Oswego co-op gymnast Sam Phillip didn’t know what to expect heading into the state meet at Palatine.
Fortunately for the freshman, someone was there to offer advice.
Senior Kelsie Freundt, who was making her third appearance at state, gave Phillip some tips.
“It’s pretty cool to be able to bring Sam here and she is seeing all the cool gymnastics everyone is doing,” Freundt said. “We haven’t seen that this season, so it’s pretty cool to come with her to her first state meet, and hopefully she will make it for the next three.”
Freundt, who also qualified for state during her freshman and sophomore years, advised Phillip to treat it the same as every other meet.
“She’s always so confident,” Freundt said. “If she keeps that confidence going through, she’ll do great.”
Phillip made a prophet out of Freundt and actually outshined her older teammate. Both competed on two events in the Friday preliminaries. Phillip advanced to the finals on vault, where she tied for 10th Saturday with a 9.3.
“I’m really proud of her for coming out her freshman year and making it on two events, which is so amazing,” Freundt said. “She was ranked seventh in the state on vault coming into this, so it was really exciting.”
Phillip successfully landed her Tsuk pike vault in prelims for a 9.425, which put her in a three-way tie for ninth. The top 10 girls in each event qualify for finals.
“I love the meet,” Phillip said. “Everything Kelsie told me about it was true.”
Phillip hadn’t competed in front of such a large crowd before. In the finals, all eyes were on her, as just one gymnast performs at a time.
“It was a little scary, but everyone was cheering for me and it was amazing,” Phillip said, who tied for 23rd on floor exercise with an 8.925. “It’s loud in here too, and it was so much fun.”
Oswego coach Amanda Zielske had fun watching Phillip perform.
“She has so much power,” Zielske said. “Her pike Tsuk is really high. She’s got the power everyone is jealous of.”
Phillip also has a good role model in Freundt, who finished 23rd on balance beam with a 9.05 and 27th on floor with an 8.75.
“She’s one of the most supportive girls I’ve ever met,” Phillip said. “She’s just amazing. I don’t know how to explain it.”
After the Illinois High School Association canceled the state meet last season due to the coronavirus pandemic, Freundt was determined to return one final time.
She overcame a sprained wrist, which kept her out of the lineup for three weeks, to do it.
“It’s just really, really rewarding,” Freundt said. “My goal was just to make both of my routines and have a ton of fun. That’s what I did, so I’m really proud of myself.”
Zielske was impressed with Freund’s resilience throughout the pandemic and the injury.
“Kelsie continued to work hard, regardless of whether we were competing or not,” Zielske said. “We weren’t sure she was going to be able to make it back, but she stayed in the gym, conditioning as much as she could, and as soon as the doctor cleared her, she was ready to do her routines.”
The payoff came for Freundt by getting to state.
“She fought through all the pain this year so she could get to this moment,” Zielske said. “I have never been so proud of a gymnast in my life.
“The team sees her working so hard and not stopping despite the pain, and it really inspires everybody to keep working hard.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.