We have all had childhood moments when we were captivated by athletic contestants of sports we were not quite familiar with. Luckily for coach Steve Gale and the rest of the Glenbrook South gymnastics team, when junior Marci Landri saw Olympic gymnasts competing on television, she induced her parents into signing her up for a gymnastics camp at the local YMCA.

She immediately became hooked, and years of competing on the club circuit showed Landri’s aptitude towards gymnastics.

She brought her talents to South as a freshman, where she competed on the varsity level. Landri admitted that her years of experience gained from competing in club gymnastics soothed her fears of a rocky transition.

“Doing club gymnastics all my life, the transition when I was a freshman went pretty well for me. I’ve known Kate [Pryce] for a while now, and I knew Leah [Johnson], which of course made it easier for me.”

After being one of the team’s most productive contributors for two years, Landri now finds herself leading the girl’s gymnastics squad. Fresh off of being an All-State competitor as a sophomore, Landri knows that the sky is the limit for her and her squad. Despite disappointing scores and a 6th place finish at Palatine’s Oldham Gymnastics Invitational, the team still possesses a winning conference record.

Landri admits that most of the team’s efforts thus far have been concentrated on regaining skills lost from the team’s hiatus last season. With a 128.35 –120.2 victory at the Niles West Invite, the team looks as if they are rounding into shape at the right time.

When Landri discusses her success with the Glenbrook South gymnastics squad, she deflects praise towards her teammates and her coach. “With the team, it is such a good atmosphere. Everyone is always cheering each other, and encouraging each other to get better,” said Landri. “Coach Gale has also been awesome. He has always pushed us to get better and better, and you can always tell how much he cares about girls’ gymnastics.”

The handful of freshmen and sophomores on this year’s squad brings Landri back to her experiences as an underclassman, and she is excited for their future prospects.

“Of course it’s hard not having a lot of experience, but they are all excited to learn. I know how it felt to be an underclassman on the team, and I know that this will be a good experience for them.”

Landri’s sophomore season was halted by a dislocated elbow, which was tough for her to overcome. Hours of physical therapy later, Landri was back on floor, despite lingering effects of the injury. Landri’s drive for gymnastics powered her to return. “After competing throughout the season and then taking that break because of the injury, it made me itch to get back on the floor,” said Landri. “It’s scary to do the same event that injured my elbow, but it’s something that I have to look past.”

With her injury behind her, Landri is looking forward to the remainder of the season. “We’ve all made tremendous improvements, especially if you look at the beginning of the season,” said Landri.

Landri hopes this progress will translate into momentum heading into the most important part of the season, admitting her desire to qualify for the Sectional and State competition.

Jay Lee, staff reporter