Frosh Schwab goes big
Sabrina Schwab’s freshman year has been big for the Red Rocks. But what else would you expect from a Texas native? Despite experiencing a hectic ride of emotions, Schwab has enjoyed the time she’s spent so far with the Utes and is excited to see how the rest of the season plays out.
“It’s kind of been a whirlwind and you just get here and get put onto a team, you have 11 sisters right away and it’s been great,” she said enthusiastically. “We’re all so close and love each other. The first meet was in the Huntsman Center and then there was like 15,000 fans. It was amazing to feel all of that love. Then we just had our away meet and there were still a lot of fans- I mean there were 5,000. It was a little different though. They weren’t all cheering for you. They were a little hostile I guess but we were doing it all together so we handled it well I think.”
Schwab has been a pivotal part of what the Red Rocks have done so far this season getting thrown into the floor line-up last minute during the first meet and giving a memorable performance. “It’s just great to know you can contribute to such a great team,” she said. “I think it’s wonderful to be able to go out there and to know the coaches trust you enough to do your routine for them.”
Having grown up in Texas Schwab is used to big time sports and high fan interest. “Texas gymnastics is huge. Everything is bigger in Texas as they say,” she said with a laugh. “The football- the only thing that matters in Texas is the sports it feels like. Football is bigger, gymnastics is bigger. You have a lot of expectations to do well.”
Like most gymnasts Schwab’s parents were initially looking for a way to burn endless amounts of energy and it ultimately ended up sticking. “Honestly I think my parents put me in just because I had a lot of energy when I was at home,” Schwab said. “They wanted me to be in some sport where I can exert my energy and they put me in gymnastics and dance. In dance I just stood there and didn’t want any part of it and in gymnastics I just loved it and I’d go every day wanting more. I’d never take my leotard off.”
Schwab loves getting high off of the uneven bars where she says it’s like flying. “Bars is my favorite to do just because I feel like I’m flying whenever I do my release moves and it’s just the best feeling,” she said.
Initially Schwab says she didn’t know much about Utah and what ultimately sold her on coming was the plane ride in. “When I was on the flight coming in to Utah and I saw the mountains I was like ‘oh my God, I want to go there.’ It was just beautiful and then I met all of the coaches and teammates and I just knew,” she said. “It was an instant fit. It was perfect. Then I found out how amazing the team is an their facilities and it was just the icing on the cake.”
In order to prepare for meets Schwab says she spends a lot of time visualizing how meets could go and going through any kind of scenario in her head that could come up. “I do a lot of visualization and I just try to picture myself in the meet with all of the fans and the judges,” she said. “In the gym I try to replicate pressure scenarios where I’ll imagine judges judging me and I think that helps a lot just to practice when your nerves are- when you’re shaking and stuff.”
Schwab also says her teammates have been very helpful in boosting her confidence before she goes out and performs. “They’ll all give me like a pep talk. I have a little issue with my confidence so they always let me know ‘you can do this in the gym, you can do this in your sleep, you’ve done it a hundred times’,” Schwab explained. “That helps me a lot knowing that other people have confidence in me that gives me some confidence.”