Although No. 26 Illinois (7-10, 3-6) placed fourth at the B1G Four last weekend, head coach Nadalie Walsh is still confident that her team can compete with anyone. The team’s experience in College Park showed the Illini where their focus needs to be to end the season.
Stay aggressive, attack
While the Illini had strong showings on vault and uneven bars, Walsh felt the team was timid on balance beam. This was reflected in the placements for this event, with the highest score coming from fifth-year Amelia Knight (9.775) for a sixth-place finish.
Moving forward in the season, Walsh wants her team to be more aggressive. When Illinois attacks its routines with certainty, the scores take care of themselves. Walsh believes the Illini have the talent to be successful with a bit of fine-tuning.
“I want them to continue realizing that we have all the difficulty that we need,” Walsh said. “We have all of the energy and the unity we need.”
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Increasing their confidence will help the Illini be certain of themselves when competing. Walsh plans to continue using positive affirmations for her young team. She believes “calling the gold out in everybody” is what gets them ready to compete.
“Who doesn’t want to be told that they are great?” Walsh said. “Who doesn’t want to focus on the things they do good?”
Limiting scoring distractions
Scoring inconsistencies aren’t a new discussion for gymnasts and coaches. Walsh spoke about her frustration with scoring after Senior Day when scores were lower than the week prior. But after the Big Four, Walsh mentioned scoring difficulties in the conference.
Team reputation is a huge factor in scoring high in the Big Ten. Walsh said going up against top programs is challenging because judges already have an opinion. Since the Big Ten features top competition, Illinois must prove it can compete with the best.
“They’re really great teams out there,” Walsh said. “We are not going to get the benefit of the doubt, but we have to act better and better so (Illinois) can earn a better reputation.”
The scoring was tight between all four programs competing, leaving Illinois with little room for error. Walsh was proud of her team for mentally overcoming disappointing scores.
“Those things are out of our control,” Walsh said. “They had to work with what they were given, and we’ll have to be even more undeniable for next weekend.”
While they struggled early, the Illini finished the meet on a high note. Their third rotation on vault produced career-highs for four Illini.
Freshman Chloe Cho tied for first in vault with a 9.900, also tying her career high. This came after an upsetting 8.575 on the floor exercise. Cho still finished the meet strong by earning her spot in a seven-way tie for fifth place (9.850) on uneven bars.
Still on uphill climb
Every competition is another chance for this young Illinois team to gain experience. Walsh said for the underclassmen coming from high-level clubs, the team aspect of the sport is new. The weight upon these gymnasts’ shoulders — not wanting to disappoint their teammates and coaches — is a change.
“(The underclassmen) need to get to the place where they feel trusted instead of worried about making a mistake and not wanting to let their teammate down,” Walsh said.
Walsh added that the experience will create more assertive gymnasts. Being able to adjust to high-pressure situations also comes with experience.
Experiencing the Big Ten atmosphere showed Illinois that even when it’s not at its best, there is potential on the roster. Walsh said competing against every team will contribute to the emergence of confident performances.
“I feel like this team can absolutely be top three (in the Big Ten),” Walsh said. “They need to put it all together.”
Illinois is back competing Saturday in the Western Michigan Quad against Western Michigan (9-6), Central Michigan (10-3) and Wilberforce.
