Bowling Green State University Athletics
Coach Kerrie's Post-Meet Blog
January 14, 2008 | Gymnastics
Jan. 14, 2008
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - Coach's Notes: 1/13/08
Well, we opened our season this weekend against the University of Missouri. The energy in Eppler gym was amazing and I was so pleased to see our gym overflowing with fans. Our warm up was going great until we endured an injury on floor. Unfortunately, freshman, Kasey Fillmore, broke her arm during that time and she will have surgery to repair it. Kasey was set to compete all-around and she is our top athlete on bars. I was so sad to see Kasey leave for the hospital but also so proud of the way she and the team handled it.
Our meet began well on vault. Five out of six athletes hit their vaults which is a great start. I was especially proud of Jacque Bernhardt, who has been recovering from a painful bone bruise in her knee. She led us with a 9.85. Meg Satterlee and Breanne Guy also really helped us along with big yurchenko fulls.
As we moved to bars, Megan Chronister stepped in and did a great job starting us off. Despite a few hands down on some dismounts, the team did a nice job. Michelle Luchini really stepped up in her first collegiate competition. I fully expect we will hit more handstands and land our dismounts even better next weekend. Shannon has done a great job coaching this group.
Our beam warm up went well and we practiced well all week. Unfortunately, things didn't go so well. As I mentioned to the team, it is difficult as a coach to see your team's competition not reflect their practice. This was the case during the meet. We had several uncharacteristic mistakes with our first four competitors. Perhaps our most nervous athlete throughout our preparation was Breanne Guy so I was just delighted when she stepped up and got things back on track for us. I knew she could do and I told her so before she mounted the beam. You could just see it in her face that she would make it happen. Jholeen Ponce showed her experience by hitting her routine as well. I can say that I am pleased with our difficulty level on beam, with five out six athletes performing triple series and I look forward to fixing our mental errors and starting again next Saturday.
Floor was a bit of roller coaster ride. Meg Satterlee, Morgan Balzer and Breanne Guy did a great job! We had some falls, mostly related to concentration and nerves. I was pleased with the athletes' ability to entertain the crowd and the judges with their routines. This is an improvement from last season. This will be an easy place to turn things around next weekend.
Overall, we were all hoping for more hit routines but the team stayed in the game and carried themselves well despite some disappointments. We have no place to go but up and, with such a talented group, I have no doubt we'll fair better next weekend. Our young competitors learned a great deal and our experienced competitors definitely showed they can handle this. Their leadership will be important throughout this season. In the end, I love my team and I look forward to seeing all the improvements we'll make this season. Look for BGSU to be a contender as we progress. Go Falcons!
