A Look Back: 2020 Gymnastics

“We were able to really come together very strong in our last few meets. In the beginning of the season, we had a slower start, but were able to sit down as a team and talk about what it is that we wanted to be able to accomplish. To be able to also really focus in and key in at our last competitions and to be able to come up with the best outcome," said second-year head coach Umme Salim-Beasley. "We really had gained a lot of momentum towards the end, especially with our very last competition, surprising a lot of people with a road win and having our highest team score on the road in school history. I think that was a really nice highlight for us to be able to finish out on.”

“[With the records set], you can say that we really have a very talented team. They are extremely capable of being able to compete with the top programs in the country, as having that win at New Hampshire really was proof of that. It really is just the tip of the iceberg for us because we are loaded with talent. We struggled a little bit with some injuries this year that changed our lineups quite a bit, but it also showed that we had the depth to be able to have the next gymnast ready to compete and step in and score really high for us,” said Salim-Beasley.

“Our freshmen this year were really able to get a taste of what college gymnastics is like. The excitement level and the pressure is quite different than what they experienced as a Junior Olympic competitor. They now have that experience that they're going to be able to carry on with them and build off of next year as seasoned college gymnasts. Next year, we have a really large freshman class coming in, so this year's group will be able to really pass those experiences on to the newcomers and help them along so that their learning curve isn't as large as it was for them,” said Salim-Beasley. 

“Every senior class is so different and this senior class was not the exception. They definitely had their strengths that were different from previous classes. Their leadership was by example. They were able to fight through those aches and pains and the nagging injuries to really give everything they could possibly give. They really wanted to keep pushing as much as they possibly could even with us knowing that they were in pain. Them being able to continue to give something more through all of that I think is their legacy," said Salim-Beasley.

"They were able to just constantly give everything they could for their team and the team knew it and were able to see that. It really kind of had the team fall in line with the mentality of ‘okay, I'm not going to complain about things bothering me because I know that our seniors are doing everything they can’. Their leadership and their effort is something that I've not experienced as a head coach because they wanted to do well so badly for themselves and for their team. I'm just very, very proud of what they've been able to accomplish, especially coming out as seniors and having career highs which is not something that you typically see. It really proves how determined they were and how much they wanted to really finish out the season very strong.”

“I think that the Big Ten and the NCAA made the right choice. This is something that our country has never experienced before in the modern era and having to deal with something that there are just a whole lot of unknowns. Yes, it is devastating, but also knowing that it is for the well being and health of everyone that is involved," said Salim-Beasley.

“Our message to the team really was that we as athletes always prepare for challenges and no one really knows where those challenges are going to come from. This is a new challenge, something that we've never ever faced before. We all are in this together, everybody's in the same boat. Every school, every program in the country is going through the exact same thing.We also focused on just really reflecting on the way that our season went. How we had some challenging meets and how we had to be able to pick ourselves up and get ready for the next competition. For us, being able to look into the future, knowing how talented we are and knowing how much more we have to give - that is what we can look forward to.”