weeks to redeem ourselves.Usually we have less time to think about the previous meet and we get a chance to prove how good we are. Our turnaround from Big Tens shows how determined our team is. We wanted to prove that what happened two weeks ago would not happen again."
On regional runner-up Utah ... "Utah is a great team that competes at a high level and has a great tradition. Our main focus wasn't to beat Utah but rather to focus on each event, win the regional and earn that top seed."
U-M Senior Jenny Deiley
On the regional title ... "It was definitely one of our top goals this season. We knew we needed to come in here and prove our worth and show that we were a better team than the one that competed at Big Tens. It was my last meet at home and it was kind of like my Senior Night. It's a little bittersweet but the team made it a lot of fun."
N O T E S
• Michigan captured its eighth regional title and its sixth regional crown in the last eight meets. The Wolverines also advance to the nationals for the 14th year in a row.
• Michigan won its fourth straight regional held in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines have won four of five regionals held at Crisler Arena, capturing the 1997, 2001, 2003 and 2006 regional titles after finishing second in 1995.
• Fifth-year senior Lauren Mirkovich captured her third uneven bars title at regionals, winning bars for the second year in a row. Elise Ray is the only other Wolverine to win three bars titles at regionals in her career.
Contact: Richard Retyi (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
