Hundreds of zealous fans were left in awe as the Terrapins gymnastics team soared and flipped through the air at the Comcast Center Pavilion on Friday night.
The Red Team edged the Black team, 109.725-109.475, at the annual Red and Black Intrasquad meet, but the final score hardly mattered on a night in which gaining experience for a young Terps squad was the primary focus.
“Tonight was about getting the team used to performing in front of a crowd,” coach Brett Nelligan said. “For a lot of the girls, it was their first time competing in a college setting, which is a lot different than competing at high school. So tonight was about getting comfortable.”
Freshman Kathy Tang was among the Terps competing in their first collegiate meet. The rookie standout, seemingly unfazed by the grand stage, opened the intrasquad with a perfect 10 on vault.
The Comcast Center Pavilion shook with excitement all night, but captain Ebony Walters stole the show with her perfect score on floor. The crowd greeted Walters with a standing ovation at the end of her performance.
“You really interact with the crowd on the floor,” she said. “You have the music blasting, and the crowd cheering. It really helps.”
Sophomore Stephanie Giameo also wowed the crowd — as well as the judges — when she garnered a perfect score on floor.
“The floor really gets the crowd going,” Giameo said. “I felt like I really hit the routine. No limits.”
Terps football defensive ends A.J. Francis and Joe Vellano joined assistant volleyball coach Christie Landry and members of a number of other sports as guest judges. Katy Dodds, one of the Terps’ top scorers last season, was forced to watch the events from the sideline. The junior is nursing what Nelligan described as an “ankle/Achilles’” injury, and is slated to return by the Jan. 11 season opener at N.C. State.
Until then, the team will fine-tune its routines.
“I’m proud of the girls,” Nelligan said. “We don’t have a lot of work to do. We just need to perfect our routines and get ready for the season.”
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