36 | December 5, 2019 | the mokena messenger sports mokenamessengerdaily.com Girls Gymnastics 6 Lincoln-Way seniors adept at overcoming adversity CHRIS WALKER Freelance Reporter When teens do things that they enjoy, they are generally happy kids. But when things don’t go their way, it’s much more difficult to remain positive and be happy. Things have gone really well with the Lincoln- Way co-op girls gymnastics team with three consecutive state appearances, but its gymnasts have faced their share of injuries and other adversity that comes with being a high school student athlete, too. Lincoln-Way just seems to find a way to overcome any negativity, and a lot of that comes from the leadership of its seniors, including Allie Reis. “She’s the light on our team,” Lincoln-Way coop coach Kory Thompson said. “She’s always happy and positive.” Thompson, a 2001 Sandburg graduate who helped Sandburg-Stagg co-op take fifth in the state her senior year, takes over for Kim Lago as head coach. Thompson had served as Lago’s assistant coach for the past five seasons. Reis, fellow senior Korina Jarosz, juniors Juliana Arciszewski, Lucy Haas, Grace Kmak and Sarah Rosinski, and sophomores Olivia Gonda and Emerson Colins, are among those who are returning, bringing their own unique skills, offering a well-rounded team that is ready for continued success. Reis and Jarosz are fourth-year kids who have experienced a ton over their time as key members of the co-op. Now they’re set to enjoy their final year while leading the team. “I’m feeling really good right now,” Jarosz said, “We have four seniors [two on JV] and I think Allie and I are good leaders. We have a lot of freshmen coming in this year, which I think is good. We can show them what we’ve learned and whatever else they need to know.” Thompson acknowledged that Jarosz, an allaround, bars and beam state qualifier last year, has battled many fears and back injuries over the last few years. She has matured into a true team leader that is now looking to take the team to Palatine for a fourth straight time. It hasn’t always been easy, although Jarosz may often make it look that way. “Since freshman year, I’ve known to get back up and let things go when they don’t go your way,” Jarosz said. “You have to learn to refresh and move on.” Sometimes that’s easier said than done as this sport can be so unfair. It certainly was not fair to junior Jackie Furlong. She had put in a great deal of hard work in the offseason, but broke her foot and will now miss the entire year. “It’s a huge loss,” Thompson said. “She was training all-around in the offseason and looked better than ever.” Lincoln-Way knows that when a teammate goes down, you need to find a positive way of responding. “I think it’s especially important as seniors to be as positive with everyone in a sport where there is a lot of downsides,” Reis said. “There’s a lot of injuries and sometimes things don’t go your way, so we’re really going to focus hard on making sure we’re having fun.” Fun has coincided with winning at Lincoln-Way and that won’t change with Thompson taking over as head coach. It’s business as usual with the girls balancing gymnastics with their studies and other interests. “Gymnastics is like the No. 1 thing about who I am,” Reis said. “I’m definitely involved in a lot of different things, but a lot of us are like that. I’ve just had to deal with time management and avoiding being stressed by all of things I like to do.” Calling junior Grace Kmak the best hitting and fielding gymnast in the state isn’t a stretch by any means as she’s equally impressive on the softball diamond as she is in the all-around. She advanced to state individually in three events and the all-around as she dazzled with a 37.05 in the sectional last year. Lincoln-Way will need another huge season from her if its destined for state again. Colins’ role becomes even a bigger one this year. She was mostly a cheerleader on the sideline last season due to being injured, but she’s back now and ready to contribute. Freshman all-arounder Natalie Hrkel also is someone who will hopefully make a positive impact this year as one of the team’s key newcomers. “We have a few girls out with serious injuries but with several returning athletes, these girls understand what it takes and have been really stepping up,” Thompson said. “With a larger team, we are trying our best as coaches to utilize every athlete’s strengths and make this a positive and successful season.” ATHLETE OF THE MONTH Andrew volleyball senior libero wins November honor JEFF VORVA, Contributing Editor Kylie Adams digs her position. The Andrew High School senior played libero on the Thunderbolts’ volleyball team, which made it to the Sweet 16 in Class 4A this season. Although libero can be a thankless position, Adams embraces it. “I just like the feeling of getting a good dig, it’s the greatest feeling in the whole world,” she said. Adams was voted as the winner of 22nd Century Media’s Southwest Chicago Athlete of the Month contest for November. She is the first Andrew athlete since Jack Pranckus (June 2017) to earn the honor. The Athlete of the Month competition pits featured Athlete of the Week selections from our south suburban newspapers against one another in an online voting contest. The next contest is to begin Tuesday, Dec. 10. To vote, visit MokenaMessengerDaily.com, hover over Andrew libero Kylie Adams is the Athlete of the Month for publisher 22nd Century Media’s Southwest Chicago branch. 22ND CENTURY MEDIA FILE PHOTO the “Sports” menu tab and click “Athlete of the Month.” Readers can vote once per session per valid email address. Voting ends at 5 p.m. Dec. 25. All athletes featured in the November Athlete of the Week sports interviews are automatically entered into the contest. Vorva wins his first Pressbox Picks title STAFF REPORT Jeff Vorva, Sports Editor Despite what he calls one of his worst runs of luck in covering high school football, Jeff Vorva, the sports editor of The Orland Park Prairie and The Tinley Junction, won his first Pressbox Picks championship after going 61-16, ousting Senior Editor Thomas Czaja by one game. “I don’t want to complain,” complained Vorva. “But this football season I had issues with the internet under deadline, my camera, my health and the final game of the season my car battery died. So, winning this was like finding a diamond in a cesspool. This was a tough field of pickers to beat.” Lincoln-Way-area Sports Editor Steve Millar tied last year’s champion, Publisher Joe Coughlin, for third with a 58-19 mark. The New Lenox Patriot editor Sean Hastings was 54-23 and Chief Marketing Officer Heather Warthen finished 51-26. As a group, the panel finished 342-120 – 74 percent, which would be a ‘C’ in most classrooms and a ‘D’ in a few others.
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