Dreamer to believer

As a ten-year-old, stepping into a gymnastics club for the first time, it was both awe-inspiring and slightly intimidating. 

My teammates, already gymnastics veterans, they had started their journey as early as the age of two. They were stronger and much more experienced than me. 

At the time I didn’t even realize the significant catching up I had to do.

Every time I saw an older athletes flip and twist through the air, performing gravity-defying stunts, I was reminded of my dreams. Dreams of reaching those same heights, and competing at the collegiate level, just like them. 

I was a late starter, yes. 

The road ahead was steep, absolutely.

But what I had in abundance was an unyielding passion and a love for gymnastics so deep, it felt like the only thing that mattered.

It was my world.

From falling and getting up again to honing my skills to reach the competitive edge, my journey is one of resilience and unwavering determination. 

I had always been a timid competitor, my skillset reflecting the late start I had in the sport. But it was my grandmother, bless her heart, who drove home the blunt truth following my first National meet. 

"You're not doing big enough skills," she said. It wasn't quite the response I was expecting, but truth can often be as unexpected as it is enlightening.

Despite the lukewarm results at Nationals, I was eager to get back to the gym, to push myself harder. However, as high school came around, things started to stagnate.

My skills weren't advancing as I had anticipated and every day seemed to be a struggle. This led me to a crossroad - to continue with gymnastics or explore other avenues.

So, I made a decision. I joined the high school football team.

I split my time between tackling on the football field and perfecting my routines in the gym. It was an intense period of introspection - to understand where my heart truly lay.

For the first time in my life, I considered quitting gymnastics. 

But by the end of the football season, I realized the joy I felt while twisting and flipping through the air was unparalleled. 

I chose gymnastics. I chose to continue with the sport that I had fallen in love with as a young, starry-eyed ten-year-old.

As we trace the path of my gymnastics journey, we've now arrived at an unforgettable chapter - my high school senior year.

A year filled with soaring highs and humbling falls, it was a year that shaped my gymnastics career in a profound way.

Vault had always been my strongest event, and my senior year, I was performing a complex vault called a Kasamatsu Full, or "Kas Full" for short. It's a spectacular round-off entry to the table with a double twist off. 

This was a vault that could turn heads - and it did, catching the eye of the Head Coach from Cal Berkeley during a major competition in Las Vegas.

I believed if I could nail this vault at the National Championships, it could open the door to an NCAA team spot.

But even the best-laid plans can go awry. 

Despite a warm-up that had been the best all year, the pressure of the National Championships got to me.

I hesitated, my steps fell off, and I defaulted to a novice-level vault, a mere front handspring over the table. 

Devastated doesn't begin to describe how I felt. No redos in gymnastics. No second chances. I was handed a score that echoed my disappointment.

Yet, life always finds a way of presenting new opportunities. 

While I considered hanging up my grips, a glimmer of hope emerged. I had many friends who had transitioned from gymnastics to performing in shows in Vegas.

A new dream was born, as I began training for an audition with the renowned Vegas show, Le Reve!

From high school to my final NCAA championship, every step was a lesson, every vault a hurdle I was determined to conquer.

Even as I trained for the Le Reve audition, I was still spending every day in the gym, relentlessly improving my gymnastics. As the summer passed, it became clear that my heart was set on competing at the NCAA level.

With the support of my training partner and best friend, who would later join two Olympic teams, I persevered to make my NCAA dream a reality.

It took me two long years after graduating high school to catch a break, but eventually, I landed a partial athletic scholarship at the University of Nebraska. 

After one season, I made the tough decision to transfer, putting me back into the familiar territory of uncertainty.

I decided to rejoin my best friend in Norman, Oklahoma, fighting for a walk-on spot on the team.

The subsequent season was transformative, making me into a tougher athlete, both physically and mentally.

I grappled with line-up spots and faced the ever-present reminder of my inconsistent past performances. 

But by my senior season, everything clicked. My consistency was through the roof, and my confidence soared.

April 2012, NCAA Championship at home in Norman, OK. It was my last NCAA competition, and I vividly remembered the disappointment from five years prior. 

However, I was a different athlete now, mentally unstoppable. 

I ran down that vault runway like I'd done hundreds of times before.

 I launched off the vault table into a Kas 1 1/2 twist - a significant upgrade from the past - and landed flawlessly.

I had now etched my name among the prestigious list of Sooners athletes who had become All-Americans for the University of Oklahoma.