Optimistic Lemurs Anticipate Divisionals

“After seeing the potential and talent of the new kids, I think the team can actually score high and make it to playoffs. I don't expect first place, but it's definitely possible.” —Andy Zhang, junior and co-captain

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As the Lemurs left Stuyvesant’s gym on February 7, they were filled with newfound confidence after their first divisional win this season. While the Stuyvesant gymnastics team’s win against Tottenville High School was expected, as Tottenville only has two gymnasts on its entire team, Stuy’s score of 102.1 put the divisional finals within reach.

The win moved the Lemurs up from a fifth place divisional ranking─just ahead of Tottenville in sixth─to fourth, not only putting them in the running for finals, but also placing them ahead of Laguardia High School, one of their primary opponents in the league. Having placed either first or second in their division for the past three years, the Lemurs’ fourth place standing is actually a step down. “After seeing the potential and talent of the new kids, I think the team can actually score high and make it to playoffs. I don't expect first place, but it's definitely possible to make it into the top three or four,” junior and co-captain Andy Zhang said.

In anticipation of their upcoming meets, the Lemurs are pushing hard at practices. “We train harder, and kids are picking up more skills now that they’ve gotten stronger,” coach Autry said. With their team score on an upwards trend, the new skills—trained for during preseason—are making a difference for gymnasts like junior and co-captain Muhib Khan. “Muhib has improved his B skill on Pommel [Horse]—the circle circle travel down. [Senior] John Lin picked up a couple of B skills on Pommel, and he picked up a couple skills on Rings,” Coach Autry continued. As the competition season has begun, rather than learning new skills, the team will focus on making their routines clean and solid, making productive practice key. For practices during competition season they were “spending more time working routines than new skills,” Khan said.

During their meet with Tottenville, the Lemurs competed with three all-around gymnasts, adding junior Khandaker Hasnain to the all-around roster. The gymnasts all performed well, as Khan finished with a 34.6, sophomore Jordan Kaisman with a 33.7, and Hasnain with a 25.5. This meet also brought the debut of new rookie gymnasts sophomore Minhajul Saim on vault and parallel bars and freshman Russell Low on floor exercise.

The Lemurs are looking forward to the rest of their season in hopes of reaching the division finals. The tremendous amount of improvement of the Lemurs is reflected in their team scores. Going from a 97.6 against John F. Kennedy Campus High School in their opening meet to a 102.1 against Tottenville in their last meet is a significant improvement from the entire group. The Lemurs have worked hard, but will have their work cut out for them if they are to reach the division finals.