Last season was full of success for the Red Rocks. Utah’s gymnastics team enjoyed a season where it made it to the NCAA Super Six and came in second in the entire nation, falling to Florida by half of a tenth of a point.
While the team last year was obviously disappointed with not being able to bring home another championship to Utah, the success of last year’s team is undeniable. The team went undefeated in the Pac-12 and only lost three meets (including the loss to Florida in the Super Six). Seventeen All-America Awards were given to Utah gymnasts, and the team ranked third in the NCAA rankings.
Unfortunately for Utah, the team lost four key gymnasts since that record-setting campaign. These four gymnasts were all letter-winners and All-Americans and comprised a good portion of the team that achieved such great heights last year. Fifth-year senior Kailah Delaney knows this loss of experience and skill is going to affect the team, but she is still hopeful.
“Obviously we lost a lot of good seniors last season,” Delaney said. “Now we have a young team, and that’s going to be interesting to see. So far everyone is doing really great and working really hard. I honestly think it’s going to be another great year even though we did lose a lot of great seniors.”
Delaney is one of the group of new seniors who will look to lead this team to another appearance in the Super Six. Breanna Hughes, a senior from Champlin, Minn., is another, and she has goals in mind for how the team this year can replicate last year’s success.
“The goals are pretty much the same as last year,” Hughes said. “Just work hard in the gym and really build a strong team atmosphere. Just improve with every practice and every meet and see where we can go with that.”
Usually after a season of so much success, a team can be under a lot of pressure. The organization and fanbase both expect the team to keep up their success. This pressure can cause some teams to buckle and fall short of the lofty expectations, and recreating last year’s second-place finish is definitely a lofty expectation.
Yet Hughes isn’t phased.
“No, I don’t think we feel pressure,” Hughes said. “I think that is just giving us more motivation to just have a good year. It’s making us more excited for this year and to build off of [last year’s success].”
Utah’s program will bring on four freshmen this season to go along with five returning All-Americans. This mix of experience and youth is perfect for a team like Utah that enjoys continued success from year to year. With leaders who can lead the younger athletes and pass on their experience and wisdom, mixed with young gymnasts who are fresh and can bring new skills to the team, this group is primed for success this year and beyond.
Co-head coach Megan Marsden sees this opportunity and knows it will be one of her focuses this year.
“We’d like to bring a young team along and have them be veteran-like by the end of the season,” Marsden said. “We feel like we have plenty of talent to vie for a spot in the Super Six and possibly even a championship, but it will be important that the young ones on the team, the freshmen and even the sophomores, continue to get very comfortable in the competitive situation.”
Utah achieved its usual success last year, and from the looks of it, the team this year will be no different. The Red Rocks are ready to perform under the pressure of high expectations, and they have the tools to succeed.
@Twelvegage96