Michigan
NCAA Finals
Juda Takes Floor Title, Michigan Earns NCAA Finals Runner-Up Finish
4/20/2024 11:21:00 PM | Men's Gymnastics
» Michigan earned an NCAA runner-up finish with a 419.689 team score, trailing only defending champion Stanford.
» Juda took the NCAA individual title on floor exercise as well as runner-up on vault, totaling four All-America honors in the process.
» Seven Wolverines earned a total of 12 All-America citations
Site: Columbus, Ohio (Covelli Center)
Event: NCAA Team and Individual Finals, Session III
U-M Result: 2nd of 6 Teams (419.689)
Next U-M Event: Season Completed
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Graduate student Paul Juda took home his fourth career NCAA individual title with a win on floor exercise on Saturday (April 20) as the University of Michigan men's gymnastics team placed second with a team score of 419.689 on day two of the 2024 NCAA Championships (April 20) at Ohio State's Covelli Center.
The runner-up finish marks the third straight year the Wolverines have finished in the top three and ties for the highest team finish since winning the NCAA title in 2014. Juda's triumph on floor marks the fourth time a Wolverine has won a national title in the event, as well as the first such victory since 1992 (Brian Winkler). It also brings Michigan's all-time individual title count up to 44.
U-M totaled 12 All-America honors to bring the program total to 264. Six Wolverines took home citations, with Juda, graduate student Crew Bold, and sophomore Fred Richard earning multiple distinctions. This year's All-America haul gives the Wolverines double-digits in each of the last four seasons (10 in 2023, 11 in 2022, 13 in 2021).
In addition to Juda's winning performance, Michigan took home four other individual podium finishes. Richard ended runner-up on still rings (14.400) and the all-around (83.999), while Juda took second on vault (15.133). Senior Javier Alfonso landed in third on still rings with a 14.333.
Stanford (425.324) ran away with the meet in the final two rotations after U-M came within a point of the lead, while perennial power Oklahoma came in third (412.956).
How it Happened
Pommel Horse
The Wolverines again began their night on pommel horse, scoring a 68.532 and sitting in third after one rotation. Richard anchored with a 14.200, while freshman Kevin Chow turned in a 13.900 following a 13.866 leadoff mark from sophomore Zach Granados. Stanford led U-M by 5.1 points following the first rotation.
Still Rings
Two Wolverines landed on the podium to finish with a team score of 70.065. Richard again anchored, scoring a 14.400, while senior Alfonso ended in third with a 14.333. The Maize and Blue fell to fourth after the second rotation, trailing first-place Stanford by 7.234 points.
Vault
A strong team performance catapulted U-M to second place after the third rotation, with a group tally of 71.965 on the apparatus. Junior David Wolma (14.533) kicked off the Michigan vault turn, while sophomores Landen Blixt and Richard also contributed with matching scores of 14.333. Juda anchored for the Wolverines, finishing runner-up in the event with a career-high score of 15.133. Michigan trailed only Stanford at the meet's halfway mark, with a 2.034-point gap standing between first and second place.
Parallel Bars
Michigan put forth a solid performance, scoring a 71.631 to finish only 0.334 points shy of its season-high total on the apparatus. Junior Logan McKeown kicked off the Wolverines' effort with a 14.333, while Bold and senior Evgeny Siminiuc turned in a 14.566 and 14.433, respectively, to finish with All-America honors. After the fourth rotation, only 0.568 points stood between first-place Stanford and Michigan.
High Bar
Two unfortunate falls from Juda and Richard put a dent in the Wolverines' high-bar effort as the team finished with a season-low tally of 66.664 on the apparatus. Bold put in an impressive 13.866 to earn an All-America citation, while Siminiuc (13.466) and sophomore Robert Noll (13.366) helped buoy the team score. The gap between Stanford and second-place U-M widened to 5.969 points entering the final rotation.
Floor Exercise
Michigan finished with a session-winning effort, ending with a team tally of 70.832. Juda turned in the top score of the night in the event, capping off the 2024 season with a career-high effort of 15.133. Blixt also earned an All-America citation for his work, finishing just outside the podium with a 14.433. Senior Lais Najjar also had a strong performance, earning a 14.000 for the Wolverines.
The meet wraps up U-M's 2024 campaign, highlighted by a Big Ten postseason championship, as well as Richard being named Big Ten Gymnast of the Year, Big Ten Gymnast of the Championship and the NCAA runner-up finish. In addition, head coach Yuan Xiao was named Big Ten Coach of the Year.
Players Mentioned
