West Seattle’s gymnastics team recently had their first few meets of the season, placing third out of four at the first home meet on December 6th, as well as at our second meet at Roosevelt the following Friday. Then, at our last meet at Roosevelt before Winter Break, we placed second, just behind the home team. Regardless of scores, West Seattle’s team always manages to have fun and keep our spirits up at meets.
Something unique about West Seattle’s gymnastics team in contrast to other schools in our division, is that we don’t cut anyone, and require no experience to join. These conditions give our team a very diverse range of skill sets. For example, some members have never done gymnastics before, while others have competed on Seattle Gymnastics Academy’s Xcel team.
When questioning sophomore and academic weapon Lexi Schuman, I inquired into what had motivated her to join gymnastics last year as a freshman. She said, “I really wanted to do like, an exercise and get some [more] physical health, and my friends were telling me, ‘Join gymnastics, it’ll be fun’, and it looked like a fun sport, so I thought I’d give it a try.”
Before entering gymnastics, Lexi didn’t have much experience with the sport. Now, after over a year of practicing, she’s improved a great deal and via Coach Corrine and Echo’s instruction on bars, Lexi can just about back-hip circle out of town. Go, Lexi, go!
During an interview with sophomore Lillie Luke, I asked what kind of experience she had before joining the gymnastics team. She explained that she had done gymnastics camps in the past but had never competed or done advanced skills. She said, “I felt okay about [joining gymnastics] knowing I could do a cartwheel and a handstand.”
Lillie is a very athletic person, with years of track, field, and cross country under her belt, and she is open to trying new sports. Lillie “Cardio Princess” Luke claims that her years of ballet experience have followed her into gymnastics. She competes on floor and beam, which includes dance elements and require the balance and finesse she’s attained as a ballerina.
Regardless of experience, interest in competing versus just trying out a fun new sport, or general investment, gymnastics is known for having an excellent community, and a fun and uplifting environment. Senior Ruby Lockman says, “There’s no cliques, and we’re all just a big group of friends.”
Something that sets West Seattle’s high school team apart from other competitors in our division is school spirit, positive attitude, and the low stakes environment we’ve built. Judging from individual scores and general performance, West Seattle is far from the best. But when asked whether they care about scores or losing a meet, all three interviewees unflinchingly said, “No!”
One could fall on their face, break their leg, or completely forget their whole routine at a meet, and West Seattle wouldn’t hesitate to encourage or congratulate someone for doing amazing. Lillie Luke declared, “No matter how terrible you did, if you go up there and you get a three, [your teammates] would be like ‘You got such a good score, good job, good job!’” She expresses, “It’s just such a healthy environment, so that’s really unique.”
When asked how she thinks West Seattle’s skill level compares to that of other schools, Ruby Lockman couldn’t have put it better: “See, that’s not important because we have sparkles and glitter and gemstones”, referring to West Seattle’s love for wearing rhinestones on our faces and applying Senior Captain Eve’s glitter hair gel before meets. In the background of the interview, beam wizard Keara Kinch also expressed her love for glitter.
Ruby continued, “A lot of other teams are cut sports, and we’re just not, so we’re more fun and better.” Preach.
