Michigan
NCAA Qualifier (Session 1)
Wolverines Trek to NCAA Championships
4/17/2018 4:08:00 PM | Men's Gymnastics
» Third-seeded U-M will begin its NCAA Championship on parallel bars in Session I on Friday at 1 p.m. CDT. Team and individual event finals commence on Saturday at 7 p.m. CDT.
» Junior Anthony McCallum, a two-time defending NCAA vault champion, has a chance to enter elite company and become only the third three-time NCAA vault champion.
» In team rankings, Michigan checks in at No. 3 on floor exercise (69.069), as well as No. 4 on still rings (68.431) and vault (71.206). U-M is also ranked sixth on parallel bars (66.575), and eighth on pommel horse (65.850) and high bar (65.825).
THIS WEEK
Friday April 20 – at NCAA Championships (Chicago, Ill.), 1 p.m. CDT
Saturday, April 21 -- at NCAA Championships (Chicago, Ill.), 7 p.m. CDT
NCAA Championships Central | Travel Guide | Tristian Perez-Rivera Scholar Story | Kurt Golder WTKA Interview
Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
The No. 5-ranked University of Michigan men's gymnastics team, fresh off a runner-up finish at the Big Ten Championships in Ann Arbor, travel to the NCAA Championships (April 21-22) at UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois.
WOLVERINE BITES
• Michigan will begin its championship on parallel bars in Session I of the championship (Thursday, 1 p.m. CDT), and will be grouped with Minnesota, Stanford, Nebraska, Navy and Air Force. Team and individual event finals will take place on Saturday (April 21) at 7 p.m. CDT.
• U-M enters the championships with a 406.956 National Qualifying Average, which holds down the No. 3 spot in the qualifying rankings. U-M boasts a balanced squad, checking in at No. 3 on floor exercise (69.069), and No. 4 on still rings (68.431) and vault (71.206). U-M also is ranked sixth on parallel bars (66.575), and eighth on pommel horse (65.850) and high bar (65.825).
• Junior Anthony McCallum, a two-time defending NCAA vault champion, has a chance to enter elite company and become only the third three-time NCAA vault champion. The last to accomplish the feat was New Mexico's Chad Fox (1986-88) and Chicago's Earl Shanken (1940-42). In the U-M record book, McCallum looks to join Edsel Buchanan (1949-52, trampoline) as the only other Wolverine to win a trio of NCAA titles on one event. McCallum is grouped with Sam Mikulak (2011-14), who owns a pair of titles on high bar and parallel bars.
• Michigan has his more than 75 percent of its routines six times this season. U-M equaled its season-best mark of 90 percent (27-of-30) at the Big Tens on April 6-7, and also equaled the mark at the International Collegiate Challenge meet on March 3, and against UIC on Senior Night (March 31).
• Both Emyre Cole and McCallum figure to be in the mix for top billings on vault. Cole ranks No. 5 in the country on the table (14.469). McCallum, who does not meet the minimum threshold to be ranked, boasts a season-high score of 14.850, which would rank as the sixth-highest mark in the country.
• Freshman Cameron Bock, the reigning College Gymnastics Association freshman of the week, enters NCAA's after placing fourth in the all-around at Big Tens with an 82.800 score. His tally against UIC (84.850) is the second-best score in the NCAA. He enters his first NCAA championship ranked No. 9 on parallel bars (13.750) and No. 14 on high bar (13.163).
• Senior Dmitri Belanovski, a two-time All-American in 2016 on floor exercise and in the all-around, ranks No. 13 on still rings (13.844), while classmate Marty Strech checks in at No. 16 on rings (13.875), with a season-high score of 14.200.
• Freshman Jacob Moore owns the top spot in the NCAA on floor exercise (14.394 NQA). His top mark of the year is a 14.95, which ranks as the second-highest mark in the country. Cole ranks third in the nation on floor with a 14.278 NQA, while his season-best of 14.70 is the seventh-highest mark in the NCAA.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
• Michigan boasts six NCAA team titles -- three this decade (2010, 2013, 2014) -- 37 individual titles, and 209 NCAA All-America citations.
• Last season, McCallum repeated for back-to-back NCAA vault titles, while Cole took third on vault as both earned NCAA All-America honors. McCallum's 15.10 Tsukahara double pike helped him become the first back-to-back NCAA vault winner in school history and the sixth U-M gymnast to ever win back-to-back on any event. Cole placed third on vault with a 14.90 to earn the first All-America honor of his career. The last time an NCAA program had two All-American vaulters finish in the top three at NCAAs was Stanford in 2010.
McCallum's win on the table made him the first back-to-back NCAA vault winner in school history, and the sixth U-M gymnast to win back-to-back titles on any event. Six gymnasts have won back-to-back vault titles at the NCAA level, with Oklahoma's Steven Legendre being the last gymnast to accomplish the feat in the 2008-09 seasons. In all, McCallum and classmate Cole earned All-America honors, as Cole scored a 14.90 to place third on the event and earn his first All-America honor. As a whole, seven Wolverines qualified for finals.
• Also at least year's event finials, Strech marked a 14.05 on vault to tie for 18th place. In the second rotation, sophomore Ryan Dunning scored a 14.10 to tie for 15th, while senior Adam Dean marked a 13.45 on high bar in his final collegiate routine. Sophomore Uche Eke, competing in his first NCAA final, scored a 13.65 on parallel bars, and McCallum scored a 14.00 to take 22nd.
SESSION I PREVIEW
• Session I includes challengers in second-seeded Minnesota (409.463), No. 6 Stanford (407.775) and No. 7 Nebraska (407.175), as well as Navy and Air Force. Minnesota's top event is floor exercise (No. 2, 70.200), and vault (No. 2, 72.063), while Stanford checks in at No. 2 on parallel bars (69.025) and No. 3 on high bar (67.713). Fellow Big Ten opponent Nebraska leads the NCAA on three events in floor exercise (70.263), pommel horse (68.150) and vault (72.288), but rank outside of the top-seven on three other events.
Tweet of the Week
Ready for #NCAAMGym?#OurTi?e | #GoBlue pic.twitter.com/gt6r0y9938
— Michigan Gymnastics (@UMichGym) April 16, 2018
KEEP UP WITH THE WOLVERINES
Stay current with everything going on with the Wolverines by following Michigan men's gymnastics on Twitter (@umichgym) and "liking" the Wolverines on Facebook! Fans can also follow in-meet commentary via the Twitter channel, with live streaming available for select meets via Facebook. Additional content will be provided via Instagram (@umichgym), and Snapchat (@umichathletics).
NEXT EVENT
Saturday, April 21 -- NCAA Team/Individual Championships (Chicago, Ill.), 7 p.m. CDT
Players Mentioned
