Gymnastics preview: Broomfield crafting a new identity this season

Broomfield gymnastics finished runner-up in Class 5A a season ago. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he 2014 season didn’t come without challenges for the Broomfield gymnastics team.

Sarah Holbrook, the Class 5A runner-up in the all-around competition as a sophomore, suffers from Bertolotti’s Syndrome, a back injury that prevented her from competing in all four disciplines as a junior. Heidi Liles and Nicole Remund, a pair of gifted first-years, both went down mid-season with ankle injuries.

And yet, the Eagles kept their tradition of excellence alive with a runner-up team showing at the state meet. They finished just behind Overland for a second straight year with 184.5 points to the Trailblazers’ 184.975.

“We had a really up-and-down year and certainly we were disappointed with second, but we reminded the girls that we finished (second) after the year we had,” Broomfield coach Erika Taga said. “With the girls we lost, we still had a great year.”

Now, the Eagles are mending their wings with a mixture of talented returners like Holbrook (the defending champion in balance beam), Nicki Verheyen, Liles, and Remund — and a new group, talented but unproven.

“We only have eight girls returning from last year, so we have a whole new identity with this team,” Taga said. “These girls haven’t been through the process. I think some coaches might look at that as a weakness, but I’m really excited for it.

“We’ve kind of started fresh and washed our hands after the last two years. We are going to build on the tradition and the legacy that is our program, but we also are going to create a new legacy with this group of girls.”

Broomfield — the only team to break up Overland’s run of titles from 2011-2014, with the Eagles winning 5A in 2012 — always have a goal of finishing first on the last day of the season. But, Taga knows there is more to gymnastics than just end results.

“We certainly feel fortunate that Sarah is coming back given all the challenges she’s working through on a daily basis,” she said. “She’s still in pain every day, but honestly she’s in a better place than she was all of last year. We are really excited to try and get her back in the all-around. We are just going to have to be patient and take it one meet at a time.”

Liles, a former club gymnast enjoying the high school team environment, is excited for Holbrook’s final go-around.

“A lot of our seniors are really talented athletes, especially my good friend Sarah Holbrook,” the sophomore said. “She has amazing skills on all four events. She’ll give it her all, but I hope that back injury doesn’t get in the way.”

As usual, Broomfield will have lofty individual and team aspirations in 2015.

“Certainly we want to beat Overland, but we try to keep a good spirit,” Liles said. “They are amazing gymnasts. We just really try to focus on our team. We love what we do.”

Gymnastics preview

• Regular season begins: August 27
• Regionals: October 31
• State meet: November 6-7 at Thornton HS

Class 4A

• 2014 individual all-around champion: Alyssa Carroll, Thompson Valley (graduated)
• Defending team champion: Standley Lake
• Returning All-State athletes: Maddie Barkow, Niwot

Class 5A

• Defending individual all-around champion: Kelsey Boychuk, Pomona
• Defending team champion: Overland
• Returning All-State athletes: Boychuk; Holbrook; Rachel Dillman, Mountain Range; Samantha Simon, Cherry Creek; MacKenzie Doerr, Cherry Creek