Michigan
Maize and Blue Intrasquad (ex)
Blue Triumphs Over Maize in Intrasquad Competition
12/13/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Gymnastics
Event: Maize and Blue Intrasquad
Score: Blue 253.10, Maize 248.95
Attendance: 361
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Jan. 17 -- at Windy City Invitational (Chicago, Ill.), 7 p.m. CST
Photo Gallery
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan men's gymnastics team held its annual Maize and Blue Intrasquad meet Saturday night (Dec. 13) with the Blue team defeating the Maize squad 253.10-248.95 in Cliff Keen Arena. Tonight marked Blue's first intrasquad win since 2006.
Sophomore Chris Cameron(Winter Haven, Fla./Lake Region) of the Blue team highlighted the event, winning the all-around with an 85.50. He finished in the top three in four of the six events and claimed top honors on the pommel horse and rings.
The Maize team took a slight lead after the first rotation, registering a 41.55 on the floor exercise to the Blue team's 41.25 on the pommel horse. Maize was led by last season's Big Ten Freshman of the Year, sophomore Thomas Kelley(Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville), who received a 14.45 on the floor event.
The squads swapped events for the second rotation, with the Blue team taking an 84.40-82.80 lead after solid performances on the floor. Sophomore Ian Makowske(Redding, Conn./Joel Barlow) of the Blue squad received the night's top score on the floor exercise, earning a 14.60. Rookie Syque Caesar(Port Saint Lucie, Fla./Lincoln Park Academy) of Blue garnered a 14.45, tying Kelley's mark for the evening's second-best floor routine.
The Blue team padded its lead 129.40-122.15 after receiving excellent marks on the vault during the third rotation, led by senior Ralph Rosso's (Morganville, N.J./St. John Vianney) 15.15 on the apparatus. The Maize squad competed on the rings, with a 13.90 from junior Mel Santander(Southborough, Mass./Algonquian Regional) leading the pack.
The fourth rotation was highlighted by Kelley's 15.15 on the vault, tying opponent Rosso for the night's top vault score. Cameron received a 14.45 on the still rings, helping extend the Blue team's lead 171.35-166.45.
The Maize team took to the parallel bars for the fifth rotation, with fifth-year senior Paul Woodward(Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles) leading his squad with a 13.90 in the event. Woodward's mark helped the Maize edge closer to the Blue's lead, 211.300-207.65. The Blue team competed on the high bar, with Cameron posting his team's highest score of 13.80.
The intensity at Cliff Keen Arena picked up as the squads moved into the final rotation with each team in the race. Despite junior Ryan McCarthy's (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville Community) 14.10 on the high bar, he could not pull the Maize team ahead. The Blue team's win was solidified after stellar performances from Cameron and Caesar on the parallel bars.
Unlike the regular season, which counts each event's top four scores, the highest three scores were recorded to produce a team's final score on each event.
The Wolverines kick off the regular season at the Windy City Invite (Jan. 17), which begins at 7 p.m. CST and will be held in at the UIC Physical Education Building in Chicago, Ill. Michigan will face Big Ten opponents Minnesota, Ohio State, Iowa and Illinois, as well as host UIC.
Event-By-Event U-M Individual Scores
POMMEL HORSE 1. Chris Cameron, Blue 14.80 2. Mel Santander, Maize 14.00 3. David Chan, Maize 13.65
FLOOR EXERCISE 1. Ian Makowske, Blue 14.60 T-2. Syque Caesar, Blue 14.45 T-2. Thomas Kelley, Maize 14.45
RINGS 1. Chris Cameron, Blue 14.45 2. Ralph Rosso, Blue 14.10 3. Mel Santander, Maize 13.90
VAULT T-1. Thomas Kelley, Maize 15.15 T-1. Ralph Rosso, Blue 15.15 3. Syque Caesar, Blue 14.95
HORIZONTAL BAR 1. Ryan McCarthy, Maize 14.10 2. Chris Cameron, Blue 13.80 3. Mel Santander, Maize 13.75
PARALLEL BARS 1. Ralph Rosso, Blue 14.15 2. Chris Cameron, Blue 14.00 3. Paul Woodward, Maize 13.90
ALL-AROUND 1. Chris Cameron, Blue 85.50 2. Mel Santander, Maize 82.40 3. Thomas Kelley, Maize 77.40
Contact: Hannah Maier, Rob McBurnett (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
