Nardella leads Glenbard South past Willowbrook

Studies suggest America's kids are more inactive than ever.

That's not the case in Glen Ellyn, at least not with the Glenbard South girls gymnastics team.

"I've got no complaints there," Raiders coach Lee Wood said. "I might see us lose some energy at times, but I know there's a good reason why."

The Raiders had plenty of energy on Monday night as they cruised past visiting Willowbrook, 120.85 to 98.95.

Underclassmen led the way. Sophomore Sarah Nardella won the all-around and was followed by freshman Katie Kibbey and sophomore Michelle Glover, who was competing for the first time in a month.

"They're all good kids and they work hard," Wood said. "It was great to finally have Michelle back. We put her right back in and she really delivered after not competing for awhile."

Some of the Raiders are rare two-sport-in-the-same-season athletes who also are members of the cheer squad, while several will also jump into the track and field season as pole vaulters once spring arrives. Many of them also work part-time jobs while also taking care of their work in the classroom.

"One of the best parts of a school of this size (about 1,200 students) is those opportunities," Wood said. "And so many of them know each other outside of class from cheer or pole vault. I'm blessed to have such a phenomenal group of girls. They might not do the hardest skills in the gym, but they love doing it."

Because they've become teammates in multiple sports, some in as many as three, camaraderie and team building have been outstanding and the results this winter speak volumes.

"This is one of the closest sports for me, which is really nice," Nardella said. "It's individual but you're part of a team so it's cool to know you're doing your own thing."

Nardella's shining moment was a 9.1 on vault.

"That was phenomenal," Wood said. "The sky's the limit for her as a three-sport varsity athlete. She's a nervous gymnast, always worried about what she'll do. Once she realizes that her gymnastics speaks for itself she's really going to be going places."

She has been working diligently on her Yurchenko and that certainly paid off.

"I'm trying to be more consistent with it," she said. "I do my flip flop either too high or buckle my arms so I'm trying to improve my consistency."

Glover won floor with a 9.05 while Steph Mondragon won bars with a 7.5 and beam with a 7.6.

"I added a new series on beam and it's been pretty decent," Mondragon said. "My routine wasn't clean, but hopefully it'll become stronger as the season gets closer to the end."

Senior Katherine Gibson led Willowbrook with a 28 in the all-around. She tied for third on vault with an 8 and had the team's highest score in all four events.

"It's interesting to see how my back flip and layout are going to go on floor," she said. "I felt confident in it and it went pretty well. I also liked my bars routine. I tend to like to bend a lot of muscle, which you shouldn't do, but I do anyway, but I didn't have to muscle everything so that was awesome."

Senior Jackie Bliss said "I'm happy that I stuck everything," as she finished with an all-around score of 24.3, which included a 7 on vault.

Junior Damara Favors scored a 24.75 overall and was thrilled with her 6.05 on beam.

"I'm really pleased with my beam right now," she said. "How I can say this, it's my most disliked (event) so I was proud I could do well on it. If I keep getting better on it, I might start liking it more."

It's a rebuilding year for the Warriors, but the girls are enjoying themselves regardless of what they score.

"We do have some veterans that have been here for awhile, but we also have some girls who are doing gymnastics for the first time," Willowbrook coach Annette Nocek said. "They all seem to be doing something better every time out, which is a good thing."