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03/24/2019 12:00 AMThis year, the Hand gymnastics squad featured a younger roster compared to its championship teams of recent seasons. While the Tigers were a little short on experience, they were strong when it came to dedication, camaraderie, and the courage to take on any events.
Hand fielded a team with plenty of newcomers after graduating several seniors from the previous year. The Tigers made great strides throughout the campaign and then peaked in the postseason by turning in a pair of quality performances at two huge meets. Hand started off by taking second place at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship with a season-best score of 131.4 points. Two weeks later, the Tigers totaled a score of 129.825 points to finish in third place the Class S State Championship.
Head Coach Kelly Smith said that her team had to deal with some adversity this season. However, she was pleased to see the Tigers persevere through their growing pains and become a better club as a result.
“When the season started, we looked around the gym and saw a small group with little competition experience. We’ve lost a lot of depth and difficulty over the last few graduation years,” Smith said. “It was a rough beginning to the season as we lost several meets in a row and battled illness and injury, but through those trials, the girls buckled down and grew stronger physically and mentally. They stepped up their difficulty. They stepped into roles needed by the team. And with such a small team, they bonded into a very close-knit and supportive group.”
Coach Smith added that several of Hand’s athletes took on new challenges by stepping into unfamiliar events this year. Smith said they had some doubts in the beginning, but as the pieces started to come together, those gymnasts began realizing their potential.
“Skills that scared them became skills they competed with success in routines. They trusted us, the coaching staff and our vision, and stayed the course,” said Smith. “In the end, they accomplished everything we thought they could if they worked for it, and maybe even a little more. They trusted that, win or lose, we were doing it all together as a team.”
Smith was especially proud of where Hand ended up on the podium at both of its championship meets. The Tigers outperformed a few teams that had defeated them earlier in the season when they competed in SCCs and states.
“We love nothing more than to see our athletes flourish under the pressure of a championship competition. They handled the pressure well, performed better than we could have hoped, and fulfilled all of our goals for the season,” Smith said. “We’ve won a lot over the years, and we didn’t win as much this year, but that didn’t diminish how much fun we had together and how hard they worked all season long. We are lucky to have such wonderful athletes to work with day-in and day-out that are so positive, motivated, and happy.”
Seniors Grace Rogers and Alara Nahar guided the young Tigers as the team’s senior captains this season. Coach Smith said the tandem set an ideal example of what it means to represent a prestigious program through their diligence.
“Grace has been a strong all-around competitor for us for four years and anchored us in every event this year. Her consistency and precision were key to our success as she was our biggest scorer. She also works incredibly hard in the gym and pushes her teammates to follow that example,” said Smith. “Alara went from a beam specialist to a two-event competitor for us this year and upgraded her vault. She did her best vault of the year in the State Championship to count towards our team score.”
Fellow seniors Kelley Levis and Catherine Aranow also demonstrated their versatility this year. Both athletes were proficient in multiple events for the Tigers.
“Kelley competed predominantly beam and floor for us. She works hard and is competitively driven. She took a nasty spill off the beam and dislocated her toe just before SCCs and didn’t think twice about resting. She wanted to be in for the team and turned in one of her best performances,” Coach Smith said. “Catherine ended up competing in three events for us. Her improvements in her routines were drastic. She has always been a strong beam competitor, but this year, she excelled there with confidence. She also competed new skills and new routines on both bars and floor and filled in holes we had as a team.”
The Tigers saw several of their gymnasts garner postseason honors this winter. Rogers took first place on the beam at the SCC Championship and made the All-SCC Team with Levis, junior Carly-Anna Barba, and freshman Paige Dean. Dean went on to compete in the floor exercise at the State Open Championship. Dean and Rogers each earned spots on the All-State Team.
Rogers solidified a spot on the All-America Team for the bars, beam, floor, and the all-around, while Dean made All-American for the floor. Aranow, Levis, and Nahar made the Academic All-America Team. Rogers and Dean were also selected to the New Haven Register’s All-Area Team. Rogers is also going to compete with the Connecticut Senior National Team in Florida this May.
Looking ahead to next season, Coach Smith will definitely miss the contributions that her graduating seniors made to the program. However, she’s eager to see how the Tigers’ up-and-coming athletes will take the next step and continue progressing.
“Sophomores Kayla Cataldo and Grace Segnere competed in the all-around for much of the season this year, as well as freshmen Paige Dean and Riley Caruso. Carly-Anna Barba has always had a strong impact on our team score for both vault and bars, but has potential to compete on other events in her senior season. Freshmen Ally Gabrynowicz and Riley Kilbourn made giants leaps in the gym this year,” Smith said. “We’ll be looking to have a season much like this one—a strong showing at all championships and improvements to all the athlete’s routines along the way.”
From the Sidelines
Hand finished with a record of 4-10 during the regular season this year.
The team standings at the SCC Championship were: 1. Mercy (133.3), 2. Hand (131.4), 3. Law (127.15), 4. Foran (117.65), and 5. Hamden (110.8).
At the Class S State Championship, the team standings were: 1. Woodstock Academy (143.5), 2. Stonington (130.675), 3. Hand (129.825), 4. Oxford (129.5), 5. Law (126.5), 6. Mercy (126.025), 7. Ellington (122.425), and 8. Old Lyme (121.7).
For team scores on events at the Class S State Championship, Hand finished second on the beam (31.375), third for the floor (34.350), third on the vault (34.025), and fourth for the bars (30.075).