The girls gymnastics team ended their regular season with a fifth place finish at the DuPage Valley Conference meet on Friday, Jan. 30. The varsity squad ended the night with a team score of 126.4.

The Huskies have a very young program, guided by senior gymnasts like Shelby Porter and Michaela Robert. According to Stanicek, these veteran athletes have helped mold their young teammates into confident and capable gymnasts.

“At our first meet, we scored a 119,” Stanicek said. “And at conference, we scored a 126.4. That’s seven points, and seven points in gymnastics is a big jump. That says that the girls learned a great deal over the course of the season, started to refine their sets and look more like gymnasts than we were at the beginning.”

Friday was a great night for Robert, who placed first in all events except beam. She took fourth in that particular event. Starting strong on vault and uneven parallel bars, Robert struggled to keep on the beam during her routine and suffered a .500 deduction for an early dismount. Robert was able to regain her focus, conclude and finish with a crowd-rousing floor routine.

“The fall was kind of a bummer because it’s been something I’ve been struggling with all season,” Robert said. “I was happy to still finish the routine strong and then shake it out of my head for floor and finish on a high note.”

Looking toward the upcoming postseason, Stanicek said Robert aspires to compete at the state competition. Each year, Robert has qualified for one more event than in the previous season. Now, the team hopes that she will qualify for all four events, as well as in all-around.

“Coming off as the DVC champion on four events, she’s going to head into regionals and hopefully do the same,” Stanicek said. “We have to get through regionals, get through sectionals, and our goal has always been to get to state. You can expect to see a lot from her. She’s not done yet.”