MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – A lineup spot for a West Virginia University gymnast is never secure until she is saluting the judges at the onset of her routine. Coaches may submit a lineup prior to a competition, and double-check it just before team introductions, but all six competition spots are fluid and up for grabs each and every meet.
No Mountaineer gymnast understands this concept better than freshman Jaquie Tun.
One of the most versatile rookies donning the Gold and Blue leotard this season, Tun, a native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, has been a last-minute lineup replacement a handful of times this year. Most recently, she was inserted into the team’s vault lineup at the 2016 Big 12 Gymnastics Championship on March 19 after the first Mountaineer had competed her routine, and also into the team’s floor lineup at Pitt on March 13 following the team’s 30-second touch.
While Tun admits the short turnaround between receiving the lineup nod from her coaches and competing her routine can cause a bit of stress from time to time, she values the greater meaning in serving as the team’s pinch hitter this season.
“It’s nice to know the coaches can rely on me on meet day,” she explained. “If the team needs me, I can compete on short notice.”
The Mountaineers have certainly needed Tun this season, as she has competed in all 12 meets, serving as a multi-event specialist nine times, and posted 231.7 points, the seventh-best individual total.
A five-year level 10 gymnast at the Gymnastics Center of Chattanooga, Tun entered her freshman season confident that she could consistently compete on the uneven bars each meet. The 2013 Junior Olympics uneven bars national champion, Tun did in fact secure a spot in the Mountaineers’ bars lineup in her first collegiate meet, scoring 9.65 at No. 16 Denver on Jan. 9. Eleven meets later, Tun has legitimate aspirations of competing all-around for the Mountaineers.
“Jaquie is a force to be reckoned with on every single event; I don’t believe she has a weak event,” WVU associate head coach Travis Doak said. “I think she’s figuring it out on each event, and once you do that in college gymnastics, routines just come together. Jaquie has always been a quick kid, and she competes clean gymnastics. We have seen a lot of improvement since she competed in club gymnastics.
“Jaquie can go in on every event. Not only that, she can go in and earn a great score, and I think that speaks to her character and what she can contribute throughout her career.”
“I think it’s kind of crazy,” Tun laughed. “I honestly did not think competing all-around would be an option for me. I thought bars would be it for me this year. There’s been a lot of surprises this season.”
Maybe most surprising for Tun has been her success on the floor exercise. Despite a routine that has gone through several changes all season, including never-before competed jumps, Tun has hit all eight of her routines, including three for scores of 9.8 or better, highlighted by a career-best 9.85 showing at Pitt on March 13.
Tun’s consistency on bars, though, cannot be overlooked, as she has provided stability to the lineup all season and helped the Mountaineers steadily increase their team score. WVU’s lineup has been particularly strong as of late, scoring 49.0+ at three of the last five meets, including a season-high 49.15 in wins over Ohio State and Bowling Green on March 6 at the WVU Coliseum. Tun has played a large role in that success, earning marks of 9.8 or better three times during that span, including a career-high 9.875 total in a second-place showing at the Unite for Her Pink Invitational in Philadelphia on Feb. 26.
“Bars is the one event I’ve trained consistently since I came to WVU,” she explained. “I haven’t really had to change anything with that routine, and that’s helped me be solid.”
Whether she is competing in one lineup or three, Tun, a graphic design major, views her team support as her most significant contribution this season.
“It’s nice to just be on the sidelines, too, and cheer on my teammates,” she explained. “I love being a part of this team. It’s a very family-oriented team. We all help each other out, and we’re always there for each other. It’s been nice because my club gym was the same way.”
Tun and her teammates return to the road this weekend after a two-week hiatus and travel to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, for the 2016 NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional Championships, set to begin at 5 p.m. EST on Saturday, April 2, inside the University of Alabama’s Coleman Coliseum. While the year has been filled of many firsts for Tun, she won’t be alone on Saturday, as the Tuscaloosa Regional will be WVU’s first regional championships away from Morgantown since the 2012 season, meaning each Mountaineer but junior Alexa Goldberg will compete at her first regional championships outside of the WVU Coliseum.
“It’s nice to know I won’t be the only one who will not know what to expect Saturday,” Tun said. “It’s comforting to know we’ll all experience this together.”
The Mountaineers, sitting just outside the national rankings at No. 26, enter the championships as the region’s No. 5 seed. Two bids to the 2016 NCAA National Championships are on the line, as well as individual qualifications.
No matter the role Tun serves Saturday night, she values the lessons she has already gained this year with the Mountaineers.
“I did not expect a lot this year, and I did not realize how close this team would get by the end of the year,” she reflected. “We’ve all clicked with each other, and it’s been so nice. It’s been a great year. “
