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03/06/2019 11:00 PMRaya Signore made the most of her one season as a high school gymnast by showing what a lifelong dedication to the sport can generate.
Raya, a senior at Guilford, has done gymnastics at various gyms in the area for several years. This winter, she decided to step into high school circuit by representing Guilford, while training, traveling, and competing with the Hand gymnastics team.
Raya finished her year on a high note when she placed 18th in the all-around at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship. For the season, her top marks were an 8.4 on vault, an 8.25 on floor, a 7.3 for the beam, a 6.6 on bars, and a 29.15 for the all-around.
“When I first started this year, it was a lot more difficult. I had to make big adjustments because of the different scoring and requirements for high school gymnastics,” Raya says. “I had to change some routines. The biggest was with the bars, but I got more used to things. [Hand Coach Kelly Smith] helped me a lot, and I got more skill towards the end of the season.”
Raya wasn’t on her own while representing the Indians. She was joined by senior classmate Julia Durso, who also competed on behalf of Guilford gymnastics this year. This helped create an instant level of comfort for Raya.
“A lot of people here didn’t know about the team here, but I was proud to represent Guilford in a different sport,” says Raya. “There was easy bonding with Julia and I, and we got along.”
Raya also felt a great sense of camaraderie with the athletes on Hand’s gymnastics squad. Raya said the Tigers welcomed with her open arms and supported her every day.
“Coach Smith’s son was actually in a class I coached, so I already had a connection with her, which helped for a smoother transition to the team,” Raya says. “I actually did gymnastics before with a lot of the Hand girls on the team, and I worked with some of them at TNT Gymnastics. They were all welcoming on the team.”
Raya posted a third-place showing on the vault with a score of 8.4 when Hand faced Glastonbury on Jan. 14. She finished the night with an all-around score of 28.7. Raya says that meet was a standout showing from her senior campaign.
“Placing third on the vault really stood out for me, because it was big for me to place high in something I wasn’t used to,” says Raya. “I also did well on the floor this year, and I was proud that it was one of my better events.”
Coach Smith praises Raya for the way she adapted to high school gymnastics. Smith says that Raya brought constant optimism to her program.
“Raya always worked hard in the gym and was open to trying new things to shift her routines to the high school level. She learned some new difficulty and added it to her routines. Her biggest strength was vault, where she was powerful and clean,” says Smith. “Raya always had a positive attitude in the gym and toward her teammates. You could tell she just really loved gymnastics.”
Raya doesn’t plan on doing gymnastics in college. However, she is thinking about using some of her skills from the sport in a new endeavor.
“I still want to do something involving tumbling in college, so I might take up cheerleading,” says Raya.