It’s week one, and we’re already getting an exciting cross-conference match-up between two teams with nationals ambitions this season.
Michigan is coming into this meet needing to fill big lineup holes left by last year’s graduating class. Keep an eye on which freshmen are given the green light to compete, especially early graduate and former No. 2 recruit, Sophie Diaz.
By contrast, Denver is only looking to fill the lineup spots left by Jessica Hutchinson. Madison Ulrich is the team’s star all-arounder, and the home team can lean on its experience against a greener Michigan squad.
As the first meet of the season, the goal for both teams will likely be to put up a solid performance that will put them in the conversation for the top 10, as well as to get back into the competition groove.
Projected lineups include Ranger in the all-around and Diaz competing vault and bars.
Rotation 1: Denver VT, Michigan UB
Brusch (DU): Yfull, nice height, flare, small hop back. 9.8
Ranger (UM): Aggressive first handstand, falls on her release. Bail is good, short last handstand, double lay with a hop back. 9.0
Mabanta (DU): Yfull with a sideways hop. 9.75
Zabrowski (UM): Straddle jaeger, pak with a bit of leg separation. Very short handstand and a slight loss of momentum, but works through it. Double lay with a few steps back. 9.325
Hargraves (DU): Yfull, tons of power with a massive hop back followed by a small step. 9.6
Long wait for Zabrowski’s score. Judges’ conference due to a difference in start value.
Jordan (UM): Straddle jaeger, beautiful, good bail. Solid final handstand, pirouette to double back with a slight hop. Clutch routine from her. 9.85
Ulrich (DU): Front pike half, a little to the side with a hop. 9.75
Diaz (UM): Maloney, bail, legs glued together. Floaty double lay, but lands a little short and takes a step forward. 9.775
Reidenbach (DU): Y1.5, STUCK. Maybe some bent knees in the air. 9.85
Vore (UM): Tkatchev, short handstand to a bail. Great final handstand. Double lay with a hop back. 9.8
Mundell (DU): In for Casali. Y1.5, very similar to Reidenbach – stuck, with some bent knees. 9.875
Bauman (UM): Straddle jaeger, beautiful, bail. Double front with a step back and a slight loss of balance. 9.85
After 1: Denver 49.025, Michigan 48.575
A slightly shaky rotation across the board, with no gymnasts breaking 9.900. Denver got off to a slow start, but closed their vault rotation with two sticks from Reidenbach and Mundell and managed to just get over 49 on the event. Michigan’s bars was rough, but with easy improvements to make moving forward, especially when it comes to dialing in on landings. Onwards and (hopefully) upwards!
Rotation 2: Michigan UB, Denver VT
Davis (UM): Yfull, pikes down and a big step back. 9.65
Casali (DU): Maloney, bail, great form on both. Floaty double lay, tries to stick but takes a small hop forward. 9.875
Jordan (UM): Yfull, lots of distance, small hop back and over the line. 9.725
Iwai (DU): Maloney to bail, solid. Slightly short on her last handstand. Double lay, fights for the stick but has to hop forward. 9.875
Guggino (UM): Y1.5 lands short and has to take a few steps back. 9.525
Hebinck (DU): Patient first handstand, straddle Tkatchev, pak. Double lay with a tiny hop back. 9.9!
Ranger (UM): Y1.5, lots of power and a sizeable hop forward. 9.8
Cooley (DU): Big Ray to bail. Double lay with a scoot back. 9.85
Mulligan (UM): Y1.5, lots of distance with a large step forward. 9.725
Ulrich (DU): Maloney to a floaty pak. Double lay, commentators are calling it a stick but I think she took the smallest of scoots back. 9.9
Diaz (UM): Y1.5, so high, big hop forward. 9.775
Mundell (DU): Gorgeous first handstand to Tkatchev. Solid bail. Double lay, legs glued together and stuck! 9.9
After 2: Denver 98.475 Michigan 97.250
Well, I was expecting this meet to be much closer than it is so far. Denver had a phenomenal bars rotation, dropping a 9.85 and with three scores of 9.9. It has a comfortable lead over Michigan, which just wasn’t as clean on vault as it needed to be. Like bars, the potential is there, but the gymnastics needs to be cleaner across the board.
Rotation 3: Denver BB, Michigan FX
Iwai (DU): Switch leap, straddle quarter, bit of a pause between the two. Bhs loso, solid. Full turn, has to fight but stays steady. Side aerial and falls. Repeats the skill to connect to a switch jump. Gainer full stuck. 9.25
This could open the door for Michigan to get back in the meet, and Denver will have pressure sets for the rest of the rotation.
Parenti (UM): Stumbled a bit on her opening dance, the nerves are definitely showing. Double pike, lands a little short and takes a small hop forward. Slightly short of split on her switch leap full. Back 1.5 to front full, very smooth. 9.7
Cooley (DU): Bhs loso, a little shakey but works through it. Switch leap, switch half, short of split and a small check. Lovely controlled full turn. Bhs gainer full, stuck. Nervous routine but she stayed on. 9.8
Boozer (UM): Personally I’m liking the dramatic Beethoven/Britney Spears mashup music. Ring full to start. Front tuck to a very high double tuck. Really pretty split position on her leaps. Back 1.5 to front lay. 9.725
Casali (DU): Opens with a secure full turn. Bhs loso loso and she falls. Denver now counting a fall. Switch leap, switch jump. Cartwheel to gainer full with a small hop. 9.0
Zabrowski (UM): Michigan has the opportunity to make a move here. Front lay, front full, punch front and sits it down. Oh well. Double tuck, slightly short but tries to hide it with the lunge. 8.775
Mundell (DU): Bhs loso and falls. This is hard to watch. Full turn. Beat jump, switch half, solid. Beat jump, straddle 3/4, slightly short of split. Gainer pike off the end of the beam with a small hop back. 9.225
Thaxton (UM): Well, Michigan once again has the opportunity to make a move here, but they can’t afford any errors. Full in and stumbles pretty badly on landing, but stays on her feet. Solid leaps. Punch front to double back, lands a little short and lunges forward. 9.55
Ulrich (DU): Huge amount of pressure on this routine. Bhs loso, tiny hip check but stays on. Full turn good. Hitch kick to switch 1/4. Front aerial to beat jump, slight pause in between. Gainer back pike, stuck. Clutch routine. 9.85
Bauman (UM): Michigan needs a big number here. Front double twist to open, no major issues. Slight foot shuffle at the end of her leap series. Back 1.5 to front lay, solid. Random switch leap to her final pose at the end. 9.85
Mabanta (DU): Opens with a wolf turn. Bhs loso, fights for it and minimizes any wobbles. Tiny check on her switch half. Moving very quickly through the routine. Tucked gainer full dismount, stuck.
Ranger (UM): Double lay, foot slide on her lunge. Great height on her leaps. Front lay to double tuck, a tiny bit short but hides it with the lunge. More than enough to drop Zabrowski’s score. 9.8
After 3: Denver 146.45, Michigan 145.875
Scoring a 47.975 on beam was definitely not what Denver wanted, whatever Melissa Kutcher-Rinehart is saying about “welcoming the adversity.” It speaks to how big Denver’s lead was at the halfway point that they’re still leading Michigan going into the last rotation. Michigan’s floor was overshadowed by Denver’s beam meltdown, but counting a 9.55 and no scores over 9.85 also isn’t where the Wolverines would hope to be. Both teams will be looking for a good final rotation to end the meet on a high note.
Trinity Thomas is joining the broadcast team!!!!
Rotation 4: Michigan BB, Denver FX
Parenti (UM): Missed the first part of her routine because I thought it was still the one-touch warm up. Bhs loso with a sizeable hip check. Switch leap, split jump, solid. Front aerial to split jump, solid. Round off 1.5 twist with a small hop forward. 9.7
Brusch (DU): Opens with a double pike, a little too much juice and slides backward in the lunge. Really nice height in her leaps. Punch front to double back with a very similar slide-y lunge. 9.85
Boozer (UM): Confident full turn. Hitchkick to front aerial, nice. Switch leap to straddle quarter, nice position in the air. Bhs loso, rock solid. Bhs gainer full, stuck. 9.875
Cooley (DU): Front lay to front 1.5, nice. Switch half to split jump. It might have been a switch ring, it was hard to tell from my angle. Back 1.5 to front lay, super floaty. 9.875
Vore (UM): Bhs loso, a little off but fights off any wobbles. Good full turn. Aggressive front toss. Straddle jump, switch 1/2. Round off 1.5 twist with a big step forward. 9.775
Iwai (DU): Back 1.5, front lay, stag jump. Switch half connected to nothing, a little short of split. Double tuck, nice and high and fairly clean. Short of split again on her leap pass. 9.825
Mulligan (UM): Full turn a bit tentative but no wobbles. Hitch kick, front aerial, big hip check and a broken connection. Bhs loso, leg up check. Beat jump, straddle half. Side aerial is good. Bhs to tucked 1.5 dismount with a small step. 9.575
Mundell (DU): In for Casali again. Front lay to front full with a little hop forward on landing. Double tuck with a slightly slide-y lunge. 9.85
Ranger (UM): Opens with a solid full turn. Bhs loso, conceals a wobble by dancing out of it. Switch leap split leap, good. Front toss, really attacks the beam. Round off to a big double tuck dismount with a hop back. 9.9, Michigan’s first 9.9 of the meet!
Mabanta (DU): Front lay to front full, nice height. Lovely oversplit on her leaps. Back 1.5, tucks her legs on the front lay and falls, putting both hands down out of bounds. Tough end to that routine. 8.975
Bauman (UM): Controlled full turn. Bhs loso, rock solid. Split jump, straddle half, to another split jump. Side aerial or side somi, slightly unclear with the adjustment. Gainer pike, stuck. 9.85
Ulrich (DU): Double tuck with a huge bounce back in the lunge. Back 1.5 to a floaty front lay. Double pike to close with a picture perfect lunge. That should do it for Denver. 9.85
FINAL: Denver 195.700, Michigan 194.975
Well, that was a meet that both teams will want to put behind them. Denver had a beam meltdown, but the other three events looked good. Michigan has a lot of work to do on all four pieces, but they closed on a (relative) high by breaking 49 on beam. And now, we can all take a collective deep breath and move on from this meet.
VT: Mundell (9.875)
UB: Hebinck, Ulrich, Mundell (9.900)
BB: Ranger (9.900)
FX: Cooley (9.875)
AA: Ulrich (39.350)
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Live blog by Naomi Stephenson
