Westlake High Gymnastics Team Soars to New Heights

It seems as though the laws of gravity don’t necessarily apply to the gymnastics team. 

They can flip, tumble, whip and twirl. They can swing and somersault, and in front of an audience, they can make it look easy. 

But, head coach Chelsea Cahill says the path to acrobatic precision is anything but simple. 

“This year, our biggest goal is building our program,” she said. “We upped conditioning drills, added more tournaments, extended practice times and grew the team to 26 girls.

"Right now, it’s about getting the girls to execute each move well. It takes a lot of practice, but we’re getting there and I’m already seeing a lot of improvement compared to last year.” 

During their meet against Cuyahoga Heights, the girls earned a 111.7 overall score—their highest ever. 

Typically, a maximum of 10 points can be scored per gymnast in the floor, uneven parallel bars, vault and balance beam events. The top four scores are taken from each gymnastic challenge, which puts perfection at 160 points.  

By the end of the regular season in January, the hope is to break 120 points, said assistant coach Trisha Simon. 

The team’s strongest event is the balance beam, and with the help of two-time captain Hayley Hartman, their aim is to master the remaining three. 

Fortunately for the Lady Demons, they can spread their skills around with the talents of Bethany and Brianna Sokol and Aggie Anastasopoulos, all of whom are just sophomores. 

According to the girls, some of the squads to beat this year will be Magnificat, Brecksville-Broadview Heights, Mentor and Lakewood.

The team's next meet is at 3:30 p.m. Jan. 7 at X-treme Gymnastics in Middleburg Heights. 

For more information and to follow the team’s progress this year, contact coach Chelsea Cahill at cahill.87@buckeyemail.osu.edu.