Gymnast Face Bowling Green in Home Finale
2/21/2015 12:00:00 AM | Gymnastics
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Experimentation time is over.
Now, it's go time.
The Central Michigan gymnastics team will enterain Bowling Green Sunday (1 p.m.) at McGuirk Arena in a Mid-American Conference meet. It's the Chippewas' final home event of the season as they enter the stretch run of what they hope is a regular-season league title, a tournament championship, and a berth in the NCAA Championships.
CMU is coming off its best performance of the season, posting a 196.400 in a win last weekend at Kent State. The Chippewas (7-3 overall) share first place in the MAC with Northern Illinois. Both squads are 3-1 in league meets.
The Chippewas recorded season-best marks on balance beam and floor exercise, and were just shy of their season-best on bars in beating the Golden Flashes.
It was a high point but, coach Jerry Reighard and his athletes hope, not the high point in a season that has seen its share of confounding ups and downs.
"I think we've got a much better mental composure than we did," Reighard said, referring to early season performances that were far below expectations. "And my talk to them is going to be, Trust your talent.
"It wasn't that your socks were blue, it wasn't anything that you did that made it happen, it was your talent that made it happen. I think we'll be OK, I really do. I think they're hungry. That taste of victory, especially at Kent, is going to be instrumental in how we perform."
Bowling Green is 5-5 overall, 1-2 MAC. The Falcons' best score this season is 195.500, which they recorded in a win over Bowling Green on Feb. 8. Bowling Green has posted 195.200 in its last two meets, a loss to Northern Illinois and a win over Alaska Anchorage.
Not only did the Chippewas post season bests on beam and floor last week at Kent State, but several team members recorded career- and season-best marks in several events.
Senior Halle Moraw posted a career-best 9.900 on beam and earned MAC gymnast of the week honors for the third time this season.
It is the final home meet for six Chippewas: Kylie Fagan, Becca Druien, Tori Garcia, Preslee Harrald, Moraw and Taylor Noonan, who is injured and will not compete.
The final home meet can serve as a motivator, Reighard said, but also a distraction.
"The pressure for the senior meet, it always bothers me, because you don't know what that's going to do to them," he said. "It's one of those unknowns that until after the fact you can't say one way or the other. But I think our seniors are very heady."
The bigger concern, Reighard said, is the number of nagging injuries that always enter into the equation.
"My No. 1 concern is always, Is Preslee's elbow going to allow her to do what she needs to do?" Reighard said. "Is Halle's shoulder going to allow her to compete effectively? Becca, can she run?
"If we practice them too hard then you've used them up, if you don't practice them hard enough, then we're not sure if they can do what they need to do. And in our sport, once you write their name on the line, you're going to count their score. There's no ifs, ands or buts about that."
Players Mentioned
