Talucci’s top class is gym(nastics)

Algebra is harder than gymnastics for Alicia Talucci. Coming out of class, she’s more frazzled… Algebra is harder than gymnastics for Alicia Talucci. Coming out of class, she’s more frazzled than you’ll ever see her during a meet. ‘In the gym I have to try,’ said Talucci. ‘But school is so much harder.’ Adjusting to life as a student athlete is challenging for any freshman. For Talucci, the athlete part comes naturally. Sitting in her chair before a meet at Fitzgerald Field House, Talucci is surrounded by blue mats and chalk dusting every surface. Listening to Michael Buble on her iPod, Talucci is calm and composed. She doesn’t get nervous, and she doesn’t know why. There are four events in gymnastics: the floor, bars, beam and the vault. While most gymnasts don’t compete in all four, Talucci does. In last Friday’s loss to Michigan State, Talucci tallied the highest all-around score for the week in the Eastern Atlantic Gymnastics League with a 39.250. The highest a gymnast can score is 40.00, but that is nearly impossible. Since Talucci didn’t start out the season competing in all four events, her scores are that much more impressive. ‘Every week we would give her a new routine or event, and every week she would nail it.’ said Pitt coach Debbie Yohman. Introverted and modest, one would never know how the success Talucci has already achieved in only a few months as a Panther. The EAGL is the Big East of gymnastics (with a few other schools added in or subbed out), and so far the league has already honored Talucci as Rookie of the Week twice. Last Friday’s marks earned her the top honors of EAGL Gymnast of the Week, rarely awarded to freshmen. She’s not one to set lofty goals, rather she competes as hard as she can every time. The only goal she’s set for this season is to score a 10.0 on her favorite event: the vault. ‘Its not that hard,’ says Talucci. ‘A lot of college athletes do it.’ But it is hard, and it is rarely done. For the average person, the vault is a terrifying event. The athlete has to sprint down an 80-foot runway and then flip one way or another onto a small structure using both hands and no feet, then complete a few more flips and twists in the air before blindly landing perfectly straight with both feet together. The last Pitt gymnast to score a 10.0 on the vault was Alyse Zeffiro in 2004. ‘Every gymnast works toward perfection, and that’s what the 10.0 is. It’s going to be hard, but she is very capable,’ said Yohman. Talucci started tumbling around at the age of 6. The only reason she began gymnastics was because her dad’s friend opened a gym, so her parents decided to throw her in the mix. Nearly 10 expensive years later, Talucci found herself training for the Olympic level. Once a surgery sidelined her for a year, college gymnastics was the only option. ‘She wasn’t exactly ready to go when she came here,’ said Yohman. ‘But, we recruited a great athlete, and she worked hard. She’s an athlete that will continue to progress.’ But Talucci isn’t concerned with how she’s going to do or how she has already done. Only a few hours away from a meet, perched in her disheveled Sutherland dorm, Talucci’s thoughts resemble those of any other Pitt freshman. She hates math, wishes she had money for laundry and is hopeful to get one day off this week to go snowboarding. The Panthers have one remaining home meet against Denver this Saturday at the Fitzgerald Field House at 7 p.m. Seniors Alix Croop, Anya Chayka, Andrea Konesky and Victoria McGuigan-Carl will be honored.