The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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56 THE WOLVERINE ❱ DECEMBER 2025 BY ANTHONY BROOME Men's Gymnastics First Event: TBD Season Outlook: The Wolverines won a fifth straight Big Ten championship and seventh NCAA championship last season. Head coach Yuan Xiao, who earned Big Ten Coach of the Year honors for the fourth season in a row, re- turns plenty of star power from last year's team in hopes of running it back, headlined by Olym- pian Fred Richard. TOP THREE ATHLETES Senior Fred Richard: The 2025 NCAA all- around champion and high bar silver medalist, he also was a seven-time NCAA All-American honoree, the first gymnast in NCAA history to achieve that in a single season. Richard also represented Team USA at the 2024 Olympics, helping the team to a bronze medal for the first time since 2008. Senior Landen Blixt: An NCAA All-American in the floor exercise for the second time, he also won a conference championship in the event en route to a first-team All-Big Ten nod, the second of his career, in 2024. Blixt tore his ACL in the 2025 season opener and did not participate last season. Junior Charlie Larson: An NCAA All-American last season in the floor exercise, he was a 2025 CGA Specialist of the Year nominee. Larson earned Big Ten Specialist of the Week honors twice last season. Women's Gymnastics First Event: Exhibition vs. Eastern Michigan, Western Michigan (Dec. 12) Season Outlook: A changing of the guard took place atop the program this summer with the retirement of 36-year head coach Bev Plocki, who passed the baton to longtime assistant Maile'ana Kanewa-Hermelyn to lead the pro- gram. She will look to keep the program in Big Ten and national contention. TOP THREE ATHLETES Graduate Carly Bauman: A 2025 AAI Award nominee, she was a three-time Big Ten Special- ist of the Week, team captain and MVP last season for the Wolverines. She also was named Regional Gymnast of the Year and was the indi- vidual regional champion on uneven bars in ad- dition to earning first-team All-Big Ten honors. Sophomore Sophia Diaz: Her freshman sea- son included qualifying as an individual for NCAA Championships on the vault, second- team All-Big Ten honors and a spot on the con- ference All-Freshman Team. Diaz was also the team's Newcomer of the Year, competing on vault, uneven bars and floor. Sophomore Jahzara Ranger: A member of the Big Ten's All-Freshmen Team, she collected second-team All-Big Ten honors, Freshman of the Week twice and shared team MVP hon- ors with Bauman in her first season with the program. Ranger had five individual titles last year, including one on vault, two on beam, one on floor and one in the all-around. Men's Swimming & Diving First Scoring Events: 183-115 W vs. Notre Dame, 183-115 W vs. Wisconsin, Oct. 10 Season Outlook: U-M had plenty of success in its second year under head coach Matt Bowe, earning second place at the Big Ten Championships with seven swimmers garner- ing All-Big Ten honors. A mixture of returning favorites and an infusion of some new talent could keep the Wolverines in the thick of the race this year. TOP THREE ATHLETES Senior Tyler Ray: The 2025 Big Ten cham- pion in the 100-yard butterfly, he also earned first-team All-Big Ten honors and a pair of CSCAA All-America nods in the 100-yard but- terfly and 400 medley relay. Ray placed sev- enth in the 100 butterfly (44.01) at the NCAA Championships. Senior Eitan Ben Shitrit: The Big Ten Fresh- man of the Year in 2023, he is a four-time CSCAA All-American on the second team, earning a nod there in 2025 in the 800-yard freestyle relay. He also placed fourth in the 200 free, eighth in the 200 backstroke and eighth in the 200 IM at Big Ten Championships last season. Freshman Luka Mladenovic: He has earned a pair of Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors early in his career, one on Oct. 29 and another Nov. 12. He swept the breaststroke events in a win over Northwestern (Oct. 25) and won all three individual events against Oakland and Pittsburgh (Nov. 7). Women's Swimming & Diving First Scoring Events: 155-145 W vs. Wiscon- sin, 218-82 W vs. Notre Dame, Oct. 10 Season Outlook: After finishing third in the Big Ten and ninth at NCAA Championships last season, the Wolverines return with a veteran roster looking to improve on both placements during their 2026 campaign. TOP THREE ATHLETES Senior Letitia Sim: The 2025 Big Ten cham- pion in the 200-yard medley relay and a first- team All-Big Ten selection, she was also a five-time CSCAA All-American on the second team last season (100-yard breaststroke, 200 breaststroke, 200 IM, 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay). Junior Stephanie Balduccini: The Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2024, she earned first-team All-Big Ten honors last season and grabbed Big Ten championships in the 200- yard freestyle, 200 freestyle relay, 400 free- style relay and 800 freestyle relay. She also was a five-time CSCAA All-American last year. Junior Hannah Bellard: A two-time Big Ten champion in 2025 on the 200-yard butterfly and 800 freestyle relay, she earned All-Big ❱ OLYMPIC SPORTS UPDATE Winter Sports Preview Senior Fred Richard was the 2025 NCAA all-around champion and high bar silver medalist while helping lead U-M to the national championship. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY