Torrey Pines High School - Freeflight Yearbook (Del Mar, CA)

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rss, I A I l A If GYrvrNAsTrcs PuRsuE LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP arsity gymnastics coach Shawn Wirth had two main goals for team this year, to be league champs and place in the top three CIF. Theteam had an abundance of experience and talent, and all one performer were back from the team that placed second in Palomar League and fourth in CIF last year. The optimism from the team stemmed from some strong individ performances in the preseason. The girls scored a total of 201 poi in a preseason meet against Santana, marking the highest score 2 previous team had scored in a preseason meet. Senior Lisa Cody proved to be unbeatable in the optional ever Cody was the Most Valuable gymnast on the team this year. Thi one of the best gymnastics teams Torrey Pines has ever had, s Wirth. Consisting of 17 junior varsity, 16 compulsory, and 5 optio members, there were more girls on the team than in any of previous years. We have so many girls on the team, there's a lot of competition, I think that will only make us work harder and do better, said gymn Jennifer Petree. As in the past, the squad remained in stiff competition with Carmel and Santana high schools. Wirth predicted, '1l'd put money it that Santana, Mt. Carmel, Vahalla, and Torry Pines will end up in top four spots in CIF. She added, I foresee us going far and doing well this year. If we c pull it all together, we'll really give Santana a run for their money - Jaimie Glas

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L 22 Q isa McKay is like a fish out of water when sheisn'tinaswimming pool. In fact, it might come as a surprise to some that she hasn't developed webbed hands or feet with the amount of time she spends in the pool. McKay is a swimmer on the varsity swim team, and is also a member of an 'off-campus' competitive swim team. Practicing five hours a day of swimming is routine for her - even in the summer, and has been since she was eight years old. During the school season, I swim from 6:30-8:30 in the morning and from 3:15-6:30 at night. Then, in the summer, I swim twice a day, everyday from 7:00- 10:00 in the morning and then from 4:30- 6:30 at night, she explained. While many people might be over- ATER IS A AY OF LIFE whelmed by the numerous hours McKay spends working out and competing, she feels that a busy schedule helps motivate her to accomplish more. I like being busy, said McKay. UI have the hardest classes I've ever had this year, and I'm getting better grades than I ever have. Swimming helps me to budget my time better, and I'm able to get more things done. A 3.8 grade point average this year was proof of McKay's outstanding ability to budget her time well. The 500 free and 200 back are McKay's claims to fame in which she has personal records of 5.27 and 2.21 respectively. McKay owns a shelf full of trophies, plaques, and ribbons which she earned in competition including plaques for t'Most Outstand- ing Athlete and Coaches Award that she earned on the high school team. Also interested in beach lifeguarding, McKay actively partici- pates in ocean or 'rough-water! swim competitions. HI swam in the La Jolla rough water swim and the Coronado rough water swim, said McKay. ln the La Jolla swim, I placed fourth. Planning to attend the University of the Pacific, McKay hopes to receive a scholarship for swimming. I'll probably always swim, she said, but l'm not going to be a swim coach or anything. I don't really want to go farther with swim- ming after college. It's not like football where you can go pro. You really can't go much farther than a college team. Interested in physical therapy, McKay intends to major in sport medicine. - Lora Stowe SANTAELI. INIS IGH tx., ' 'Eire SWIMMING 83

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-y .4 .-I: ni- i '. - cgi 'Zz t 'gg . f Fifi m , W I . .., K fri it .A -,lf figs' 33,-Q f' .-Til ' t fa? tb N .- .j ,,, lqjgg W R isa Cody didn't go to an expensive gymnas- tic training center to learn gymnastics - amazingly enough, she taught herself. Since he time she was five and a half years old, 'Jody was turning little cartwheels and walk- Jvers. I've always been real competitive and ath- etic, she said. Gymnastics has just been an Jutlet for me. When I was little, I learned to do a lot af different tricks, and my sister would spot me. By the time Cody was in the sixth grade, she earned a spot on a competitive team at her school n St. Charles, Illinois where she began to com- Jete optional routines. I would really get bored doing compulsory, be- :ause the routines are set, and the judges know zxactly what your next move is going to be. With mptional, they set a list of requirements of what ype of moves the routine has to contain, and from here, you choreograph your own routine. 8 --,. 13 I'-fr Q H I .,,, k s The tricks are a lot more diffi- cult in optional. lt's more of a challenge. Optional routines are not the only challenge Cody has had to face in gymnastics. Bounc- ing back from injuries is an- other challenge she must deal with from time to time. When I was in ninth grade, I fractured a verte- brae when I was vaulting. I kept competing, though, because it was at the state meet. Finally I had to drop out of the competition, Cody recalled. Another terrifying situation for Cody was when she lost her grip while doing a trick on the bars. I lost my grip and fell on my neck. They thought I had chipped a vertebrae. The ambulance came, and they tied me to a board so I couldn't move. It turned out there was no serious damage, but the next morning, I felt like I had been run over by a truck. With a weakened back, Cody had to replace gymnastics with a less strenuous sport. She turned her attention to competitive diving. When Cody was a junior in high school, her family moved from Illinois to California. She be- gan school at Torrey Pines where there wasn't even a swimming pool, much less a diving pro- gram. She began gymnastics again. I'm an active person. I go crazy when l'm not doing something. I need a physical outlet, and I love to compete. I love gymnastics, and even when I was hurt I kept doing it, she said. Due to her back injury, Cody wasn't sure she could do gymnastics again. I lost a lot of flexibility in my back. I went in and had a lot of sports therapy to strengthen it, but the GIVE doctors said the only way I would ever get better would be to quit. Refusing to quit, Cody went onto the Torrey Pines team not even thinking about what the doc- tors had said. Since she joined the team, she established herself as Most Outstanding Gym- nast and Tribune All-Scholar Athlete of the Year. Cody admits her back will never be back to full strength again, but no one would ever know from watching her vivacious performances. Although gymnastics has been a big part of Cody's life, she has never let school take a back seat. Her 3.94 grade point average shows her determination doesn't stop at gymnastics. During the season, you don't have a lot of time to waste, she said. Competing makes me excel more at school. lt makes school seem less diffi- cult. Interested in marine biology and physics, Cody will attend U.C. Santa Cruz. The don't have a gymnatics team there, but I wouldn't really want to be on a college team any- way. College is either a place where you start all over again or you quit doing gymnastics. lt's to- tally different there. They regulate your Iife - what you eat, when you go to bed, and I don't think I want to do that. With a great deal of physical talent, Cody will never stop gymnastics all together. l'll still work out, she said. I'm the type of person that can't stop working out. - Lora Stowe