The gymnastics team defeated Westborough 137.9 to 132.55 on Jan. 30 for their Senior Night, improving their record to 5-1 with standout performances across the team.
The team currently holds the league’s best record, highlighted by a notable 139.15 victory over Shrewsbury and Groton-Dunstable on Jan. 25. Their vibrant team spirit was obvious on Tuesday night, where all five seniors contributed to their win and later were honored per tradition.
“Our seniors play a huge role,” head coach Angela Keith said. “They’re the ones that help get everybody motivated and bring the energy up in practice and in meets, and help coordinate everyone, so it’s a huge part of the team.”
While it was the team’s skills that ultimately won the meet, senior captains Maddie Ho, Erica DeMichaelis and Mihika Pherwani agreed that the team’s unity has contributed majorly to their success this season.
“Not even score-wise, just us as a team, we’re doing really good,” DeMichaelis said.
Ho believes the team’s mindset sets them apart from last season, where they were adjusting to the loss of nine seniors and their previous three coaches.
“I think even though last season was a lot of fun and everyone put their best effort in, you always end a season with, ‘Darn, we could’ve done so much better,’” Ho said. “So this year we kind of started with that mentality of ‘We need to do as much as we can to do our best and be on top of it all the time.’”
Sophomore Kiera Akus, who led the team on Tuesday night with her scores of 9.2 on the balance beam and 9.1 on the floor exercise, agreed.
“I think the energy is a really big part of it,” Akus said. “Last year I feel like we were so tense about trying to get a certain score, but this year I feel like it’s just been more fun. Everyone’s cheering, encouraging, and I just think it makes it so much more fun and the score even higher.”
That encouragement is visible even for spectators during meets, from a “vault tunnel” celebrating each person who competed on the vault to a “stick crown” if a member sticks their landing.
“We have little things we do at meets to keep our energy up,” Keith said. “…It just helps get the energy high, keep everyone excited, and we carry that through our practices and meets.”
Senior Night traditions, including honoring all five seniors after the game, added a poignant touch to the evening. The team’s appreciation for their graduating members was reflected not only in their performances but also in the celebrations that followed.
They also competed with all the league teams for the championship on Saturday, Feb. 10 in Shrewsbury. They won with an impressive score of 139.55 and secured their title as the Mid-Wach League Champions. The team is hoping to make it to sectionals, a competition between top teams in the state, but are grateful for the season they’ve had regardless.
“We’re so proud of how hard the team has worked this season and the effort everyone has put in,” Pherwani said.
