Jan. 15, 2009

Hey Tiger gymnastics fans! We just got back from our season opener in Ames ... it was a great start to our season! Overall, everyone had a solid performance, leading to a win over Iowa State. All of our hard work in the gym is paying off. Last week before the meet, we did several intrasquads during practice to get some experience doing routines under pressure which really helped. Also, we have all been really focusing on the small details; just making a routine is not good enough. Everyone is really being aggressive in the gym; we all push each other to that next level, which is going to pay off throughout season!

Our bus trip to Ames was a fun one! Being a freshman, I had no idea what to expect, but I definitely had a great time! We got to travel in a "rockstar" bus with beds, TVs, tables, couches ... it was awesome. We loaded the bus and left Columbia on Thursday afternoon at 3 PM, stopped to eat at Carrabbas, and then stayed the night in Des Moines, Iowa, at a Stoney Creek Inn. On Friday at 2 PM, we loaded the bus once again to go eat lunch and then head to Ames to compete. It was a fun trip! And getting to travel with the whole team was a plus as well; it brings us closer together. Overall, it was a great trip; I really enjoyed it.

Since we have gotten back from Christmas break on December 27th, we have not had school, which was nice. We will start classes again next week - January 20th. Getting to focus on gymnastics alone has been good and has helped us get fully prepared for the great start we had for our season!

We are headed to Arizona for our second meet against Arizona State this weekend! It should be a fun trip! We are going to keep improving and working hard in the gym so we can meet our goal: make Nationals! We have a dedicated and hard-working team this year so I have no doubt we can do it! Go Tigers!

-Allie