INDIANAPOLIS — Although teammate Andrea Morken had her best all-around performance of the year, Plainfield’s Tori Johnson was the only Quaker to move on from Saturday’s IHSAA gymnastics sectional at Warren Central High School.
Lawrence Central won the competition, with Plainfield finishing 13 points behind in fifth place.
Johnson’s performance was not what she hoped for, but a nagging injury and a mistake in the floor competition hampered her effort.
“She’s very disappointed about not making it on floor,” Plainfield coach Stephanie Strout said. “But that happens in competition. You train all year to keep consistency, and then when one little thing happens, it can take you out of the meet.”
Johnson advanced in the beam by placing second overall behind LC’s Rachel Hilgendorf. She also moved on in the all-around competition, finishing fifth. She will compete at the Harrison regional in West Lafayette this coming weekend.
Rachel Gressley, Rachel Leath, Olivia Miller, Taylor Morrison, and Carmen Solenberg also participated in the sectional, but did not advance.
All of the Quaker gymnasts return next year.
“We have a very young team, which gives us a lot of depth,” Strout said.
The team’s depth partially comes from the program Strout runs at her training facility, the Flip Zone. Plainfield gymnasts train both there and at the school.
“I have an advantage at Flip Zone,” Strout said. “We have a tumble track which saves a lot on injuries — due to a lot of pounding — and we have above-ground pits there. It’s also good for the feeder program to see the high school program and what they have.”
The facility is open to the public and offers training to students from ages 1-18. The gymnastics program has around 60 members right now.
“I would say that 75 percent of my 60 team girls are in the Plainfield schools,” Strout said. “So with that in the future, knowing that they’re starting competition as early as 5 and 6 years old, that’s exciting.”
Individual and team improvement are the goals of all athletic programs in the offseason, but some Plainfield gymnasts moonlight as cheerleaders, and that can affect their training.
“They were involved with cheerleading this past year, and this year they are taking a break from cheerleading from what I understand,” Strout said. “Gymnastics is really a year-round sport, and getting the mentality of these gymnasts to know that they have to train year-round, we can’t come in for four months and expect to be the top in the state.”
A former two-time Indiana state champion on the beam, Strout has been involved with gymnastics all her life and recognizes the advantages it offers young athletes.
“Gymnastics is my life, it really is, I truly live it,” Strout said. “I believe in it. It does so much for your personal aspects, your success in life, and your drive.”
When Strout took over the team, there was not much of a team to work with. But after developing a small class program at the school, it sparked interest.
“It has really gone fast and that’s the biggest thing,” Strout said. “I love Plainfield. There’s a lot of support there from the community for the program, and for the Flip Zone.”
With such support and optimism from the team and community, the bar has been raised for Plainfield gymnastics.
“Expect greatness to come,” Strout said. “That’s my plan for the future.”
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Quaker gymnast advances to regionals
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