Gymnastics cinched their third consecutive CIF championship, May 17, narrowly beating Mt. Carmel by less than one point with a score of 219.075. 

“[Louisa Ulbrch (9) was] our last girl on the floor to compete that day needed a 9.000 and she got a 9.125 so that was our win right there, but our coach didn’t tell us that until the end of the meet,” co-captain Kaya Nepomuceno (12) said.

Nepomuceno said that after dedicating the past four years to the gymnastics team, she’s grateful to end her gymnastics career on a high note and such an unforgettable moment.

“I will never forget when they announced that Westview had won; I literally burst into tears and my team had lifted me off the floor and we were all hugging each other,” Nepomuceno said. “I was quite literally in shambles but that was a really special moment for me. This year’s team was extremely bonded and we loved being in each other’s presence, so I think that winning -CIFs together really showed us that our teamwork and efforts that we put into the season paid off.”

Nepomuceno also said that CIFs was memorable for her because of her performance.

“This was my best meet of the season, I got my best all-around score being 38.2, and I got third place,” Nepomuceno said. “I was really proud of my performance, [and] this meet was particularly special because it was the last meet of my gymnastics career so my main focus was just to have fun and really make it memorable.”

Just a week before CIFs on May 10, the team became co-league champions with Mt. Carmel, and one of their teammates was injured, shrinking their already small roster of 13 girls. 

Co-captain Bhavaani Nayak (11) said that their teamwork played a large role in taking on this obstacle and maintaining their composure to face this setback. 

“It’s stressful because [we’re] doing a lot of hard and high-risk skills,” she said. “I depend a lot on my teammates to show up, do well, and do what they need to do for league finals. [Although] we lost to Mt. Carmel, we beat them at the first meet. So that’s why we’re co-league champions.”

Sydney Wright (11) said their team chemistry and supportive environment help to keep them motivated and focused. 

“When one of your teammates is competing, the whole team is there and the whole team is cheering them on,” Wright said. “There’s no one out or off on the side messing around. Everyone is present there and just feeling that support really helps me mentally.”

Heading into CIFs, Nepomuceno said that the team’s practice and regimens were a large part of preparing.

“What our coaches tell us is that everything you practice is what you’re going to compete for,” she said. “So, if you fall at practice all the time, then your body is naturally going to use your muscle memory to fall at the meet. If you’re practicing really well and if you’re confident in yourself, then you’ll be able to do that same thing at the meet.”

Despite concerns from others because of their injured teammate, Nayak said that the team’s determination and their skills carried them to their win. 

“It felt like not everybody was rooting for us, and they were kind of just accepting defeat,” she said. “But as captain, I wanted to motivate my teammates. I was trying to tell myself and my team members, don’t worry about other people. Don’t focus on their other scores and their skills. We’re still strong so focus on yourself and just keep that attitude up. Motivating each other was a really big part of the process going into it and competing throughout the meet.”

Faced with a fall on one of her best events, Nayak said her team’s support helped her come back even stronge

“I had a moment where my hand slipped while I was on bars and I ended up falling,” Nayak said. “That was really devastating for me, especially because, as team captain, I felt like I was letting down my team. But [on my next event,] I ended up doing my best beam routine and scoring a 9.25. It was really great because I had a lot of support from my teammates and even though I didn’t do well on bars, they were there for me.”

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The end of the season was meaningful for Nayak as she cherishes the team’s memories and successes.

“I’m just really proud of my team,” she said. “We had some rough patches along the way but in the end, I think that’s why we really shined through at the meet because we didn’t know if we were going to win. We didn’t even know if we were going to be in the top two. But our team was there to hype each other up and we were just all there for each other.”

As Nepomuceno’s last year wraps up, she said she is grateful for the experiences she had with the team.

“After high school, I’m not going to do gymnastics anymore,” she said. “So, this is my last season of gymnastics, and it’s bittersweet because I’m a little bit burnt out, but at the same time, it’s really exciting because I’ve got to see our potential and this team grow.”