The NCAA News - News and Features

The NCAA News -- July 5, 1999

Championships Year in Review -- Michigan, Lincoln teams take the bottom-to-top express

BY KAY HAWES
STAFF WRITER

It's a great accomplishment to win a championship when you have had a winning tradition for years. It's a completely incredible accomplishment, however, to go from last to first.

This year, two teams -- in two different divisions and in two different sports -- did just that.

From winless to winning it all

Michigan men's gymnastics team was barely in existence three years ago. The Wolverines went winless, and there was talk of disbanding the program.

This year the Wolverines won the national title -- their first in men's gymnastics since 1970. What made the difference? Perhaps a new coach, a new commitment to the sport and a lot of hard work.

When Michigan coach Kurt Golder took over the program three years ago after the Wolverines' winless season, he knew he had a long road ahead of him.

"When I took over in the fall of 1996, there were no scholarships here for men's gymnastics" he said. "The first thing that made a difference was offering scholarships. It all started with support from the administration."

Once Golder had scholarships, he had to convince talented student-athletes to come to Michigan for men's gymnastics.

"I was patient and selective in my recruiting," he said. "And I had two real good recruiting classes back to back."

Lalo Haro, a gymnast who was an all-American at Michigan in the all-around and in the vault, was one of Golder's first recruits to help turn things around. "He was really my first blue-chip recruit," Golder said.

This year Golder had a lot of assistance from Michigan's freshmen and sophomore competitors in the all-around.

Strong individual performances from sophomore Justin Toman and freshman Scott Vetere helped the Wolverines score a season-best 232.55, pushing back Ohio State at 230.850 and Nebraska at 229.60.

Toman just missed winning the national all-around title, finishing second to Nebraska's Jason Hardabura by one-tenth of a point.

"I don't think we were intimidated by anyone at all," Golder said. "The plan was to get here in the fourth year and be in contention in the fifth year. We got lucky and got some great recruits. Everything fell into place."

Golder also credits his team's hard work.

"I believe good things come to those who work hard, and our hard work was rewarded," he said, noting that the team should contend again next year since it only lost one athlete.

"I just feel very blessed that this young team has come so far so fast, and I'm really optimistic for the future," Golder said.

Running into the record books

At Lincoln (Pennsylvania), the track and field team is used to taking home Division III titles -- the men's track and field team, that is.

This year the men's team added the outdoor title to its indoor crown. It was Lincoln's fourth men's indoor-outdoor sweep of the 1990s and its fifth men's outdoor team championship, pulling the Lions into a first-place tie with Rowan and Wisconsin-La Crosse for the most men's team titles.

But the women's team at Lincoln had been a different story. While both teams share a coach, Lincoln athletics director Cyrus Jones, the women's team had not taken home a title since 1993. The women's team had not even scored a point in the Division III Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships for the past two years.

This year the Lions collected 54 points, edging out Wheaton (Massachusetts), the 1999 Division III indoor track champion, by six.

The key to success for the Lincoln women this year? Their coach attributed the title to a change in attitude and several top-performing freshmen.

"We had some women who were just determined to catch up with our men," Jones said. "Our men's program has had great success, and these women decided that they wanted that, too. Here at Lincoln, we don't make distinctions between the men's track team and the women's track team. We just say, 'We are the Lincoln track team.' I think the women just aimed to be a part of that winning tradition."

Three freshmen led the way for Lincoln. Rhondale Jones made the biggest impact, as she became just the second Division III woman to win three events in a championship. Jones won the 100- and 200-meter dashes, setting meet records for both, and she also won the 100-meter high hurdles and anchored the winning 400-meter relay team.

Lincoln's Jalima Levine, also a freshman, was second to Jones in the 100-meter hurdles and a member of the 400 relay team. Also helping out was freshman Vernick Smith, who was third in the 400-meter dash.

"We recruited some outstanding young women in Rhondale Jones, Jalima Levine and Vernick Smith," Jones said. "They showed us that they planned to start a winning tradition of their own."