HEAD COACH BEV PLOCKI
Bev Plocki has completed her 34th season as head coach of the University of Michigan women's gymnastics program. During her tenure, Plocki has transformed the program into a consistent national powerhouse, winning the programs first-ever national title in 2021. She has led the Wolverines to 26 Big Ten championships, the most by any coach, in any sport, in Big Ten history. She also has guided the squad to eight Big Ten regular season titles, 26 NCAA Championship appearances and 10 NCAA Super Six berths.
One of the nation's top gymnastics coaches, Plocki is an 11-time Big Ten Coach of the Year, 13-time NCAA Regional Coach of the Year and a two-time National Coach of the Year, earning the honor in 2021 and 1994. She has led Michigan to 13 NCAA Regional titles and has guided the Wolverines to 25 top 10 finishes at the NCAA Championships. Under her tutelage, Michigan captured a Big Ten-record seven conference titles in a row from 1999-2005, while 53 of her student-athletes have secured 210 NCAA All-America honors and nine NCAA individual national titles.
Plocki and the Wolverines joined an exclusive club, becoming just the seventh team to ever capture an NCAA women's gymnastics title in 2021, scoring the third-best score in championship history and the best score in Michigan history. The Wolverines joined Georgia, Utah, UCLA, Alabama, Oklahoma and Florida as the only teams in the country to win a national championship. Plocki and her staff led Michigan to its first national championship with a then-program-best 198.2500. The Wolverines eclipsed the 198 mark for the first time in 2021 and ended the season with four scores of 198.000 or higher. In the 2021 national championship season, U-M broke the U-M balance beam (49.600) and uneven bars (49.725) records, while notching the second-best score in program history on the vault with a 49.800. The Wolverines finished the regular season ranked in the top 15 in all four events, including leading the nation on the vault, and went into the NCAA Championships ranked second nationally.
Following up the national championship season, Plocki and the Wolverines topped the national rankings for nine straight weeks to start the 2022 season and continued to set a new standard for Michigan gymnastics. The Wolverines set a program record with a 198.525 at Rutgers, which at the time ranked as the sixth-highest score in NCAA history. In the same meet, U-M set a program record on the vault with a 49.875, the second highest in NCAA history at the time, which included three straight perfect 10.0s. Michigan also broke its previous floor record, recording a 49.750 at home against Auburn and West Virginia. Michigan not only broke records in the gym but also sold out Crisler Center for the first time in program history in the 2022 season. Plocki and her Wolverines capped off the season with the highest team average (197.696) and floor average (49.554) in program history while ranking second on vault (49.454) and uneven bars (49.418) and third on beam (49.227).
Plocki continued to bring the program to new heights in the 2023 campaign as it posted six scores of 198+ and captured its conference-leading 27th Big Ten title, while earning her 13th Regional Coach of the Year nod. The Wolverines ranked inside the top five nationally for the entire 2023 campaign and were the top floor team nationally for six straight weeks, while also ranking No. 1 on the vault three times. U-M tied its uneven bars record (49.725) and broke its beam record (49.625), while securing its first-ever 198+ at Crisler Center agianst No. 1 Oklahoma.
Plocki inherited the program in 1990 that had finished no better than fourth at the Big Ten in the seven seasons prior to her arrival. In 1989, the year before Plocki took over, the Wolverines finished last in the Big Ten with a 2-19 overall record and were a winless 0-13 in the Big Ten. She took Michigan from a seven-win team in her first year (1990) to a 20-win team in her third year (1992), while also securing the program's second Big Ten title and second NCAA Championships appearance. She also captured the first of what would be four-straight Big Ten Coach of the Year awards in 1992, while adding the first of four NCAA Regional Coach of the Year trophies to her mantle. Michigan also celebrated its first NCAA All-American when freshman Beth Wymer finished among the nation's best in the uneven bars and in the all-around competition, earning a pair of NCAA All-America (first team) accolades. The Wolverines proceeded to rally off a then-Big Ten record six-straight conference titles over the next six years as Plocki vaulted Michigan to the top of the conference. In just three seasons, Michigan became a perennial contender for the national championship.
In 33 seasons at Michigan, Plocki has coached five U-M gymnasts -- Elise Ray, Beth Wymer, Kylee Botterman, Joanna Sampson and Natalie Wojcik -- to a total of nine individual national championships. Additionally, 53 of her student-athletes have combined to receive 210 NCAA All-America citations. Her gymnasts have also received a total of 187 All-Big Ten honors and won or tied 110 Big Ten individual event titles. Plocki has coached 14 Big Ten Gymnast of the Year and 13 Big Ten Freshman of the Year award winners. Plocki's student-athletes have also excelled in the classroom with 234 Academic All-Big Ten honors and 73 student-athletes have earned 138 National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches (NACGC) Scholastic All-America accolades. Plocki's Wolverines earned Michigan's inaugural Community Service Award in 2001, repeating in 2002, while earning the Leaders and Best Award in 2000 and 2001, given to the U-M team with the highest GPA.
In 1994, Plocki received the NCAA National Coach of the Year award after guiding the Wolverines to a program-best 27-1 record and a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. Michigan boasted six All-Americans and Wymer's second individual event title, while sweeping the Big Ten individual event titles and conference postseason awards.
Of all Plocki's All-America student-athletes, Wymer and Ray stand out as the most successful. Under Plocki's tutelage, Wymer became one of Michigan's most celebrated gymnasts, earning 13 All-America honors, three NCAA individual event titles, 14 Big Ten Conference individual titles, three Big Ten Gymnast of the Year awards, three Academic All-Big Ten honors and the 1995 Big Ten Medal of Honor. During Wymer's four years in Ann Arbor, Michigan tallied a 116-9 record, posting a 45-1 conference record. The Wolverines won four Big Ten titles, advanced to four straight NCAA Regionals and finished among the top 10 in the nation four times, including a then-program-best runner-up finish in 1995.
Despite Wymer's departure, Plocki kept the cupboard stocked with world-class student-athletes, highlighted by the addition of 2000 U.S. Gymnastics Olympic captain Elise Ray to the squad for the 2001 season. Ray won three national titles and earned a school record 14 All-America honors while with the Wolverines, picking up eight NCAA Regional individual titles, six Big Ten Conference Championships individual titles, two NCAA Regional Gymnast of the Year citations and the 2005 Big Ten Co-Gymnast of the Year award. The Wolverines won 93 meets with Ray on the roster, winning the Big Ten title five years in a row, capturing three regional crowns and posting three top-5 finishes. Ray promptly won a national title in the all-around competition in her freshman campaign in 2001, helping Michigan post a third-place finish at nationals.
Plocki, a native of Butler, Pennsylvania, was a gymnast at Alabama for one season (1983) before transferring and finishing up her college career at West Virginia (1985-87), where she received her bachelor's of science degree in physical education (1987) and her master's degree in sports management and administration (1989). She is a graduate of the NCAA Women's Coaches Academy (Dimension II) where she was the recipient of the Judy Sweet Spirit Award in 2007.
Plocki and her husband, Jim, have two children, Elizabeth and Tyler. They reside in Saline, Mich.