Troy's Shabet Finishes as Repeat Champ
March 8, 2014
By Keith Dunlap
Special to Second Half
PLYMOUTH – Troy senior gymnast Christina Shabet paused a bit to think of an answer, which was understandable since the question required a lengthy and detailed response.
As a talented gymnast who bypassed competing for a club team in order to be on the high school team her first three years at Troy, and decided to still compete on the high school level this year despite joining a club team as well, Shabet finally smiled and answered the question of what high school gymnastics had provided her.
"It did a lot," Shabet said. "Having to practice every night made me focus a lot on my homework. You really don't have much of a social life as a gymnast, to be honest. It helped me focus better on my schoolwork. And playing on a team for your school, you are friends with people on your team. It was really nice to see them at school and be able to talk to them and everything."
Competing in high school gymnastics did another thing for Shabet: It provided her with two MHSAA Division 1 individual all-around championships.
After winning the all-around last year, Shabet made it a repeat Saturday at Plymouth High School, accumulating a final total of 38.675 to barely edge Grand Ledge sophomore Rachel Hogan, who was a tenth of a point behind at 38.575.
Presley Allison of Grand Ledge was third with a final score of 37.875, Jocelyn Moraw of Canton finished fourth at 37.825 and Isabelle Nguyen of Grosse Pointe United finished fifth with a score of 37.125.
Shabet won the floor exercise with a score of 9.700, shared the bars title with Hogan after both received identical scores of 9.750, and finished second in her specialty event, the balance beam, with a score of 9.7.
Maddie Toal of Canton won the beam with a score of 9.725.
Shabet's worst event is the vault, but she still managed to finish fourth with a score of 9.525.
Hogan won the vault with a score of 9.725, but just didn't quite have enough in the end to score more than Shabet in the all-around.
"It feels really nice to come back and win again and defend my title," Shabet said. "Plus it is my senior year, and I get to finish off with a win. It was more pressure, but I practiced more and I felt pretty confident about everything, so I wasn't as nervous as I was last year."
Shabet was also better despite winning the all-around last year because she and coach Cynthia Tan made it a point to add new elements to her routine.
"We knew she was going to have a lot of girls coming after her this year," Tan said. "She already had a lot of high tricks in all of her routines. It was just a matter of adding more polish to her routine."
In her floor exercise routine, Shabet incorporated a punch front out of a one-and-a-half backflip, something she just started practicing this year.
"I was really happy I stuck that," Shabet said.
In the bars, Shabet said she has been trying to perfect a straddle back and performed it well on Saturday, which was a big reason she ended up winning that event.
With her high school career over, Shabet said she isn't sure if she will try and do gymnastics in college.
She is an honor roll student who has been accepted to the University of Michigan and is waiting to hear word on whether she will get accepted into Yale.
Shabet said if she gets accepted into Yale she will consider walking on to the gymnastics team there, but reiterated first and foremost will be schoolwork.
It goes without saying that Shabet will be nearly impossible to replace, so much so that Tan said after the meet that she will be stepping down as Troy coach.
The main reason is Tan wants to spend more time with her husband and two sons, who are 13 and 10 years old, but the end of Shabet's high school career provided an opportunity to finish with a flourish.
"We are walking out together," Tan said. "We are going out on top. ... I wanted to go out on a good note, and Christina is my good note."
In Division 2, Grand Rapids Forest Hills sophomore Cassidy Terhorst won the all-around competition with a final score of 36.400. Canton senior Erica Lucas took second with 36.250 points.
Terhorst, who tied for first in the vault and finished second in both the floor exercise and bars, didn't compete at all last year as a freshman because of a torn knee ligament.
But the nerves of competing in her first-ever MHSAA Finals weren't enough to prevent her from winning the all-around.
"It was scary having the big crowd here," Terhorst said. "I've never competed with this many people and this much pressure. But I liked the pressure."
PHOTO: (Top) The medalists from the MHSAA Division 1 Final wave to the crowd at the end of Saturday's individual competition at Plymouth High School. (Middle) The Division 2 medalists wave after receiving their awards. (Click to see more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Schrauben Finds Way Back to Gymnastics, Follows Path to Top of Finals Podium
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
March 14, 2025
The last thing Sydnee Schrauben enjoys is time on her hands.
During her previous breaks between fall field hockey and spring lacrosse, the Rockford senior had opted to throw herself into the school’s musical theatre program and appeared in productions such as "Shrek the Musical" and "Mamma Mia."
But this winter, when the Rockford senior found herself with little to do between those sports, Schrauben decided to reevaluate a return to gymnastics, which she had dabbled in growing up but eventually gave up prior to entering high school.
She and close friend Ava Ezell opted to come out for the Rams team.
"I've never been one to not do something," Schrauben explained.
While Schrauben is accomplished enough athletically to land a lacrosse scholarship to Coker University in Huntsville, S.C., next season and an excellent field hockey player as well, she had modest expectations for gymnastics. After all, she hadn't participated since eighth grade when the mental and physical demands of the sport became too great.
Her thinking was that gymnastics would keep her close to friends, fulfill her competitive drive for a few months and generally just give her something to do after school. But accomplishing something as grand as winning a state title? No chance, Schrauben said.
She was wrong.
Schrauben placed among the top five in two events while winning the MHSAA Division 2 all-around championship last weekend at Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills.
It's a story that includes more than simply brushing aside long odds to win a championship. Schrauben hadn’t been around a balance beam or attempted a floor exercise for three years and enjoyed phenomenal success.
"I was very, very shocked," she said. "I was top-five in all-around in a couple meets, but after winning (the Final) I cried. It was a very surreal moment. Everyone has a dream (of) being awesome, but you never really think it's gonna happen to you."
Schrauben said she improved her scores as the season progressed and had a goal of scoring a 36 in all-around in her final meet. She actually bettered that by a fraction despite, she admitted, surviving a couple missteps.
Schrauben had to overcome not even placing among the top 36 in floor and finishing 25th in vault. That was done by winning beam (9.6) and taking fourth on bars (8.7). Her overall score of 36.025 in all-around outdistanced Rams teammates Kate Tracey (35.9) and Lillian Green (35.85), who finished second and third, respectively.
"I wanted a 36 in all-around and (to) hit all my routines, but that didn't happen,” Schrauben said. “But things worked out fine. I just told myself not to worry and go out and do the things I've done all year."
Not only did Schrauben have to shake off years’ worth of cobwebs to win, she also overcame a midseason ankle injury that put her foot in a boot for six weeks. But in a strange way, the injury may have benefitted her as she was able to step back from the sport and take a deep breath.
"I definitely fell behind, and when you stop training that's going to bring down your scores, but at the same time it gave me time to perfect working on bars and beam," she said.
"Bars and beam are my best events. I just wanted to have a solid meet and bump up my all-around score, and they helped me immensely."
Rockford coach Michelle Ankney said Schrauben's Finals title can best be described as the culmination of possessing athleticism, mental toughness, an ability to focus on what's at hand and a unique competitive drive.
"It's a combination of all the above," Ankney said. "She's a fantastic athlete, competitively very driven, has a mental talent and is fearless. She's doing this, and I just stared at her. I said, 'I can't believe she's doing this.'"
Winning was an amazing achievement, and a direct result of Schrauben attempting to harness something she's always recognized deep within herself.
"I get bored easily," she said. "I wanted to do something, whether it was a job or another sport or whatever. But then I found I kind of missed gymnastics. I thought doing something in my final season would bring back a love of sport and I'd end on a good note."
PHOTOS (Top) Rockford’s Sydnee Schrauben takes her first strides of a vault run during the MHSAA Individual Finals on March 8 at Kenowa Hills. (Middle) Schrauben takes a photo at a state gymnastics competition prior to high school. (Below) The Rams senior tops the podium for Division 2 all-around last weekend. (Click for more from this season’s Finals from High School Sports Scene.)