Wait . . . we have a gymnastics team?

Yes! And the Beaver Area High School gymnastics team is flipping into a great season.

The team includes three students: junior Jade Szczepanski, freshman Alexandra Biela, and freshman Emma Ferricks.

What are the Bobcat gymnasts currently working on?

“I’m currently working on keeping my free hip and tuck, skills I recently just got and making them better,” Ferricks stated.

“I’m working on getting back skills that I lost from not doing them for a long time and getting through mental blocks,” Biela said.

Gymnastics can be quite difficult and understandably physically demanding—but your teammates are very important.

“I met lots of my close friends on my team and at gym camps. They are the best type of friends because they see me at my worst,” Biela said.

How long do our gymnasts plan on doing gymnastics?

“I at least plan on continuing gymnastics until I graduate [high school], but I might continue even after,” Ferricks said.

Recently, the Bobcat gymnasts competed at the Moon Invitational last weekend where Biela placed 3rd on vault and 2nd on floor in the Silver Division, and Ferricks placed 2nd on vault and 5th on bars in the Bronze Division.

“The Moon Invitational went really well; I placed well on floor, vault, and all around,” Biela said.

While these ladies compete for Beaver, don’t expect to find them perfecting their techniques in our gym alongside free-throwing basketball players. The gymnasts practice twice a week at the Monaca Turners.