The Park gymnastics team took on Chaska/Chanhassen in their home opener meet Jan. 10. 

According to head coach Dawn Thielen, the team had a few setbacks due to poor weather the past week so they used this meet as one to work on individual goals.

“We’ve only had a handful of practices due to the weather, so last week was our first full week back in the gym,” Thielen said. “We had a bit of a rough meet on Saturday but tonight [the team] came back, fixed their mistakes, and did great.”

Senior captain Sophia Earle shared that her goal was to enjoy herself and her sport while she still can. 

“My goal tonight was to have fun,” Earle said. “It’s my last-first home meet, so I wanted to just enjoy it.”

Senior captain Ella Wasvick said she works to encourage the girls on the team in order to calm their nerves around competing. 

“I like to let them know how great of a job they’re doing,” Wasvick said. “ I just give them words of encouragement because you can tell that they’re definitely nervous.”

Thielen said that the team needs to work on having confidence in their ability. 

“The whole team is working on having confidence in their skills, knowing that they’ve done them a million times,” Thielen said. “If they do mess up, we have to work on letting it go and finishing out their routine.”

Earle shared how she prepares herself and her skills for important meets while keeping a good attitude. 

“I worked through the skills I haven’t been making a lot in competitions,” Earle said. “I did a bunch of those during practice this week and worked on my routines. I had a lot of fun.” 

Wasvick shared about the team rituals that are meant to boost morale and teamwork. 

“For home meets we do sister gifts,” Wasvick said. “We each have a sister on the team and we do a gift exchange just to make our meets more fun and to encourage bonding with teammates.”

Thielen said that setting goals helps the team consistently improve its skills and abilities. 

“Our goal is that they are proud of what they do,” Thielen said. “We make them set their own individual goals which helps each and every one of them improve a little bit every day.” 

The gymnastics team will have their next meet 6 p.m. Jan. 13th at Breck high school.