2017 Women's NCAA Championships

The Road To NCAAs: Taylor Houchin, Nebraska Compete For Others

The Road To NCAAs: Taylor Houchin, Nebraska Compete For Others

Nebraska freshman Taylor Houchin looks to let her light shine for others as she and the Cornhuskers head to the NCAA Championships.

Apr 11, 2017 by Lauren Green
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Nebraska is returning to the NCAA Championships for the fourth straight season, and Big Ten Freshman of the Year Taylor Houchin has been a key contributor. The Cornhuskers finished in a solid second place at the Lincoln Regional, where Houchin was a standout on vault after posting a 9.900 behind a great Yurchenko 1 1/2.



A solid all-arounder, Houchin brings a vault that starts out of a 10.0. She has great form in the air and gets good amplitude. She has scored a 9.800 or better nine times this season and has a 9.900 or better four times.

Houchin has competed in the all-around eight times this season. Her best performance came in the final home meet of the season, where she scored a 39.650 against California, Southeast Missouri, and Utah State. She posted a season best on vault, bars, and beam and tied her season high on floor exercise.

Nebraska will face Big Ten rival Michigan and a quartet of SEC teams -- Florida, LSU, Alabama, and Georgia -- on Friday night in the second semifinal of the NCAA Championships in St. Louis.

FloGymnastics: What is your favorite event to perform on and why?
Taylor Houchin: I would say vault, because it's an event where I can be as powerful as I want. I don't have to really control it a whole lot so that's nice. A lot of [the other] events, you have to really use your brain and really focus on it. [Vault] is one of the ones where you can let yourself go and just go for it.

What is your favorite skill to perform on any event?
Probably my Tkachev on bars, because it's the most fun.

What's the most challenging skill you've learned and what made it challenging for you?
The most challenging would probably be my vault, because it's a really long process that took me from level 9 up to now to fully get the skill. It takes time to build up the foundation of that vault.

What was the biggest thing you took away from regionals that you'll use heading into nationals?
I would say how powerful it is to work as a team and to work for something other than ourselves. We tried to focus on putting all of our trust in someone. So we did the Let Your Light Shine project, so I let my light shine for my grandpa. Some people did it for the team, some people did it for other family members or friends. I think what was important was to not get selfish within the competition. If something goes wrong, to remember why we're doing it and put our faith back into those people or our teammates [instead of] making it all about ourselves.

How has the adversity that your team has faced during this season helped prepare you for the postseason?
I think it's helped us in a lot of ways not just with gymnastics but with life itself, because things aren't always going to go perfectly and it's important to learn how to deal with those things before they get thrown at you. We've learned about how to handle these problems before they come along so that way if we get to nationals and maybe we don't start the way we want to. Instead of giving up, we can push through that and dig deeper.

What has the transition been like going from club to college?
It's been very different. The hardest part would probably be the back-to-back weekends. That part's been tricky and hard on our body and stuff like that. It's been very rewarding at the same time and it's nice to have 14 other girls who are going through the same thing that I am and a coaching staff that has been doing this for a while and understands the difficulty that comes with it and the hardship and how this happens almost every time. [They] give us a little bit of slack with the transition period and not being too hard on us or making it any harder than it has to be.

Has there been anything that you've done to prepare for that constant grind of competition week in and week out?
What's nice about college is that you have a constant staff on duty for helping you with injuries and stuff like that. So that part when it comes to doing treatment and ice tube and taping, it all just helps when it comes to the grind. You just have to change your mindset. I don't want to say push your body to the point where it's not safe, because it's obviously still safe, but finding that extra push deep down in you that you didn't know you had.

How do you bounce back from a fall?
Personally, I just try to put it behind me and focus on whoever's up. I know that my teammates have my back and I know that every girl is capable of hitting that routine the way that they practice. I think the biggest thing for me personally is putting it in my past and just trying to forget about it and not think about what I could have done differently. I just try to push that behind me. Within our team, I think the biggest thing is just trust. If you have to go up after someone falls, you know there's obviously more pressure on you to hit. So instead of focusing on that pressure, I think we try to really support that person before they go and really encourage them, (saying) "You have this. We practice this every day. This is you." I just try to remind that person up that they have this and try not to let them get in their head too much about the pressure that comes with it.

How would you describe yourself in three words?
I would probably say disciplined, driven, and accountable.

What are you most looking forward to about competing at nationals?
I would say just having fun and having one more chance with Jennie (Laeng) and Ashley (Lambert) and just making the most of this moment. It's already an accomplishment just getting there, so I think what I'm most excited for is just letting loose within the pressure point of it and just trying to go out there and have a lot of fun and do our best that we can.


Related:
2017 NCAA Championships Rotation Order For Semifinals & Super Six
2017 NCAA Championships Field Set