Stanford, Calif.—Saturday marked the first time in almost a year that the San José State University women's gymnastics team was able to compete against someone other than their teammates.
Because of COVID-19, the Spartans were unable to practice as a team for much of the fall and the beginning of 2021.
"This team is gritty and resilient and have gone through so much together since August, from practicing apart, to no practice at all, to practicing at other gyms, It has been one thing after another for them, and they never gave up," said Spartan head coach Joanne Bowers.
Coincidentally, Stanford has been going through many of the same restrictions during the pandemic and had not yet competed during the 2021 season. That commonality led the two head coaches to come together and start the year on Saturday with both teams competing routines inside Burnham Pavilion.
"Stanford gave us an opportunity to have a competition in a safe environment under the same circumstances. We were not focusing on team or individual scores today but to gain competition experience, especially since we have six freshmen. Our goals today were to be able to compete, be safe and gain confidence," stated Bowers.
"I have never been more proud of a group of young women as I am today. Their smiles said it all and showed that they can do this. We are thankful that we were able to this today and now prepares us for our meet next weekend at Air Force."