No easy road to Indy

Updated: March 23, 2011 3:48PM

First-year Washington Township gymnastics coach Kelly Reiser gets an amused smirk when she describes how her gymnast operates.

While most athletes are susceptible to rely on banking points from the more simplistic strategies, that can't be said of Cassidy Feldsien. After all, why do things the easy way?

Starting with the idea to become the Senators' first gymnast, to grabbing the final All-Around advancing spot to this Saturday's state meet, things haven't been a cake walk for the sophomore.

Like the majority of high school gymnasts, Feldsien grew up in the sport. She honed her skills at Horizon Gymnastics in Valparaiso and Platinum Gymnastics in Michigan City. Then she entered Washington Township and ran the idea to compete by athletic director Mike Megyesi.

In order to make everything feasible it would take multiple phone calls.

For instance, the IHSAA will allow an athlete to compete in the gymnastics postseason, if she has four regular-season meets. But, the majority of teams in the area belong to the Duneland Conference. And since the DAC will not allow a non-conference individual to add-on during a conference meet, Feldsien had to wait for nonconference duals and invites to join. Last season she had six meets and because to weather this year, she just made four.

Finding a training facility was also arduous. Some gyms only allow club gymnastics. Last season, Feldsien practiced at Michigan City High School through connections made at Platinum. This season she traveled the 30-minute drive to Platinum where she rented equipment.

"That takes a lot of courage and commitment to put forth that commitment," Megyesi said of Feldsien. "(Last year) She's going into the unknown, not knowing who she's competing with or going up against."

In 2010 Feldsien made it as far as the Valparaiso Regional on the beam, but came a couple of tenths away from advancing to state. Being an all-arounder, the beam was one of the events that she could fall back on. But, in order to make it farther, she would have to improve on her weakness in the vault.

"I feel like every meet she's hit one event (the strongest)," said Reiser who took on the coaching job this season, after coaching Feldsien during club gymnastics at Platinum. "Every gymnast has that one meet and I'm going to say her one meet is going to be state."

The Achilles heel for Feldsien has been the vault. It is within that event that lies irony. Last season, her high was 8.9 and she struggled to score off of the more simplistic tuck technique. Since switching to a much harder pike method, her new personal best is 9.375 which came at the regional.

"This is typical Cassidy, no joke, you do easier things, she has problems," Reiser said with a smirk.

With that sixth-place score and a strong floor exercise (9.450), Feldsien waited in suspense to find out that she took the final all-around spot (with a 36.700 score). There were a few other gymnasts within range.

"It's a lot less stressful, I don't just have to worry about just one thing then," Feldsien said about making it in all four events. "It's pretty sweet (going to state and making school history)."

Megyesi said that there is a lot of pride for the gymnast who could bring home the school's first state title in any sport.

"The support is there for her, we're all cheering her on. The support is only going to continue throughout her high school career," he said. "This will help put Washington Township on the map, throughout the region, with her success and hopefully winning a state title."

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