Gymnasts Look to Continue Surge
1/22/2015 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - The Central Michigan gymnastics team had a breakthrough performance last weekend in beating Eastern Michigan and Seattle Pacific.
But there is still plenty of work to do, and the Chippewas and coach Jerry Reighard will be the first to admit, are no where near where they know they need to be.
"We I looked ahead right in our team meeting after (last weekend's) meet," Reighard said. "And my quest is that the athletes that had a 9.75 didn't convince one of the judges that they are a 9.8. That's what we have to do."
The Chippewas scored a season-best 195.875 as a team last weekend. It was an unquestionably respectable number, but they know they will have to improve on that to realize their goals of a sixth consecutive Mid-American Conference championship and program-first NCAA Championship berth.
CMU, which is 3-1 overall, 1-0 MAC, will get an opportunity on Friday night when they travel to Ball State (0-3) for a conference matchup. The Cardinals' best score this season with a 193.700, which came in their season-opening loss to Florida.
The Chippewas opened the season with a 192.550 against Wisconsin Eau Claire and followed with a 195.175 in a loss to No. 15 Illinois.
Neither score was up to the standard that Reighard, and his athletes, had set for themselves. The Chippewas came out with a renewed sense of focus last weekend.
"That was the disappointed thing for the coaches and the team," Reighard said, recalling the first two meets of the season. "We know what talent we have we know what should be delivered and when we didn't it was crushing.
"And so to finally make that breakthrough and get that accomplished is something we have to build on. In my talks that's what I've been emphasizing: if you can do it every day in practice you can do in the meet, but that's me talking and not them."
And, they will have to do it on the road for the first time this season and with a lineup that looks significantly different from the one that started the season-opener. That was triggered by injuries to senior Kylie Fagan and freshman Macey Hilliker, neither of whom will compete at Ball State.
That has, and will continue, to test the Chippewas' depth.
"With us, you coach those top six (in each event), and you try to develop the other people," Reighard said. "We are using some new talent that none of us anticipated (using). All the sudden one of the people we kind of shelved, it's `OK, you're in,' and it didn't work out the way we wanted.
"It wasn't disgraceful or anything like that, but you hope you don't have to do that. When we lose a starter ... let's say the starter goes 9.7, your backup might (record) a 9.3. They're not going to give you a 9.7.
"The veteran lineup we thought we were going to have is no longer there."
Players Mentioned
