There is no “”I”” in team, and Arizona sophomore Karin Wurm and junior Aubrey Taylor can testify to that.
Taylor and Wurm failed to advance to the individual event finals without the support of their teammates, falling Thursday in the preliminary competitions at the NCAA Championships in Corvallis, Ore.
“”I didn’t have the support of the girls being there,”” Wurm said. “”Without doing the cheers and having the team there it was a little harder to get pumped up and get going.””
Wurm, who competed in all four events Thursday, scored a 9.775 on beam, good enough for 19th place. Wurm finished ninth overall on beam, her highest event ranking, with a 9.800, but posted her highest score on floor, a 9.825, earning her 17th in that event.
She started on the vault, earning a 9.625.
“”I was happy with it,”” Wurm said. “”There were definitely things that I could have improved upon. I could have done better on the floor.””
Taylor came one step away from advancing to Saturday’s events on the uneven parallel bars. Her 9.800 was good enough for 17th overall, but her routine was good enough for her to advance, said Arizona head coach Bill Ryden.
“”We went out there and competed great,”” Ryden said. “”Between the two of them, they had five great routines, no falls, no mistakes.””
Despite not advancing, Wurm said she knows they had the routines and the ability to advance and were also optimistic about their performances.
“”If I had hit a better floor routine – that wasn’t the best I could do – I could have qualified,”” she said. “”If Aubrey hadn’t taken a step, she would have qualified.””
Without the comfort of having their team with them, Ryden said he was extremely proud of Taylor and Wurm for not folding under the pressure and competing without their team.
“”Any coach will tell you it’s easier to compete with the whole team there,”” Ryden said. “”When Karin was competing, Aubrey was there cheering her on, rotating with her, and Karin did the same with Aubrey, but you can’t replace a whole team.””
He said that’s often the hardest part of being an individual in a meet like nationals.
“”They were our two hallmark gymnasts all year,”” Ryden said. “”Clearly they showed that, but without the others it was completely different. I couldn’t be prouder of them. So many athletes fold when they get to that level, but they didn’t.””
