The West Milford Gymnastics Team is a family. In which everyone is assured a position within a welcoming and supportive team, no matter one’s skill level. When uniting as a team, each and every member displays so much incredible talent.
At the first meet at Ridgewood High School, the team met and exceeded their goal of scoring at least 95 points. The second meet, also at home against Wayne Hills, was another win, proving that this season was going to be a strong one. Winning the competition against Indian Hills was a great accomplishment. The team was striving for an overall scoring of greater than 100 points. To get the desired 100 points, the team must get the highest score possible on each of the four events: beam, bars, vault and floor.
When asking Coach Rembrandt about her goals for the team, she responded “My goal for this team is for everyone to stay healthy and realize their full potential! It is such a talented team! My hope is that everyone comes together and peaks as the season moves into championship meets!”
In the past, the team has never had many people on bars or beam, but this year, many girls were pushing their limits to create the perfect “Dream Team”. Other teams think of West Milford as a team that is only talented on floor. This year we have opened up to new events, and the team has improved dramatically. Even though the team is competitive, everyone always cheers for the opponent. There is no denying the nerves when the whole audience is watching you, and only you, attempt to complete a challenging task. Our team understands the determination needed to compete at this level and supports all gymnasts, not just our own. This only serves to demonstrate the team’s sportsmanship even more.
As a result of all the tremendous hard work and efforts put in by team members this year, The West Milford Gymnastics team won the Passaic County Championship for the first time since 1998! and on top of that we met the goal of more than 100 points! Linnea Huber, one of the team’s captains, is the All-Around County Champ for 2016.
Even with all of these notable accomplishments, gymnastics is not solely about our meets. The team runs fundraisers to raise money for charities, such as this year’s Make-a-Wish Program. The team is sending a family in West Milford to Disney Word for a magical vacation.
The gymnastics team should get more recognition. Students always go to the football games, basketball games, and other activities, but there is never much of a turn out for gymnastics. Come next year to watch the team flip out at their weekly meets!