If the Austin gymnasts were to unwrap Thursday’s home defeat to Winona, they would find two tiny, yet important moments hidden within the package.

Friday, January 21, 2000

If the Austin gymnasts were to unwrap Thursday’s home defeat to Winona, they would find two tiny, yet important moments hidden within the package.

First they would discover Andrea Anderson’s uneven parallel bars routine – a crowd-pleaser during which Anderson ran off two consecutive giants. Anderson is the lone Packer performing the giants – straight-body loops that require a great deal of momentum to pull off. (Imagine swinging all the way around on a swing set, which might be considered a playground giant.)

Next, the Packers would uncover Amanda Lyons’ feat on the balance beam. Lyons nailed an aerial – a cartwheel done without the use of hands – en route to completing a flawless routine.

Lyons’ performance earned her a first place on the beam with a 9.175 score. Anderson was the top Packer on the bars, finishing second overall with a 9.250.

The routines stood out because of what Lyons and Anderson mean to the Packers and their chances of breaking the school scoring record for the third straight season.

They didn’t do it against Winona, losing 138.625 to 142.575. But nobody expected them to either.

The Winhawks, led by the dynamic sister act of freshman Katie and senior Kristin Crouse, won going away. The Crouses, who finished first and third respectively in the all-around competition, are a major reason why Winona has been a top-four state-ranked Class AA team all season.

"This is the best team we’ve had in my eight years," Coach Beckie Rolbiecki said. "We’ve been comfortably scoring in the 143-144 range all year. It hasn’t been hit and miss.

"We were a little rusty today because of the snow day and the missed practice. When you’re doing difficult skills without the reps day after day, it’s easy to lose the edge."

The Winhawks will have the edge when all the Big Nine schools gather in Faribault on Feb. 12. But Austin – if it can approach the school record of 143.975 – might just near the top too.

The Packers are strong at the top with Amy Bickler (36.325), Suzanne Kooy (33.95), and Stacy Draayer (32.6), who finished second and fifth and sixth in the all-around competition on Thursday.

Contributions by Austin’s elder stateswomen, Lyons and Anderson, make the Packers even stronger.

But neither has been a sure thing this season, nor have they been available to perform all-around, which would suit the Packers best.

In May, Lyons, a senior, separated her collar bone while practicing gymnastics in Rochester. A week later, Anderson, a junior, dislocated her ankle during a routine, an injury that required a plate and seven screws to repair.

The surgical shrapnel remain in Anderson’s left ankle, limiting her to the competing on beam and bars.

The injuries "have hurt us as a team," said Anderson, who still believes the Packers have what it takes to reach the 143-mark.

So does Lyons, who recently found out her ailing collar bone contains a not-yet-healed hairline fracture.

Lyons was set to compete on beam and vault against Winona. But a trial vault run brought about shooting pain and swelling in the collar bone and she resisted competing in the event, which would have been her first action since before Christmas.

She then traded a cartwheel for aeriel on beam because of the aerial’s no-hands clause.

Lyons denies being courageous.

"It’s nothing like that," said Lyons, who rehabs the shoulder three days a week. "I’m just getting so sick of sitting on the bench, especially in my senior year.

"There’s not a lot of meets left."

She said came back on beam, because she can work around using her arms.

"I wanted to put everything I had into it," said Lyons, who was one of four Packers with what they call a "stuck routine" – or no falls – on beam.

Lyon’s edgy beam work drew almost as much praise from teammates as Anderson’s giants.

"They look huge," Anderson said of her advanced moves. "The swinging around make them look big."

Big is any contribution Austin can get from Anderson and Lyons.

"They’re the two girls with the most experience on our team," Coach Rhonda Alberts said. "So when you put them in there it changes things.

"It’s more than just what they can do. What they do energizes us."