Lindy Verhage
Gymnastics, the sport that combines 10 sports into 1. Floor, bars, vault, beam. With the girls flipping and hurling themselves at bars, the sport is captivating if not terrifying. MC’s gymnastics team has been working harder than ever on all theses skills and techniques to make the sport look effortless. In their first meet of the season they faced off against Rancho Bernardo and a team of independents. Their first meet set up a good practice run for new and old faces.
Junior Natalie Oertel is a seasoned pro in the sport and as part of the varsity gymnastic team, she has experienced her fair share of ‘first meets’.
“JV and Varsity did really well for their first meet,” Oertel said. “There were some hiccups but it’s something we can all fix and work together to get better.”
As it was their first meet, the girls learned not only new skills, but how they need to grow as a team.
“We need to focus on cheering each other on more, especially on harder events like beam,” Oertel said.
While the girls may make the sport look effortless, it is far from easy.
“I think floor is the hardest,” Oertel said.
In floor, each girl is given a routine set to music that combines elements of dance, rhythm and plenty of technique. The bar is set pretty high when the girls have all of this on their minds.
But even with the level of difficulty of the sport, the girls pass with flying colors on the uneven bars.
“Our strongest point was bars for sure,” Oertel said. “That was a big accomplishment today.”
The sport’s head coach, Monique Lamphiere-Tamayoshi, or LT as her athletes call her, has been coaching here at MC for 22 years. She has watched these girls grow over the years and for her, it’s just another meet.
“I’m proud of what they did today,” Lamphiere-Tamayoshi said. “They put together things that are working.”
Despite it being their first meet, the girls already have their eyes set on a CIF banner.
“We do well at leagues every year and usually place in top three at CIFs,” Lamphiere-Tamayoshi said.
As the first meet of the season, the girls are already showing incredible talent that they will only be building on through the season. These girls have been training everyday and deserve MC’s support. Let’s get that MC Red Wave out at their next meet on Friday, April 8th, and cheer on our girls all the way to CIFs.
