As freshman Jahzara Ranger stepped up to begin her floor exercise for the No. 13 Michigan women’s gymnastics team, the tension in Oklahoma City’s Paycom Center was palpable. The Wolverines had led all meet, but Arizona had just edged them out with a score of 49.225 on the balance beam in its final rotation. As the anchor in Michigan’s rotation, Ranger needed to score a 9.825 or higher to take back the lead.
But the pressure was no problem for Ranger. She sailed through her routine, capping it off with a smooth round off handspring double tuck. Her score of 9.9 was more than enough to seal the victory.
“I wanted to end the meet with a bang so I could celebrate at the end; so my team could celebrate at the end,” Ranger said with a smile in her voice.
And celebrate they did. After Ranger’s high-pressure heroics, Michigan (3-1) won the Friday session of the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad with a team score of 195.925, edging out No. 14 Arizona (5-1), Clemson (2-1) and North Carolina State (1-3) by a margin of 0.1.
“We’re a very young team,” Michigan coach Bev Plocki said. “We’re finding our footing and trying to get some confidence in what we’re doing. (The win) was a good sign that we improved a great deal from last week to this week.”
That confidence began on vault, where the Wolverines started out strong with a score of 48.950. Freshman Sophia Diaz performed a Yurchenko 1.5 for a team-high score of 9.85, and graduate Jenna Mulligan added a 9.825. After one rotation, Michigan led by a margin of 0.100.
The most memorable part of the Wolverines’ rotation on uneven bars came on a score that wasn’t counted. Ranger turned in an impressive feat of strength when she nearly fell off the bars on a release move but managed a midair, one-armed save. Ranger was still marked down for the near-fall and scored just a 9.2, but her ability to stay on the bars and finish her routine showed a strong presence from the youngster.
“I have no idea how she was able to do that and stay on the bar,” Plocki said. “That was pretty amazing.”
Nevertheless, Ranger’s 9.2 score left very little room for error. Graduate Carly Bauman led Michigan’s scoring with a 9.9 from the anchor spot. Sophomore Ava Jordan’s 9.825 and senior Jacey Vore’s 9.8 rounded out the Wolverines’ top scorers on uneven bars, and they led by a margin of 0.4 heading into the third rotation.
Michigan wavered on balance beam, but maintained its lead despite a few shaky routines. Freshman Sophia Parenti contributed a 9.9 from the leadoff spot. Mulligan provided a steady hand in the fourth spot after a fall and near-fall from sophomore Kayli Boozer and senior Jacey Vore, respectively. She scored 9.825 in a routine that oozed the poise one expects from a fifth-year veteran.
“They train a little bit more relaxed, a little bit more aggressive,” Plocki said. “When we get in competition, they get a little tighter, they get a little nervous. … We’ve got to just get in our comfort zone and go out there and be able to compete the same way that we train.”
The Wolverines bounced back on floor exercise with a score of 49.225, in an example of the kind of relaxed, aggressive showing that Plocki wants to see from her team. A score of 9.85 from junior Paige Thaxton and a 9.875 from graduate Carly Bauman built up to Ranger’s dramatic finish from the anchor spot. As upperclassmen, Thaxton and Bauman have the consistency Plocki hopes the entire team will eventually emulate — Bauman in particular was First Team All-Big Ten last year and averaged 9.877 on the floor.
“It’s (a victory) to carry into the next meet and all the others to come,” Ranger said.
For many of the Michigan gymnasts, this was only their second time competing in a college gymnastics meet. As a young team still finding its footing, the Wolverines victory on Friday was the first step in what they hope will be a successful season.
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