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Women's Gymnastics
Diary of a Gymnast - Jamie Reyell
April 9, 2008
My team and I faced a lot of `lasts' this season - little did all of us know that these lasts' would lead to numerous lasting memories. Two weeks ago, we traveled 10 hours together on a bus back from Virginia. My team and I had quite the Spring break - or what now refer to it as, `SB '08.' While most of our friends and peers were traveling, partying and sun-bathing in warm weather, we were doing our share of traveling as well - from Rhode Island to Pennsylvania, from Pennsylvania to Virginia, and from Virginia back home to Rhody. Trust me - our road trip was far from ordinary. We laughed, we cried. We talked, we sang. We lost...and we won. We came home hours before Easter Sunday with a win over William and Mary and a season-high score of 192.00 under our belts. Our last week in the Mackal Gym consisted of two efficient, yet surreal practices, and one session of touch football with our lifting coach. Our hysterical display of catching and throwing abilities assured all of us that the sport we had all devoted our entire lives to was definitely the right route! We walked out of that gym on Wednesday - the gym that had been our second home - knowing there wouldn't be another time when all 19 of us would practice there again. We called that gym our `fish bowl' because of the numerous windows which allowed inspired children and astonished adults to press their noses up to the glass and watch over our practices in passing. As a senior, I was prepared in knowing that this would be the last year of my gymnastics career, but when I found out our program would be discontinued after this season, it added a whole new element. Knowing that I would be finished was emotional enough, but knowing that there were about 15 girls on my team who wouldn't get to experience their complete four years of collegiate gymnastics was devastating. I am so grateful to be a part of the last varsity URI gymnastics team, and I take great pride in the way my team and I finished out our season.
It really hit me the night I started packing for the last road trip I would go on with the team. While folding a load of laundry I came across 4 leotards from that week. I know most people will probably laugh at this because the word `leotard' - for whatever reason, it seems to get a chuckle out of a lot of people. But while putting my laundry away, I knew that I would never put another one of those leotards again. I know people can relate to this - whether it is the last pair of cleats, last glove, last ballet slipper or last jersey. For us gymnasts, it was the last leotard at our last practice. It was very ironic that when we got on the plane the next day (Thursday) to Virginia that gymnastics was on television. We all watched it and commented on it with our gymnastics lingo. As I watched, I thought about how in just a few days I would never do the sport again. But in a sense, it also pumped me up. We all wanted so badly to go out with a bang and give URI gymnastics a lasting name and memory. We arrived in Virginia, loaded into the vans, and finally made it to the hotel. It was a long and tiring trip, but one full of laughter, and inside jokes. It was absolutely gorgeous when we awoke Friday morning. We went to the gym early in the morning to get a feel for the equipment, then stopped at one of our teams favorite locations for lunch, Wawa. We spent the rest of the day under the sun in Colonial Williamsburg. When we got back to the hotel, another `last' my team and I were about to face was our last ECAC Banquet. We all dressed up in our formal attire, racing between one another's rooms looking for hair spray, shoes, make up and everything in between. We met in the lobby and took - of course - every combination of group photos we could think of. We enjoyed a great meal together and proudly received awards and honors. A lull took over the room as our team was recognized in regards to this being our last competitive season and competition. We stood and cheered, especially when our well-deserving assistant coach, Craig Ballard, received ECAC Assistant Coach of the Year honors. At the conclusion of the banquet, we went back to our rooms, changed, and then spread throughout the hall of the hotel and made `pump-up' posters for one another. The one that meant the most to us was the huge banner which read 'URI GYMNASTICS-Remember the Name.' The next morning, I woke up knowing that all my hard work, dedication and sacrifice for this sport all came down to this day - to prove to myself, my team and my mom sitting up in the crowd, that the long, hard haul that we all put into this sport was worth it. When we arrived at the gym where we would compete against the seven other schools in the ECAC, we all knew that for most of us, it would be our last ankle tape, last warm-up and stretch, last time we would chant the Rhody cheers together and the last time we would compete in our blue and sparkly Rhody leotards. After completing all of our cheers (which brought most of us to tears), we marched in at the beginning of the meet all literally `holding the rope,' which represented a team building exercises we had done earlier in the year. This coincided with the phrase `we not me' printed on our t-shirts which was our own version of `there is no `I' in team.' Every routine brought tears to my eyes and sent shivers up my spine. It was a feeling of sadness and envy of girls who would be able to continue in the sport; Most of all, it was an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment. This once dysfunctional team had become a family. We were by far the loudest team there and the display of support for one another was impossible to miss, especially since we all lost our voices screaming for each routine. All differences were put aside, and we put every ounce of energy into proving to everyone - and most of all, ourselves - what we knew we were capable of. We finished in second place, beating six other teams in our division. Our team received a standing ovation from the crowd at the conclusion of the meet, which included the James Madison University gymnastics team whose program was cut last year and had come out to support us. After our head coach received ECAC Coach of the Year and we received our second place plaque, we circled up in the middle of the floor and chanted our last Rhody cheer.....a moment myself and my teammates will never forget. I will never forget when I was that little girl up in the stands running and dancing up and down the bleachers and hanging and flipping over the railings like a monkey. The numerous dedicated and supportive parents, friends and fans up in the stands behind the `URI Gymnastics-Remember the Name' banner gave us reason enough to feel extremely proud of what we had accomplished, along with the physical and mental battles we had personally overcome throughout the year. Walking through the airport on our way back home, we all felt sad, but I know that all of us will never be as proud as we were in those moments to wear our `URI Gymnastics' sweatshirts. The name definitely will not be forgotten. And the memories will last a lifetime. Like our Rhody blue team t-shirt reads, I will always be `Proud to be a Rhody Gymnast.' |
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