Michigan
Ohio State
Wolverines Fall to No. 7 Buckeyes
3/9/2024 4:59:00 PM | Men's Gymnastics
» Michigan came ou short of rival No. 7 Ohio State, 412.150-407.400, at Covelli Center.
» Individual event titles came from Javier Alfonso (still rings) and Fred Richard (high bar)
» Sophomore Fred Richard won the all-around competition with a score of 84.350.
» U-M scored a season-high 70.20 on floor exercise, led by a third-place finish from Landen Blixt with a score of 14.30.
Site: Columbus, Ohio (Covelli Center)
Scores: #7 Ohio St. 411.950, #4 Michigan 407.400
Records: U-M (11-2, 1-2 B1G), Ohio St. (4-2, 2-1 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 17 -- vs. No. 6 Penn State (Cliff Ken Arena), 4 p.m. (TV: Big Ten Network)
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The No. 4-ranked University of Michigan men's gymnastics team fell to No. 7 Ohio State 411.950-407.400 on Saturday (March 9) at Covelli Center.
Senior Javier Alfonso took an event win on still rings (14.25) and sophomore Fred Richard won the all-around with an 84.350 and high bar title after notching a 13.80.
The Wolverines competed without the services of graduate student Paul Juda (load management).
How it Happened
Floor Exercise
Junior David Wolma led off for U-M and collected a career-best 14.20. Sophomore Landen Blixt then marked a 14.30 before Richard matched Blixt with a 14.30. Collectively, the Wolverines tallied a season-best 70.200 and sat in second by 0.600 after one rotation. The 70-plus score was the first time U-M reached the mark this season after a 69.350 last week.
Pommel Horse
The Wolverines were forced to count a trio of falls on pommel horse. Freshman Kevin Chow scored a 14.00 and sophomore Zach Granados (13.55) both hit their sets as U-M scored a season-low 63.300 on the apparatus and trailed by four points heading into still rings.
Still Rings
Following a leadoff fall, freshman Akshay Puri scored a 13.80. The rotation closed out with a 14.00 from Richard to tie him for second, while Alfonso claimed the event win with a 14.25. Michigan cut the Buckeye advantage to 3.5 points with a 66.900 team score on the event.
Vault
Lais Najjar led off the Wolverine contingent on vault with a 14.15, and freshman Jake Islam scored a career-high 14.25 on the table. The event closed out with a 14.65 from Richard and a 14.60 from junior David Wolma, who was hindered by only a small step on the landing. Even with a team total of 71.250, the Buckeyes countered with an eye-popping 73.300 as the Wolverine deficit grew to 5.5 points.
Parallel bars
Michigan fell victim to another fall at the start of the parallel bar rotation, but bounced back with a 13.95 score in the second spot from Alfonso. Graduate student Crew Bold led the Wolverines with a 14.25 on the event for a runner-up finish. The Maize and Blue trailed by 6.35 points with one rotation to go.
High bar
U-M closed out the meet with a 66.950 on high bar, led by 1-2 finishes from Richard (13.80) and Siminiuc (13.75). The effort began on a high note with sophomore Robert Noll scoring a 13.55 that was good enough for fourth place.
Up Next
Michigan closes out the 2024 regular season next Sunday (March 17), hosting No. 6 Penn State on Senior Day at Cliff Keen Arena. The meet is set to begin at 4 p.m. and will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.
Players Mentioned
