Brooks, Wojcik Named Co-MVPs During Team Awards Presentation
5/8/2020 12:00:00 PM | Women's Gymnastics
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan women's gymnastics team announced its annual team awards during a virtual team meeting on Thursday (May 7) with sophomore Natalie Wojcik and freshman Sierra Brooks receiving Co-Most Valuable Performer Awards.
The team celebrated a season of accomplishments that included a Big Ten regular-season title and the top two team scores in program history.
Wojcik shared the MVP honor for a second straight season after ranking in the top 40 nationally on all four events and the all-around. She was named Big Ten Gymnast of the Week four times and was a WCGA regular-season second team All-American in the all-around. Her 16 event and all-around titles led the team, as did her 16 routines scoring 9.900 or higher.
Brooks shared MVP honors after a tremendous freshman season and received the team's Newcomer Award. She was the WCGA Regional Gymnast of the Year, a seven-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week and a WCGA regular-season second team All-American on vault and the all-around. She won 11 event and all-around titles and scored 9.900 or higher on 15 events. She was also ranked in the top 40 nationally on every event and was ranked No. 11 nationally in the all-around, second highest for a freshman.
Senior captain Lexi Funk received the Unsung Hero Award. Her contributions to the team went far beyond meet scores, and her leadership qualities left a big impression on her teammates. She competed on balance beam and floor exercise, winning beam twice this season and ranking tied for 36th nationally.
The Coaches Award went to freshman Gabby Wilson. She was a hard worker in the practice gym and always was open to feedback from the coaching staff to try and become the best she could be. She had an outstanding first year on campus, ranking in the top 30 nationally on both vault and floor. She won eight event titles and scored a 9.900 or higher on eight routines.
Sophomore Abby Brenner collected two awards, the Specialist Award and the Chip Hills Spirit Award. Her breakout sophomore season led to second team WCGA regular-season All-America honors on vault. She won the event three times and ended the year ranked tied for ninth nationally. Her positive attitude and personality were infectious in the practice gym and at meets.
Sophomore Abby Heiskell received the Most Improved award, appearing in the lineup on three events at the end of the season and racking up three event titles on the year. She scored 9.900 or better on three routines and made improvements each week throughout the season.
Junior Lauren Farley received the Scholar-Athlete Award for a second straight season. An organizational studies major, she followed up her Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honor from last year with another year of outstanding performance in the classroom.
2019-20 Award Recipients
Most Valuable Performer: Sierra Brooks, Natalie Wojcik
Newcomer of the Year: Sierra Brooks
Coaches Award: Gabby Wilson
Unsung Hero: Lexi Funk
Most Improved: Abby Heiskell
Specialist Award: Abby Brenner
Scholar-Athlete Award: Lauren Farley
Albert "Chip" Freeman Hills Spirit Award: Abby Brenner
Players Mentioned
