When turnout day for the Tahoma gymnastics team rolled around this season, coach Laura Morceau couldn’t believe her eyes.
Traditionally, the Bears have struggled to fill a full team, which makes competing in the always tough SPSL North that much more difficult.
This year, however, things will be different. Because more than 40 aspiring gymnasts showed up on the opening day of turnouts.
“This is the biggest team in our history,” Morceau said. “Last year was the biggest until then, but we doubled it this year.”
Now, Morceau and the rest of the team are hoping that the increased numbers, coupled with the second-year coach’s ‘have-fun-first’ approach to the sport will result in more success on the mats.
And, just as important, more fun for the Bears.
According to Morceau, the seeds of this year’s increased turnout were planted at the end of last season, when the team finished ninth out of fourteen teams in the entire SPSL, a step up from the squad’s usual basement finish.
“The girls were so excited with a ninth-place finish,” she said. “They were so used to coming in last. When they would finish second at a meet, they would get super excited.”
Morceau said that last year’s team members – seniors Haley Bridges, Chrissy Dain, Kristen Eisele, Lexi Matthews, Jamie Martin and juniors Anna Marie Price and Hannah Stickney – spread the word about how much fun they were having, resulting in the increased turnout.
“The girls on the team have a lot to do with it,” Morceau said. “They are an amazing team with a lot of team unity. It’s just like a big family where everyone works together to succeed.
“It’s all about them as a team.”
Already this year, just two meets into the season, the Bears have notched another step in their improvement, capturing a first-place team finish against Thomas Jefferson, Kentridge and Kent-Meridian on Dec. 10.
“Many of the seniors had never won a meet,” Morceau said.
On the mat this season, Morceau said Tahoma will look to Stickney, who competed on the beam at the state meet last season, to set the tone.
“She’s very dedicated,” Morceau said. “She works her tail off. She is definitely a big part of the team and supports them anyway she can.”
For leadership, the team will look to co-captains Eisele and Price.
“They are dedicated and they have leadership skills and qualities,” Morceau said. “I told the team to pick girls that can show leadership, that are dedicated to the team and supports them and are positive role models.”
Throw in a couple of talented freshman in Kayla Kershner and Amy Mogenson, and Morceau said the Bears have the potential to have their best season ever.
“I just came in and said I wanted to have fun this season,” Morceau said. “We’re going to make it fun. I have never stressed winning. It’s fun to win, but if you come in last and still have fun, that’s okay.”
KL rides experience
Talk about making an opening statement.
Sure, it’s still early in the gymnastics season, but Kentlake already has established itself as the team to beat in the South Puget Sound League North Division this winter.
The Falcons notched a milestone last week, posting a 170.8 team score against Auburn Riverside, Auburn Mountainview and Olympia. The score not only surpassed the school’s previous record of 163.95, but shattered it.
And while the performance may not have been a surprise to Kentlake coach Marla Boyd, the timing of it was.
“I had it in my mind that I knew they could do it this year,” said Kentwood coach Marla Boyd. “But I didn’t think we’d do it as soon as we did.”
Kentlake standout Brianne Gould agreed.
“We were pretty surprised,” she said. “We knew we were getting stronger as a team, but we didn’t think we’d get it that soon.”
This season the Falcons will look to a strong core of returners, but also received a nice infusion of newcomers. The goal — and for this group, it appears a realistic one — is to not only challenge for the North Division title, but some state hardware as well.
“We have three strong returners, Brianne Gould, Lynnsey Thielman and Becca Peterson,” Boyd said. “And then we have three new kids this year, Kayla Shira, Brenna Bickel and Katie Steckler.”
Add in junior Janae Long, and Boyd contends that the Falcons are “seven deep on every event.”
Last season, Gould finished 35th in the all-around, powered by a 10th-place, 8.250 finish on the beam.
“She’s definitely a leader,” Boyd said. “She leads by example and is a really good kid, always on time with a real positive attitude. She’s a steady, consistent athlete. She doesn’t do anything over the top difficulty-wise. She’s just really consistent.”
In addition to Gould, the Falcons roster is stocked with high-quality athletes, including state competitors Peterson and Thielman.
“I have a lot of individuals that have good leadership qualities,” Boyd said. “I just told them to step up when they need to. We focus more on the team than the individual. We always talk about how they, as individuals, can improve the team score. The team has really bought into that. I’ll have kids coming up to me and asking, ‘If I add this, how will it help the team?’”
In addition to the returners, Kentlake should get a considerable boost from Shira, a Level 10 club gymnast with Auburn Gymnastics, who is competing for the first time as a prep athlete.
“She actually expressed last year that she wanted to do high school gymnastics,” Boyd said. “But she couldn’t quite do it because of everything else she had going on. This year, she came into my office and just said, ‘I’m going to do it.’ She’s excited and has been a great addition to the team.”
And this year for the Falcons it’s all about getting to the state meet as a team.
“Our goal is to qualify for state as a team,” Boyd said. “Right now we’re focusing on that.”
K-M has reason to flip
This year’s Kent-Meridian gymnastics team will look to junior Nora Keith to lead the way.
Last season, Keith competed in her second-straight state meet, taking home seventh place in the vault with a 9.350 score and finishing 34th in the all-around with 26.3 points.
“I really was happy with my performance,” Keith said. “I pretty much went out and did the best vault that I could. And it worked out pretty well.”
This season, Keith hopes to qualify for the state tourney for the third time and better her finish in the vault. She added that she also hopes to compete in the all-around again as well.
“I’m very convinced that I’m better this year,” she said. “I really want to go into sub-districts, districts and state meets stronger and more confident.”
Keith’s goals certainly are within her grasp, K-M coach Rachel Watanabe said.
“She’s really competitive,” she said. “She always likes to do her absolute best and is not satisfied if she doesn’t. She’s one of my captains. It’s her second year as captain and she is such an asset. There a lot of kids that are good athletes but don’t help out other kids. She’s goofy and always willing to put in the work. … I’m hoping that she’ll make it to the second day at state at more than just vault.”
Aiding Keith in her quest for postseason glory will be the rest of the Kent-Meridian team.
“They’re looking pretty good,” Watanabe said. “I’ve got a couple of other girls that are making a bit of progress.”
In addition to senior Savannah Diaz, the Royals are also looking to sophomores Kim Concillado and Jenna Crain.
“Those two are really pushing Nora this year,” Watanabe said. “We have so many kids that are versatile. They just have fun together. I’m lucky that I have them and they’re all really supportive of each other.”
And they all want to improve, too.
“We do have a better team this year,” Keith said. “We didn’t know what to expect because we lost some seniors. We got a lot of good girls that have some gymnastics experience.”
SPSL NORTH
GYMNASTICS: AT A GLANCE
• FAVORITES: Kentlake, Auburn Riverside.
• OUTLOOK: Kentake looks like the team to beat this season with a strong core of returning state competitors, including Brianne Gould, Lynnsey Thielman and Becca Peterson. Couple that with the addition of senior Kayla Shira, a Level 10 club gymnast competing for her school for the first time, and the Falcons could run the table in the SPSL North. The team has already hit the 170 team score mark this season and could do it again. … Auburn Riverside steps up from the 3A classification, where it took seventh at state last season. The Ravens return junior Rebecca Turnbow, a state competitor who recovered from dual ankle injuries suffered at the district and state meets last season. Mix in returners Kylee Smith and Paige Crawford with newcomer Ali Rodseth, and the Ravens could contend with Kentlake for the team title. … Kentwood will look to returning seniors Becca Daniel and Jamie Larsen and sophomore Alison Wattles to aid its quest for a league title. Senior newcomer Alex Perez also will lend a hand. … Federal Way looks to recover from the loss of nine seniors. The team returns junior Lydia Berger and sophomore Taryn Paschke, and adds newcomer Valerie Pham. … Kent-Meridian returns all-around state competitor Nora Keith, who finished seventh at state in the vault last season. Also back are senior Savannah Diaz and sophomores Kim Concillado and Jenna Crain. … Auburn also jumps up in classification and will be led by sophomore Alexis Moore, who qualified for all four events at state a year ago and was 33rd in the all-around. Senior Amanda Hainer also has state experience. … Tahoma has its deepest squad ever, with 40 gymnasts turning out for the team. Look for state qualifier Hannah Stickney, who competed in the beam, to pace the team.
CIRCLE ON THE CALENDAR
Kent-Meridian, Auburn at Auburn Riverside, 7 p.m. Jan. 14: The Royals and Trojans will test their mettle against powerhouse Auburn Riverside.
Kentwood, Kentlake, Kent-Meridian at Kentridge, 7 p.m. Jan. 28: Defending all-city champs Kentlake will look to secure bragging rights for another year.
Auburn Mountainview, Auburn Riverside at Auburn, 7 p.m. Jan. 28: All-city meet will determine who’s top of the heap in Auburn.
— Shawn Skager/The Reporter
