University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Photo by: Alex Mowrey/Pitt Athletics
Beyond the Gym: The Process that Led Pitt Gymnastics to Regionals
4/26/2018 2:28:00 PM | Women's Gymnastics
Written By Matt Keenan
Written By Matt Keenan
Doing something for the first time can be a challenge. A new experience can be nerve wracking, exhausting and extremely difficult. Sometimes, having to adjust to a new situation can take a long time. But sometimes, it doesn't, and for first-year head coach Samantha Snider and the University of Pittsburgh gymnastics team, the transition looks to have been a seamless one.
In her first year at the helm, Snider led the Pitt gymnastics team to one of its most historic seasons in school history. The 2018 squad amassed an astonishing 19 top-10 program marks, both individually and as a team, en route to an appearance in the NCAA Regional Championship, a feat the Panthers' hadn't achieved since 2013.
Although the accomplishments are impressive, this team's turnaround didn't happen overnight. It was a process, but one that Snider's background as a gymnast and coach at the University of Arkansas had prepared her for.
"As a coach there I learned so much," said Snider. "It was such a valuable experience for me. I've said before, I've had so many great mentors while being a student-athlete and while being a coach and seeing the other side of things. I've had a lot of people in my life that have really helped prepare me to be a head coach of my own program. When I got the call from Pitt, I knew I was ready to take on this challenge."
Once Snider and the rest of the coaching staff arrived at Pitt, they took no time setting the tone and laying out their expectations for the season, and the team was quick to get on board. Snider, along with assistant coaches Dave Kuzara and Ryan Snider, held a team meeting once every gymnast was back on campus for the fall semester.
"From day one when I stepped foot in the locker room, I saw that we had the talent," she said. "I knew it was just some of those other intangible things that needed to be implemented here. In our initial meeting with the team, the staff went over the rules and policies this program was going to adhere to moving forward, our expectations that were going to be placed on these girls and really the standards that we're going to have here in this program. We set the tone right away from that first day."
The next day, Snider followed up the meeting with a rigorous team training session, what she referred to as a 'boot camp'.
Boot camp extended throughout the preseason, with early morning workouts focused on strength and conditioning exercises. The training sessions took place at locations all throughout campus, and were used as a way to prepare for the season, but also bond as a team.
Boot camp turned out to be the start of something special, as the workouts displayed the type of innate connection the coaching staff and team shared.
"We like to keep things fun and creative as a staff, so on day one we sent the team the coordinates to where we were supposed to meet at 6 a.m.," said Snider. "They had to figure it out on their own, and it happened to be the Cathedral of Learning. The staff showed up in camouflage and eye black to show that it was time to grind and time to get going, but the girls had no idea that is how we would be dressed. It just so happened that as the girls started to pull up to Cathy they all had the same idea. They showed up in camo with eye black ready to go."
"To me, that was just really indicative of where this year was going. They bought in right away to our program, our philosophies and what we were trying to change here. So, to me, that was the prime example of everyone being on the same page, everyone gearing up and being ready to put in the hard work to be successful."
The team's hard work in the preseason produced immediate results, which was evident in the first meet of the season, as the squad posted the highest opening score in program history against Oregon State.
Pitt's strong season-opener proved to be a sign of things to come, as the Panthers would jump into the record book in a variety of categories, both as a team and individually, throughout the season.
Individually, freshman Haley Brechwald earned three of the top 10 all-around scores in school history, while also being named East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) Rookie of the Year after earning an EAGL-record six Rookie of the Week honors and 12 individual event titles throughout the season. Junior Lucy Brett also made her mark on Pitt's record book, as she tied the second-highest bars score in program history after posting a 9.925 in the event.
As a team, the Panthers broke into the Pitt record book in every single event. The 2018 squad boasts an astounding five top-10 marks on bars, which includes four of the top five scores and the top mark in program history. The team holds three of the top 10 program scores on beam, one of which is tied for first place with the 2003 and 2004 Panther squads. The squad also owns two top-10 scores on vault, including the second-highest mark in program history, and one top-10 finish on floor.
The Panthers' success in each event led to the squad posting four of the top 10 team scores in Pitt gymnastics history, which includes a second-best mark of 196.475.
"I was so proud of this team for breaking records and setting new records in many different areas," she said. "That was one of our goals at the beginning of the year. There are some pretty hefty records that have been set here and haven't been touched in a long time, which goes to show the long-standing tradition here at Pitt with this gymnastics program. They knew it was going to take a lot of hard work and they put in that hard work so it was really nice to see them reap the benefits of that later in the season."
Pitt's record-breaking season culminated in the team qualifying for the NCAA Regional Championship, something they had been preparing for all year.
"Regionals was really an amazing time for this team," Snider said. "That was our goal from the beginning – to qualify as a team. We, as a staff, knew that the talent was there. It was just a matter of those intangibles – the confidence. Instilling confidence in themselves, instilling confidence as a team, preparing well and being able to the handle the pressure and performing when it counts and when it matters most – we tried to implement all of those things throughout the season."
After graduating from Arkansas with a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's in mental health counseling, Snider understands that success in sports doesn't just come from training and technique, but also from a belief in yourself and your teammates.
"That was definitely one of our main focuses - building confidence in yourself and knowing that you can go out and perform to the level you're capable of," she said. "But also, confidence in your teammate and the person standing next to you. Knowing that, while you're watching them right before they perform, you know they're going to hit a great routine because you know what they're capable of and you know that they're going to go out and perform that way."
With her first season in the books, Snider hopes that Pitt's incoming freshman class, along with the team's rising confidence, will carry their momentum into next season and beyond.
"We're really excited about the incoming class," Snider said. "As I said, regionals solidified that confidence of 'we deserve to be here, we can be here and we will be here'. So, to add in the talent that's coming in on top of the experience that this team just had is really going to make for a truly amazing season next year."
Though year number one was a success, the journey does not stop there. Snider's vision for the team extends far beyond regionals, with the process that began in year one continuing on into the future.
"We're going to push even further for our goals and what we're capable of achieving," she said. "We plan to take Pitt gymnastics to a national level. That's the ultimate goal – to qualify for the national championships and to really become a top-10 team. Next year we will continue to rise and continue to get closer to that ultimate goal. I believe that we have the talent and the capability to make a big name for ourselves nationally in the next couple years."
Big things are ahead for the Panther gymnastics team, and Snider has proven she's more than capable of taking Pitt to new heights.
#H2P | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Doing something for the first time can be a challenge. A new experience can be nerve wracking, exhausting and extremely difficult. Sometimes, having to adjust to a new situation can take a long time. But sometimes, it doesn't, and for first-year head coach Samantha Snider and the University of Pittsburgh gymnastics team, the transition looks to have been a seamless one.
In her first year at the helm, Snider led the Pitt gymnastics team to one of its most historic seasons in school history. The 2018 squad amassed an astonishing 19 top-10 program marks, both individually and as a team, en route to an appearance in the NCAA Regional Championship, a feat the Panthers' hadn't achieved since 2013.
Although the accomplishments are impressive, this team's turnaround didn't happen overnight. It was a process, but one that Snider's background as a gymnast and coach at the University of Arkansas had prepared her for.
"As a coach there I learned so much," said Snider. "It was such a valuable experience for me. I've said before, I've had so many great mentors while being a student-athlete and while being a coach and seeing the other side of things. I've had a lot of people in my life that have really helped prepare me to be a head coach of my own program. When I got the call from Pitt, I knew I was ready to take on this challenge."
Once Snider and the rest of the coaching staff arrived at Pitt, they took no time setting the tone and laying out their expectations for the season, and the team was quick to get on board. Snider, along with assistant coaches Dave Kuzara and Ryan Snider, held a team meeting once every gymnast was back on campus for the fall semester.
"From day one when I stepped foot in the locker room, I saw that we had the talent," she said. "I knew it was just some of those other intangible things that needed to be implemented here. In our initial meeting with the team, the staff went over the rules and policies this program was going to adhere to moving forward, our expectations that were going to be placed on these girls and really the standards that we're going to have here in this program. We set the tone right away from that first day."
The next day, Snider followed up the meeting with a rigorous team training session, what she referred to as a 'boot camp'.
Boot camp extended throughout the preseason, with early morning workouts focused on strength and conditioning exercises. The training sessions took place at locations all throughout campus, and were used as a way to prepare for the season, but also bond as a team.
Boot camp turned out to be the start of something special, as the workouts displayed the type of innate connection the coaching staff and team shared.
"We like to keep things fun and creative as a staff, so on day one we sent the team the coordinates to where we were supposed to meet at 6 a.m.," said Snider. "They had to figure it out on their own, and it happened to be the Cathedral of Learning. The staff showed up in camouflage and eye black to show that it was time to grind and time to get going, but the girls had no idea that is how we would be dressed. It just so happened that as the girls started to pull up to Cathy they all had the same idea. They showed up in camo with eye black ready to go."
"To me, that was just really indicative of where this year was going. They bought in right away to our program, our philosophies and what we were trying to change here. So, to me, that was the prime example of everyone being on the same page, everyone gearing up and being ready to put in the hard work to be successful."
The team's hard work in the preseason produced immediate results, which was evident in the first meet of the season, as the squad posted the highest opening score in program history against Oregon State.
Pitt's strong season-opener proved to be a sign of things to come, as the Panthers would jump into the record book in a variety of categories, both as a team and individually, throughout the season.
Individually, freshman Haley Brechwald earned three of the top 10 all-around scores in school history, while also being named East Atlantic Gymnastics League (EAGL) Rookie of the Year after earning an EAGL-record six Rookie of the Week honors and 12 individual event titles throughout the season. Junior Lucy Brett also made her mark on Pitt's record book, as she tied the second-highest bars score in program history after posting a 9.925 in the event.
As a team, the Panthers broke into the Pitt record book in every single event. The 2018 squad boasts an astounding five top-10 marks on bars, which includes four of the top five scores and the top mark in program history. The team holds three of the top 10 program scores on beam, one of which is tied for first place with the 2003 and 2004 Panther squads. The squad also owns two top-10 scores on vault, including the second-highest mark in program history, and one top-10 finish on floor.
The Panthers' success in each event led to the squad posting four of the top 10 team scores in Pitt gymnastics history, which includes a second-best mark of 196.475.
"I was so proud of this team for breaking records and setting new records in many different areas," she said. "That was one of our goals at the beginning of the year. There are some pretty hefty records that have been set here and haven't been touched in a long time, which goes to show the long-standing tradition here at Pitt with this gymnastics program. They knew it was going to take a lot of hard work and they put in that hard work so it was really nice to see them reap the benefits of that later in the season."
Pitt's record-breaking season culminated in the team qualifying for the NCAA Regional Championship, something they had been preparing for all year.
"Regionals was really an amazing time for this team," Snider said. "That was our goal from the beginning – to qualify as a team. We, as a staff, knew that the talent was there. It was just a matter of those intangibles – the confidence. Instilling confidence in themselves, instilling confidence as a team, preparing well and being able to the handle the pressure and performing when it counts and when it matters most – we tried to implement all of those things throughout the season."
After graduating from Arkansas with a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's in mental health counseling, Snider understands that success in sports doesn't just come from training and technique, but also from a belief in yourself and your teammates.
"That was definitely one of our main focuses - building confidence in yourself and knowing that you can go out and perform to the level you're capable of," she said. "But also, confidence in your teammate and the person standing next to you. Knowing that, while you're watching them right before they perform, you know they're going to hit a great routine because you know what they're capable of and you know that they're going to go out and perform that way."
With her first season in the books, Snider hopes that Pitt's incoming freshman class, along with the team's rising confidence, will carry their momentum into next season and beyond.
"We're really excited about the incoming class," Snider said. "As I said, regionals solidified that confidence of 'we deserve to be here, we can be here and we will be here'. So, to add in the talent that's coming in on top of the experience that this team just had is really going to make for a truly amazing season next year."
Though year number one was a success, the journey does not stop there. Snider's vision for the team extends far beyond regionals, with the process that began in year one continuing on into the future.
"We're going to push even further for our goals and what we're capable of achieving," she said. "We plan to take Pitt gymnastics to a national level. That's the ultimate goal – to qualify for the national championships and to really become a top-10 team. Next year we will continue to rise and continue to get closer to that ultimate goal. I believe that we have the talent and the capability to make a big name for ourselves nationally in the next couple years."
Big things are ahead for the Panther gymnastics team, and Snider has proven she's more than capable of taking Pitt to new heights.
#H2P | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Tuesday, January 23
Friday, April 28
Wednesday, March 31
Wednesday, March 31