The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/130469
NCAA Championships: women's gymnastics The judges gave her a 9.9375 for the routine, just sort of her personal-best 9.975 (set this season versus Penn State), but 0.0125 points better than Alabama's Diandra Milliner, who placed second in the event. "It took a little bit to set in that I had just competed my last floor routine of the season, an event final," Sampson said. "I got off the podium and Katie Zurales and [Michigan head coach Bev Plocki] both gave me big hugs. The whole team was right there, to support me. "It was incredible to end the season on such a good note, especially since we weren't able to make it to Super Six as a team. I was really happy for the opportunity to go out and represent the University of Michigan on that stage." Zurales, a senior, took second place in the finals for balance beam, with a score of 9.8875, behind the 9.9 scored by Florida's Bridget Sloan. Sampson claimed the program's eighth individual national title and the firstever floor exercise championship by a Wolverine. Sampson joins Kylee Botterman (2011 all-around), Elise Ray (2004 uneven bars, 2002 balance beam and 2001 all-around) and Beth Wymer (1993-95 uneven bars) as Wolverines with individual national championships. "Floor has always been one of my strongest events, even going back to my club career," Sampson said. "I wanted to win a national championship, but I don't know if I ever necessarily expected to win it. It was a pleasant surprise, but I knew I was capable of it." Next year, Sampson and the Wolverines will have their eyes on bigger goals. Michigan placed fourth in one of the NCAA Championships semifinals. Three teams from each session moved on to the Super Six, and Michigan (196.85) fell just 0.35 points behind UCLA for a finals berth. The team hasn't reached the Super Six since 2011, Sampson's freshman year. Next year, the Wolverines return everyone except Zurales, senior Natalie Beilstein and senior Brittnee Martinez. They are bringing in an impressive recruiting class that includes Nicole Artz, a five-time Junior Olympic National Championship qualifier, and Talia Chiarelli, who won bronze on the floor exercise in the 2011 Canadian Championships. "It's just another rung on the ladder higher, but we're still not satisfied with where we finished," Plocki said. "We fully expected that we would be competing in the Super Six because we had that confidence and our preparation was good. Unfortunately, it didn't fall in our favor. "I think that after seeing what the preparation did for them last year going into this year, I think they'll be pretty motivated to work hard over the summer. I want them to take some down time when we get back, close out the year strong, but I fully expect them to kick it back into full gear during the summer." — Andy Reid