For coach Angie Mellencamp, the key to success for her Seymour gymnastics team this winter is to stay away from injuries and COVID-19.
“As long as everyone stays healthy, that is the key more so than ever this year,” she said this week while preparing her team for its opening match at 10 a.m. Saturday at Columbus East.
“It is extremely difficult to get quarantined for two weeks in the middle of the season in this sport. That will take a toll on the girls,” she said.
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There are 12 girls on the team.
“I had to make some cuts,” Mellencamp said.
She said the Seymour program is on the rise.
“The program is definitely improving,” she said. “The girls are getting stronger. There is a lot of interest in gymnastics right now. Even though the Olympics got postponed, it always spikes interest in the program in the teen girls.”
The 2020 Tokyo Summer Games did not take place because of the coronavirus and are rescheduled for 2021.
“Some of the girls came in this summer and got to work,” Mellencamp said. “Our girls did not get to finish the season last year it felt like because of COVID. It was a weird end to the season. Gymnastics Lane got shut down. I was down until June 19 for a couple months.”
Some workouts were squeezed in during June and July.
Mellencamp said the team will be young this winter with just one senior, Ivy Brown, and one junior, Lillie Cote.
“My returning girls have been working all offseason, and everyone has added new skills to their routines as far as bar, beam and floor,” Mellencamp said. “It’s going to be a good season. I’m expecting higher all-arounds. I’m expecting higher event scores, a higher team score. They’re looking good.”
In announcing the lineup for Saturday’s meet, Mellencamp has Brown as Seymour’s No. 1 performer on bars and floor.
This is Brown’s third season on the team, and she looks forward to filling the captain’s role.
“I just keep everybody in a positive attitude, and I keep everybody as one team, I keep them all together. Even outside of practice, I encourage the girls,” Brown said.
She said her favorite event is vault.
“I work really hard on that event. There’s just something about that event that gets me going,” she said. “That’s usually our second event most of the time. The first event is usually the one you get jittery on, and once you get going, you’re OK.”
Brown said bars is the event she needs the most practice on.
“I need to work on keeping my routine connected without any stops and keep my arm strong most of the time,” she said. “My floor (exercise) is pretty good. I have a hard time keeping up my stamina in keeping up with the music, but I get through it.”
One of the sophomores the coach is counting on to come through with some strong routines is Piper Hawkins.
Hawkins is listed at No. 1 in all-around for the Owls against East.
“My strongest events are vault and floor,” Hawkins said. “I’m working on a new skill on vault. I’m definitely working on more difficult moves on floor.”
Hawkins said her most difficult moves come during the middle part of her floor routine.
Mellencamp said she is counting on some first-year gymnasts to be key performers.
“We have a couple new athletes to the team this year that are actually going to play lead roles as far as scoring goes,” she said. “Savannah (Stoffregen) is going to be one of our leaders on floor and beam, I believe. She has done all-star cheerleading for years. Her tumbling is very strong. She’s got some big skills that she is throwing on floor and beam that is going to lift her scores as far as bonus goes.”
Newcomers Ava Reedy and Paige Smith should also make an impact.
“(They) have some bigger skills that will get them some bonus on floor and beam, as well,” Mellencamp said. “Piper will be one of our leads on floor, too. She has some big skills she is putting in this year, too. All of them have done club somewhere.”
Reedy is listed No. 1 for the Owls on vault, and Kayli Carter is listed No. 1 on beam.
“Going in on Saturday, we are really just looking at having a baseline meet,” Mellencamp said. “That’s what I’m telling the girls — work through the nerves. We’re not throwing anything big right now. I just want them to get through basic routines, be clean and hit. We’ll start adding in our big skills throughout the season, but this meet is a great opener to work out the nerves and put our routines in front of the judges.”
Mellencamp is beginning her 11th season as coach of the Owls and is assisted by Elizabeth Copeland.
The Owls will have three home meets beginning with Owen Valley on Jan. 11.
Seymour roster
Senior: Ivy Brown
Junior: Lillie Cote
Sophomores: Kayli Carter, Marlo Cornn, Piper Hawkins, Grace Lewis, Lores Mellencamp, Paige Smith, Caitlin Thomasma, Alex Weaver
Freshmen: Ava Reedy, Savannah Stoffregen
Schedule
Jan. 2 at Columbus East, 10 a.m.
Jan. 11 Owen Valley, 7 p.m.
Jan. 14 at Franklin Central, 6:30 p.m.
Jan. 21 Shelbyville, 6:30 p.m.
Jan. 25 at Bloomington North, 7 p.m.
Jan. 30 at Bloomington South Invitational, 11 a.m.
Feb. 2 Columbus North, 7 p.m.
Feb. 13 at Bloomington North Invitational, 11 a.m.
Feb. 26 Sectional (Columbus East), 7 p.m.