McLean’s varsity gymnastics team has been working hard this season, and their dedication is paying off. They competed in their fifth meet of the season at Yorktown High School on Wednesday, Jan. 17. They competed against Centerville, Westfield and Langley.

The squad pulled out another win last night, bringing in their fourth first place finish of the season. 

“There were some really good out-of-district teams like Centerfield and Westfield, so our win was kind of unexpected,” senior Anna Ntep said. 

However, these teams are familiar faces to McLean as they have competed against these schools already this season. 

“The hardest meet we’ve done so far is the one [at] Lake Braddock, where we placed second,” junior Skylar Thomas said. “My club teammates were there and they’re at higher levels so they’re difficult to compete against.” 

In order to prepare for meets, the gymnastics team practices three to four days of the week.  

“We pretend like we’re at a competition and prepare as if we’re at the real competition itself,” Thomas said. “We switch events every practice to make sure we’re getting in reps and practicing all events.” 

Many of the team’s athletes also participate in club gymnastics during the high school season, requiring them to stay on top of a busy schedule. 

“I have club practices three days a week,” senior Kristen Harrje said. “I go to high school practice when it doesn’t overlap, but it still can be hard to balance with my schoolwork sometimes.” 

While McLean’s varsity gymnastics team has always been accomplished, this year the team is doing exceptionally well. 

“We did really well last year and we want to continue to do well so we really pushed ourselves,” Thomas said. “We got some new freshmen that are higher level gymnasts, and a lot of our gymnasts from last year have recovered from injury so they’re able to perform and compete.”

With the team’s young talent and dedication, their success this year is well-deserved. 

“We’ve worked really hard this season and I’m so proud that this meet helped continue to reflect that,” Ntep said. “I’m so proud of how much effort this team is putting into doing our best.”