2015-16 UW Gymnastics Blog
October 14, 2015 | Gymnastics
Hello friends of UW Gymnastics! This blog will follow the team throughout the 2015-16 season and is written through the eyes of the GymDawgs by junior Janae Janik. Check back for weekly updates, and be sure to follow the GymDawgs on Facebook, Twitter , Instagram at UWGymnastics and Snapchat at UW_Gymnastics.
Kaitlin Duranczyk - Nov. 19, 2015
Even in the pressure of competition, she is always known to have a smile on her face. Now progressing through her junior year, Kaitlyn Duranczyk has become a natural leader without even realizing it, and when the team and coaches voted her as team captain for this year, she was honestly surprised.
“I always try to be a really good teammate and I very much like to lead by example, I always saw myself that way. But I didn't realize other people saw me in that way.”
It is this humbleness, along with a true passion for gymnastics that makes Duranczyk such an incredible role model on the team.
From the earliest age, Duranczyk loved being in the gym and actually was immersed in college gymnastics before she was even competing.
“I was taught by the Cal State Fullerton gymnasts, cause I went to the Cal State Fullerton rec program and all of the gymnasts coached the program. So that was my early intro to college gymnastics.”
Probably partially due to the influence of those athletes, Duranczyk differed from the desires of most young gymnasts in that she did not want to go to the Olympics. She wanted to do gymnastics in college.
Realizing that she really wanted to attend the University of Washington, Duranczyk arrived at the annual Gymdawg Summer Camp in 2012 to try and prove to the coaches that she could hold her own in Division 1 athletics.
And she did. Soon after camp the coaches offered her a spot on the team and a lifelong dream became a reality.
“It was a turning point for me in my gymnastics career,” says Duranczyk
Outside of the gym, she loves working with kids and is studying to become a teacher. Every Tuesday, after a long hard workout and finishing up rigorous classes, she volunteers with 2nd graders at Northgate Elementary School for a three-hour after-school reading program.
The first half of the time is spent playing fun games that enhance reading skills like 'Sight Word Bingo' and other flash card games. The volunteers try to keep it light-hearted and fun since the children have already been in school for the whole day.
The second half of the time, Duranczyk will help kids on their homework and read books to them as well.
One class that she took all last year is American Sign Language, and she was ecstatic to learn that many of her second graders had recently learned the sign language alphabet last year as well. She was so excited in fact, that yesterday, she made up her own reading game by signing a word, and having the kids read her hand. It was a huge success and the teacher was thrilled that Duranczyk was able to be so innovative.
To slow down from the intense rigors of gymnastics, classes, and volunteering Duranczyk really enjoys spending time doing art. It's one of those things that she doesn't often get to do, but when she does she explains that time seems to stop as she becomes fully immersed in her project.
“It's always been something that's important to me. And it's kind of therapeutic in a way. I really like painting and drawing portraits. I use pastels. I'll do mixed media art, like I'll collage and paint over it. [It's] something I've done all through high school and I've tried to keep it up in college cause it's something that really helps me take a step back and it's a good way to relax.”
She has taken classes since elementary school and while in High school she took AP Art twice just because she loved it so much.
“The last two years, seeing the upperclassman design leos, I wanted to help so bad. And I was trying to get the team more involved this year because I know that other people had that feeling too: that they wanted to design leotards, cause it's really cool. Like what other sport gets to design a sparkly, flashy outfit to wear during competition.”
After the designs were finished, the team voted on their favorites to finalize the decision, but you'll have to come watch them during competition season to see the final results.
You can see the Gymdawgs in action for the first time this Friday at 7:00pm for their Purple and Gold Intrasquad. And if you're looking, I'm sure you'll catch a glimpse of Duranczyk's signature smile as she leads her team to a great performance.
Monica Riley - Nov. 12, 2015
For freshman Monica Riley, family is everything. Her dad was her high school pre-calculus teacher, and her mom pastored their local Presbyterian church, so everywhere she went there was always a loving support group by her side. Even while she's miles away, she still calls them about twice a week and usually ends up having a solid two-hour conversation each time.
Growing up in Texas, her whole family lived within a one-hour drive and loved spending time together. Laughing she acknowledges the weird stereotypes that people put on Texans.
“We have a lot of state pride, and we do things kind of weird, but no we don't ride our horses to school like popular belief.”
She also says that Texas is really hot, yet she loves scarves and claims to have over thirty of them in her wardrobe, which she had collected before coming to Seattle. It seems she has moved to the right place.
Leaving her family all the way back in Texas was hard for the freshman, but she says the girls on the team have really adopted her as one of their own.
“It's nice having a built in family here. It's like my home away from home, and especially the older girls, being able to just talk to them about anything…It's really helped my transition being so far away from home.”
One of the new experiences that freshmen learn to adjust to is living in a one room dorm and sharing it with another athlete. Riley says that dorm life has been an interesting experience. For instance, she says that people will just randomly start singing across the hall at night, but overall both her and her roommate enjoy each other's company and also know when to give each other some quiet time.
“I make seven to eight sandwiches at a time and then I just put them all in my fridge,” she says explaining that she eats a turkey sandwich every day for lunch. This planning ahead allows her to simply grab one in the morning on her way to practice.
Once she arrives at practice, Riley is all business, and has shown herself to be an extremely hard worker with a willingness to try new things. She is known for gorgeous lines on bars and is also coming along strong on the other three events.
Head coach Joanne Bowers can't say enough good things about Riley, and is thrilled with her progress and integration into the team.
“She comes ready to work everyday, and she just seems to be one of those worker bees that pumps away and gets her assignments done everyday and is always trying to improve. [She] seems to be a great teammate. I mean its everything we had hoped for.”
Balancing athletics with academics can be tough, but challenging coursework is nothing new for this freshman, as she graduated Salutatorian of her High School. Because of that ranking, she had the opportunity to give a speech sending off her graduating class into college and future careers.
In that speech, she talked about making a difference in the world and leaving a mark wherever life took them. And while she still doesn't know what the future holds for her and what that mark will actually look like, she's excited to find out.
“It would be amazing if I could leave a legacy here at UW and support my team in whatever way they need me to.”
Halloween - Nov. 4, 2015
It's that time of year. Pumpkins adorn front porches, leaves have started falling off the trees in the crisp cool air, and a sense of the Holidays quickly approaching has everyone in excited anticipation.
Every year, the Gymdawgs dress up before practice on Halloween to have some fun and as the Holiday season begins. Even the coaches join in. This year, Head Coach Joanne Bowers, dressed up as a jail inmate, Associate Head Coach, Elise Ray, showed her skills as a lady Roller Skater and Assistant Coach, Stephen Buckner, dressed up in his wife's hospital scrubs as a nurse.
Photo: The Gymdawgs and staff pose for a team Halloween picture before practice last Saturday.
Included in the costume mix were also several animal onesies, including Stitch (Lilo and Stitch), a fox, a giraffe and a cheetah.
The Junior Class came in strong with each of them dressing up as either one of the coaches or the supporting staff. Playing on some of the coaches' signature “looks” the girls did their hair, wore their clothes, and added accessories to look exactly like the coaches.
Alex Yacalis, who dressed up as Stephen Buckner, even smeared eyeliner across her cheeks and chin to make her look more like a guy. What do you think? Did they pull it off?
Photo: Faith Morrison, Janae Janik, Stephanie Stowe, Kaitlyn Duranczyk and Alex Yacalis, dressed up as coaches Chelsea Larsen, Lauren McGuigan, Joanne Bowers, Stephanie Gentry and Stephen Buckner.
Later on in the day, the Gymdawgs planned a team potluck to have some bonding time with each other outside of gymnastics. Joslyn Goings, Hailey Burleson, and Emily Liddle opened up their home and invited the whole team over. Everyone either brought a specialty dish, dessert, or an ingredient to make chicken tacos so there was plenty of delicious food to go around.
A couple other friends and roommates were also invited to join in on the fun and the Gymdawgs sat around the TV watching popular comedians while laughing their hearts out. It was nice to just be able to spend some time with each other, and not have to think about homework or other responsibilities. Projects and essays could be done later, but right then, all that mattered was enjoying each other's company. I guess that's why they say laughter is the best medicine.
Photo: Joslyn Goings and Allison Northey sharing a moment of laughter while watching the comedian on TV.
Currently, the team has their eyes set on Saturday, when they will have their first official Intrasquad with two official guest judges. While the Gymdawgs have been practicing routines under pressure in practice, this will give them the opportunity to begin to really get in the competition mindset by running through all four of their competitive events. It will also give the team the opportunity to gain an outside perspective and make sure that all the specific requirements for routines are being met.
For the freshman, this will be their first experience of what a meet feels like, so it will be a great learning ground for them to start understanding what they need to be mentally prepared as well as feel some of the excitement and adrenaline rush that happens when you nail a routine for your team.
Overall, the whole experience will benefit the team and help them get ready for where they want to be in January. Due to the football game later that night, parking will be difficult to find but fans are more than welcome to come watch the girls perform at 9:00am and help motivate them towards their goals.
Also, don't forget the Purple and Gold Intrasquad will be coming up on Friday, November 20th in Alaska Airlines Arena. Save the date, and we hope to see you all there!
Hailey Burleson - October 28, 2015
This week we wanted to profile sophomore Hailey Burleson. She had an amazing freshman year that saw her thrive as the anchor on vault and a key contributor on floor and bars. We expect big things from Hailey!
Hailey Burleson loves shopping, cooking, and her favorite movie is none other than Tangled, but beyond the shoes, food, and a normal teenage girl is an extremely talented and dedicated student-athlete who is balancing a life full of exciting opportunities.
Her UW journey started when she realized that she had the opportunity to graduate from High School a year early because of taking numerous online classes. Originally, she contemplated coming to UW in December of last year, but Head Coach Joanne Bowers gave her a call offering a scholarship a year early and asked if she could finish up her last few classes over the summer. Coming in September would enable her to become acclimated to college and immersed in the team much easier than starting up right before competition season.
“It all was just kind of a whirlwind and it happened really quickly,” says Burleson of that decision process, but after praying about it she really felt that it was the right thing to do and says now that she couldn't imagine coming in a year later as she has become extremely close with her class.
In fact, she actually lives off-campus with two of her sophomore classmates, Joslyn Goings and Emily Liddle as well as former GymDawg Dori Overhus.
“It's honestly like a big slumber party every night. We're always goofing around.” Obviously being with her teammates all the time creates an amazing friendship because they basically live as sisters, but this also creates a dynamic that Burleson explains they are all careful to be cognizant of. She says that having consideration for each other is what ultimately makes the situation work so well.
“I think we know when one another needs space…I think we do a good job of separating gym and us in general, I mean obviously we talk about gym at home but we do a good job in not talking about it that much.”
As roommates, they realize that their lives involve more than just the gym, because although their lives have been immersed fully in gymnastics since they were kids, they also have career aspirations, hobbies and goals that will continue with them after graduation when gymnastics usually tends to come to an end.
Currently, Burleson plans on majoring in Early Childhood and Family Studies and hopes to become a Kindergarten and 1st grade teacher later on. This is partly from the influence of her mom, who she says has probably been one of the most influential people in her life. Her mom used to be a Kindergarten teacher and Burleson used to read books to her mom's class when she was in Jr. High.
Her mom was also the one who can be attributed to Burleson's start in gymnastics.
“I originally started in dance and then I absolutely hated it, but I had so much energy and I would flip around the house. So my mom was like, 'oh hey let's try gymnastics,' and I started gymnastics when I was six.”
Throughout growing up in the gym, her family has been such a strong support group for Burleson, but never forced her to do the sport. The choice was always her own. She explains that one time she wanted to quit and her parents helped her talk through what would ultimately make her happy. Thankfully, she decided to stick with it and she's been enjoying the journey of the sport ever since.
Looking forward to this upcoming year, Burleson is very encouraged by the team dynamic and the goals that she sees everyone trying to achieve. She explains that since everyone first arrived for report day in September everyone has gotten along very well but more than that, there has been a set level of accountability that the Gymdawgs are holding each other to. In fact, their team motto this year is “Long live the Standard,” which means upholding a standard of excellence in athletics, as students, and as people.
“I think our team chemistry, right off the bat, was really great, and I think it's only gotten better. I think that we're doing a really good job of keeping each other accountable…the standard that we're keeping up in the gym and outside of the gym is just really going to set us up for success.”
Daily Life As A GymDawg - October 21, 2015
Some people wonder how Student-Athletes are able to maintain such a busy lifestyle. From school, to practice, to seeking career opportunities, and keeping a social life, these athletes become experts at managing their time affectively.
If you've ever wondered what a typical Monday looks like in the life of a Gymdawg, here are a few of the girl's schedules:
Monica Riley (Freshman):
6:00 a.m. - Wake up
6:30 a.m. - Take the bus to practice
6:45 a.m. - Get breakfast from Pit-Stop (Area that provides healthy snacks and food)
7:00 a.m. - Treatment
7:30 a.m. - Practice
11:30 a.m. - Grab lunch from Pit-Stop
11:45 a.m. - Study in Ackerley
2:30 p.m. - Nonwestern Architecture Class
5:00 p.m. - Tutoring
6:00 p.m. - Dinner at Conibear
6:30 p.m. - Dawgs United Meeting (Student-Athlete Bible Study)
7:30 p.m. - Go home and study
9:30 p.m. - Go to bed
Alex Yacalis (Junior):
5:00 a.m. - Wake up and catch up on homework before practice
6:45 a.m. - Treatment in the Training Room
7:30 a.m. - Practice
11:30 a.m. - Russian Class
12:00 p.m. - Statistical Methods Class
1:30 p.m. - Take Bus to Internship
2:15 p.m. - Works as a Legal Intern at Law Office of Matthew Dubin
5:00 p.m. - Take bus home
5:30 p.m. - Eat dinner and study for the rest of the evening
9:30 p.m. - Go to bed
While students have a lot less class time in college, they are expected to study and do a lot more of the work on their own. The brand new Ackerley Academic Center is state of the art, with individual tutoring rooms, a computer lab, and a quiet room to suit the personalized needs of all the athletes here at Washington. It is not unusual to see half the gymnastics team in the Computer Lab together diligently solving math equations, figuring out chemical formulas, or writing essays. Of course, a few cups of coffee are always at arms reach.
After studying, the gymnasts usually head down to eat dinner together at Conibear Shellhouse, which is the student-athlete dining facility on campus. The view from the dining center is gorgeous. Overlooking Lake Washington, the gymnasts fill their plates with the assortment of delicious food that is offered.
In the middle, there is a salad bar, complete with all the fixings. A buffet line leads to the main entrées which usually include some type of pasta dish, cooked vegetables, rice, potatoes, chicken, and fish. In order to help athletes make healthy choices in relation to their sport, each meal option has a card above it stating the nutritional value such as “weight loss,” or “high in fiber.”
Every once in a while, the cooks add a little flare to the menu and serve up something special for themed nights. The gymnastics team favorites are Mexican, burger, and breakfast nights. You can bet the whole team will be high in spirits following those evenings.
Conibear provides a real family atmosphere as everyone gets together and talks about what went on during that day. From successes, to sharing fun facts, to venting about a particularly hard exam, the conversation gives the girls an opportunity to really bond outside of the gym and create friendships that will last long after they graduate, because although they have intense schedules, being able to share the student-athlete experience with one another is something that none of them would change for the world.
Introduction - October 14, 2015
Hello Gymnastics Fans!
We're excited to announce that the Gymdawgs will be launching a team blog next week that will give you an inside scoop into the lives of the student-athletes here on the University of Washington gymnastics team. Whether it be on the mats, in the classroom, or around the community, there's a lot more to be seen than just what happens out on the competition floor.
What does it actually mean to be a UW gymnast? Ever wondered what their normal daily schedule looks like, or just what goes into getting ready for a competition? Stay tuned eachWednesday for profiles on each of our team members, including our three new freshman, as well as a behind the scenes look at practices, team meetings, locker room chatter, community events, and road trip bonding. Hopefully, we can give you a glimpse into the dedication and perseverance that these incredible athletes undergo on an everyday basis. Join us on this journey as we continue to work hard towards an incredible year.
Check back here for you weekly updates! We will also share on social media, so be sure to follow the GymDawgs on Facebook, Twitter , Instagram at UWGymnastics and Snapchat at UW_Gymnastics.
Players Mentioned
