THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, January 25, 1995 TAG: 9501250559
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LEE TOLLIVER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines
All eyes were on Brooke Sawyer as she prepared for her dash towards the vault, and the pounding of her feet was the only sound in an otherwise silent gym at Ocean Lakes last Thursday.
It was as if everyone knew they were about to witness one of the best gymnastics performances ever in the Beach District.
When the Kellam sophomore nailed the difficult handspring front vault, teammates and opponents alike exploded in cheers.
The vault is scored with enough difficulty that if done perfectly, Sawyer could have been awarded a 10. She got a 9.65 and the tone was set for an evening in which Sawyer would be equally marvelous in the remaining three routines.
After the vault, she went to the balance beam, where she nailed a 9.55. From there it was to the uneven bars for a 9.45. She finished on the floor exercise, and despite being somewhat tired, hit another 9.55.
Sawyer's vault had not only got her off on the right foot, but it had also set the tone for Kellam's victory over archrival Cox. Throughout the meet, Sawyer's performances fueled her teammates. The unbeaten Knights sophomore took firsts in all four events as well as in the all-around competition. Teammate Michelle Alexander was second in every rotation.
Sawyer's total score of 38.2 set a Beach District record and tied the state record set in last year's state meet by Menchville's Katherine Creswell. And her performance that evening easily earned her this week's female athlete of the week honor from The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star.
``(Hitting that vault) really helped,'' Sawyer said. ``Usually, when I do good in my first event, it carries over into the other ones.
``I kind of had a sense that I was going to be on that night.''
Sawyer took fifth all-around in last year's Group AAA meet as the Knights captured the state team title.
The four gymnasts who finished ahead of her are no longer competing, giving those who witnessed her performance Thursday the definite idea that she could take this year's title.
``I think I can do it,'' said Sawyer, a Level 10 gymnast at Gymstrada Gymnastics School. ``I just have to stick all my routines. It would be great if I could do that and we could repeat as state champions.''
Sawyer's success is a result of 13 years of training.
``It feels really good to have done what I did,'' she said. ``I've always had a goal to score a 38 in all-around.'' by CNB