Girls’ gymnastics is at the start of a new season and both the players,  and the coach are more excited than ever. Coach Kathleen Novorolsky explains that gymnastics is a very physically demanding sport that competes just like any other sport. She states, “ You don’t need a ball for it to be a sport.”

   Novorolsky explains the girls  practice in three groups, which are “different each day, some by level, event, and then different assignments for each event.” The girls have to work on what they need to have ready for their specified event, whether that be floor, bars or beam. Junior Ashley Flickinger says that her favorite events to compete in are beams and floor. They have to run routines and practice for approximately 12 and a half hours a week in preparation for meets. The girls must prepare three routines for each event.  

  The girls’ gymnastics team has to share gym practice time with Waubonsie and Metea. Novorolsky explains that using the same space is  “not too bad, the biggest thing is that we just have to work around each others schedules.” She then goes on to explain that IHSA does not allow more than one team to practice in a gym at any given time.  Novorolsky believes the team got lucky this year, however, because they got the early practice time. The team has the gym from 3 pm to 5:30, rather than from 5:30 to 7 pm, which they’ve had in past years.

  Novorolsky says the team has always had great team chemistry in past years, and she has no doubt that they will this year as well. She explains that she likes to have the team “play a lot of games,” to boost team spirit. That is how they started the first practice of the year, and she cannot wait to incorporate more games throughout the season. This year the team gained a lot of “new faces.”   “We have eight or nine new freshman, which is a huge number,” Novorolsky explains. With this growing team, the coach hopes that team bonding such as playings games will aid in creating the “wonderful” team chemistry that was present in the team last year.

  The girls will compete in their first meet in a month, and they could not be more excited for it.