The summer before Kathy Tang’s senior year, the Terrapins gymnastics coaches sat her down and asked how she wanted to be remembered in the program.

Tang took the question to heart.

“I went into the gym with a positive attitude, and it really motivated me to do my best,” Tang said.

It’s a mentality Tang has applied throughout her college career, which will come to an end in the coming weeks. After her sophomore year, the Terps switched from the East Atlantic Gymnastics League to the Big Ten. Plus, the 2015-16 campaign has been the least successful of coach Brett Nelligan’s tenure.

But through it all, she’s maintained a sunny disposition, which she hopes will benefit her when she competes on vault and floor at the NCAA Athens Regional on Saturday.

“She’s seen it all,” Nelligan said. “She’s really seen a program go through so much change.”

Perhaps the biggest change of Tang’s career came in November 2012, when Nelligan gathered his team before practice and told them they’d be leaving the EAGL.

“I didn’t really know what that meant, but when he explained it I [was] really excited for it,” Tang said. “I remember thinking, ‘I get to be part of the team that changes to the Big Ten.'”

Nelligan was thrilled his team was moving to one of the strongest conferences in the country, but he knew that it would come with some challenges.

“It’s going be tough,” Nelligan recalls saying. “There’s going to be some growing pains, but in the long run, it’s where we belong.”

Last year, the Terps made the transition look smooth. They finished seventh at the conference championships before coming in third at the NCAA Auburn

Regional, their highest postseason mark since 2001.

Six seniors were on that team, though, and this year’s team struggled to replace their contributions this campaign. The Terps finished last in the Big Ten and will miss out on the postseason for the first time in Nelligan’s tenure.

Still, Nelligan and Tang believe she’ll leave the team in a better place than when she first arrived on campus.

“I think she’s looking forward to being able to come back and see the team doing well,” Nelligan said.

Tang isn’t done yet, though. In addition to qualifying as an individual specialist for the Athens Regional on vault and floor, she is an alternate on bars. Freshman Macey Roberts and sophomore Abbie Epperson also earned scores high enough to compete in Athens, Georgia.

But for Tang, the meet represents perhaps her final college appearance.

She plans to approach this weekend just as she has the rest of her career: with a determined mindset.

“You could have your parents push you, you could have your coaches push you, but it’s all about how you want to push yourself,” Tang said.

When she explains her psyche, Tang’s success under so many different circumstances makes sense. By focusing on herself, she was able to stay consistent, even when things around her weren’t.

“Having that inner drive is what gets you to being the best you could be,” Tang said. “So I just try to do my thing every day.”