The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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58 THE WOLVERINE ❱ JANUARY 2026 BY ANTHONY BROOME MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY U-M concluded its season in the NCAA Championships on Nov. 22, finishing 31st out of 32 teams competing at the event. Junior Nathan Lopez led the way for the Wolver- ines with a 102nd-place fin- ish in a time of 29:36.3 for the 10-kilometer race. It had two other finishers in the top 160 in senior Luke Venhuizen (29:53.9) and junior Trent Mc- Farland (30:00.6). MEN'S SOCCER The season came to a close on Nov. 20 with a 1-0 loss to Notre Dame in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at U-M Soccer Stadium in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines out- shot Notre Dame 21-9 with 8 shots on goal but could not find a way to grab an equal- izing goal in the showdown. The Wolverines finished the season with 12 wins, a three- win improvement over last year, and were 12-4-4 overall. They ended the regular season third in the Big Ten standings and advanced all the way to the Big Ten Tour- nament final, where they lost 5-0 to UCLA. VOLLEYBALL U-M fell in straight sets to No. 4-ranked Pittsburgh on Dec. 6, ending its season in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Wolverines were led by redshirt freshman Cymarah Gordon's team-leading 11 kills on a .474 hitting percentage, and all six Wolverine attackers in the contest tallied at least 4 kills. Head coach Erin Virtue led the team to a 22-11 record and 11-9 mark in Big Ten play this season, a four-win improvement from last year and jump up in conference matches, where it tallied a 8-12 mark last season. MEN'S GYMNASTICS The Maize team took down the Blue in the program's annual intrasquad scrimmage on Dec. 6 at Cliff Keen Arena, with Maize snapping a two-meet losing streak to their Blue foes. The meet was held in a traditional format, with Team Blue starting on the floor exercise and Maize on the pommel horse. The Wolverines will open their 2026 regu- lar season at home on Jan. 10 at 2 p.m. in- side Cliff Keen Arena, hosting Greenville and Simpson in the event. WOMEN'S GYMNASTICS New gymnastics head coach Maile'ana Kanewa-Hermelyn announced on Nov. 12 four signees to the program in Ronnie Amey (Oakland, Calif.), Isabelle David (Beverly Hills, Calif.), Shea Orlando (Dallas, Texas) and Vir- ginie Therrien (Montreal, Quebec). "We are beyond excited to officially wel- come Isabelle, Ronnie, Shea and Vivi to the University of Michigan women's gymnastics family," Kanewa-Hermelyn said in a statement. "Each of these incredible athletes embodies the values of excellence, integrity and team- work that define the Wolverine tradition. "Their talent, character and commitment to this team will strengthen our program and continue the proud legacy of Michigan gym- nastics. We look forward to the impact they will have on the Maize and Blue, both on and off the competition floor." MEN'S SWIMMING/DIVING Luka Mladenovic earned his third Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors from the con- ference on Nov. 26 after setting a new school record in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 50.92 at the CSCAA Dual Meet Chal- lenge. He now owns two top-12 national marks in breaststroke, ranking fifth in the country in the 100-yard race and 12th in the 200-yard event. Mladenovic had pre- viously earned freshman of the week awards on Oct. 29 and Nov. 12, respectively. WOMEN'S SWIMMING/DIVING Junior Bella Sims earned Swimcloud Swimmer of the Week honors on Nov. 26, thanks to her performance in the CSCAA Dual Meet Chal- lenge. Sims broke school re- cords in the 100-yard back- stroke (49.17 seconds) and in the 400-yard IM (3:58.02). She was also part of two relay teams that set new program marks in the 200- and 400- yard medley relay events. It is her second in-season honor of the year after earning Big Ten Swimmer of the Week honors on Oct. 29. WRESTLING U-M grabbed a second-place finish at the Cliff Keen Las Ve- gas Invitational on Dec. 6 with five individual place-winners and four wrestlers in the top four of their respective weight classes. It was the program's highest finish at the annual tour- nament in eight years. Redshirt freshman Brock Mantanona was the top performer for the Maize and Blue in the event with a runner-up finish at 184 points, which was an improvement from his seventh-place finish last year at 165 points in the event. Redshirt sophomore Beau Man- tanona and graduate Taye Ghadiali posted third-place finishes at 174 pounds and heavy- weight, respectively. Iowa State won the event with a 183.5 team score, well above the rest of the field. Michigan had a 99 score in the event. WATER POLO Head coach Cassie Churnside announced a five-student-athlete signing class for next sea- son on Nov. 4 with Ayla Ackerman (Newport Beach, Calif.), Courtney Smith (Flower Mound, Texas), Natalie Whitfield (Arroyo Grande, Ca- lif.), Sarah Wright (Lafayette, Calif.) and Sophie Yonker (Santa Barbara, Calif.) joining the pro- gram. Whitfield (All-American) and Wright (honorable mention) headline the class as a pair of former Junior Olympic standouts. Churnside recently announced the team's schedule for 2026, kicking off the season with the Polopalooza event at Fresno State on Jan. 16-18. ❑ ❱ OLYMPIC SPORTS UPDATE Fall/Winter Sports Roundup Luka Mladenovic earned his third Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors on Nov. 26 after setting a new school record (50.92) in the 100-yard breaststroke at the CSCAA Dual Meet Challenge. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN PHOTOGRAPHY