On paper, much seemed dandy for the Buford gymnastics team as it began its 2025 season on Feb. 8 in search of a fourth-consecutive state championship.
The Wolves returned a seasoned coach in Tyler Ann Smith, a group of five seniors — four of whom competed in each of the previous championship runs — and a dashing amount of confidence after walking away from the previous three campaigns on top of the state’s ranks.
All of those goals are the same for Buford after its opening meet at Gymnastix Training Center. But, in sports, there’s a reason why the games aren’t played on paper. The Wolves have goals ahead of them and internal expectations to meet.
“This is a marathon, not a sprint,” Smith said. “We don’t want to have April expectations in February, but we have some competition this year.”
Buford finished second in the season-opening quad meet with a score of 105.200, behind rival and finals contender North Oconee. West Forsyth and Lambert finished in third and fourth place, respectively. A finish out of first place is a rarity for the Wolves, but a finish that they hope can catapult them throughout the season which finishes on their home floor in the state title meet.
The team’s lack of points — finishing nearly two points behind North Oconee — doesn’t bring much cause for concern, however. Smith intentionally dialed back difficulty on routines, she said, and used the opening competition as a bit of an evaluation period. Ellison Gould paced Buford with the best all-around score with a 31.850, good for sixth-best at the quad meet among competitors.
Buford started strong on the vault apparatus with a score of 27.550. The Wolves transitioned to the uneven bars and struggled to shake off a rough outing on the apparatus. Smith said the judges had a high expectation and were “tough” on scoring routines. She didn’t have any complaints, however, because the critiques were consistent throughout the meet and with scoring each team.
But, within an athlete’s psyche, that poses some challenges.
“When you have those mistakes, it’s hard for any athlete to leave them at that event,” said Smith, who indicated mental toughness as a team weakness in the first meet. “Those mistakes (on the uneven bars) followed us to the beam, and they followed us to the floor. One of the things we have to work on collectively is not allowing them to follow us.”
Buford’s biggest challenge in 2025, and by no fault of its own, might be the uptick in competition. More opposing teams have plenty of depth in regard to year-round club gymnasts, a luxury the Wolves don’t have. Smith, however, doesn’t doubt her team’s talent to overcome such a discrepancy.
Buford will try to match that opposing depth with gymnasts who have long tenure in the program.
“They have to remember that they have to earn it,” Smith said. “They still have the talent.”
Nonetheless, the debut onto the floor proved that sports aren’t played on paper. Buford can reach its title dreams once again, though, by gradual progression.
“They have to be willing to put the work in the gym, remember who they are and block out the noise,” Smith said.
FEATURED PHOTO: Buford senior gymnast Johanna Sasser practices on balance beam. Photo courtesy of Claudia Sasser.
