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NORMAN — Danae Fletcher felt the pop as soon as she landed.
The OU gymnast was working her way back from a torn ACL when she was working on her uneven bars routine Oct. 7 at the Sooners’ gymnastics facility.
The routine felt good until the dismount.
“When I landed, I knew immediately that I had re-injured my knee,” Fletcher said.
Before it even began, Fletcher’s expected senior season was over.
But that hasn’t been the end for Fletcher.
Instead of sulking off into the shadows, Fletcher has been front-and-center for the top-ranked Sooners this season.
Not in the events, of course, but Fletcher has been a strong voice in the practice gym and has been among the biggest supporters during meets.
When Faith Torrez wrapped up her 9.900 floor routine against Arkansas on Jan. 31, Fletcher was the first one to greet her teammate in celebration.
“If you’re injured like that, you can make a choice,” Sooners coach K.J. Kindler said. “You make a decision — I’m going to be a part of it or I’m not. She has made the choice to be a part of it and she has made personal goals for herself to be impactful in those moments.
"If she hadn’t, you would not notice her. You notice her, because she is making it her objective to be impactful. What a great example for those who will face adversity, and they will.”
More: How OU gymnastics stars Jordan Bowers, Audrey Davis built lifelong bond through sport
Fletcher figures to be right in the center of things Saturday night when the Sooners open their postseason at the SEC Championships in Birmingham, Alabama.
“She is so passionate about this sport, so passionate about all of us,” teammate Jordan Bowers said. “She is our biggest cheerleader out there. You can always hear Danae. You can always count on her to run up to you and give you the first high five, give you the first hug and be screaming for you.
“She is such an amazing teammate and such an amazing person inside and out as well.”
It wasn’t necessarily easy for Fletcher to get herself to a spot mentally where she could encourage her teammates and remain involved day to day.
Especially after suffering her initial injury the previous January after competing on bars and floor in the season opener.
“I had some time to process what happened with it happening in October vs. January last year,” Fletcher said. “That kind of helped me wrap my head around what was happening and my role on this year’s team. It was definitely a rough, rough first few months.”
In the immediate aftermath of Fletcher’s injury, Kindler was cautious with how she approached conversations with Fletcher.
“I was very careful at first because there’s a lot going on in an athlete’s mind when something like that happens and talking about the future is not one of the things that might be the best thing to talk about,” Kindler said.
“So I really stayed back for a period of time after the injury, with an exception of obviously consoling her and trying to find what the bright side of this might be. I think it’s a really difficult thing to go through your senior year.”
Whatever it was, though, those conversations helped lift Fletcher out of what felt like a deep hole.
Torrez was one of the keys to getting Fletcher’s mind right after the injury, both in lifting Fletcher’s spirits and for the physical help she was able to offer.
“She was really a rock for me during those first few months and literally drove me to the gym like every single day after my mom left (after the surgery) until I was able to drive,” Fletcher said.
More: Meet Addison Fatta, the farm girl bringing a unique background to OU women's gymnastics
Fletcher was down not only one leg but two, as the surgery used a graft taken from her right knee.
Fletcher and Audrey Davis connected quickly during their time in Norman, bonding over their shared experience of losing their fathers at a young age.
“I think we connected on a deeper level,” Davis said. “We had something in common and I think that grew throughout the years. This year isn’t exactly what she wanted and it hasn’t been exactly what she wanted but she’s always in the frontline, she’s always screaming for you. She’s going to be your biggest supporter no matter what. She cares and she wants to learn about you.”
Another of the bright spots that has emerged from the injury is that Fletcher will be able to wrap up her master’s degree at OU.
Fletcher is pursuing her master’s in criminal justice and plans to attend law school after wrapping up her gymnastics career.
For now, she’s focused on making her mark emotionally on this year’s team, coming back from her latest injury and competing for the Sooners for another season.
“I’m kind of looking at it that way because once you start looking at anything in a bad way, that can overtake you and take you away from what the goal is,” Fletcher said, ‘which is obviously to win a national championship.”
More: OU women's gymnastics getting more exposure than ever with SEC move
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU women's gymnastics: Danae Fletcher lifts Sooners where she can
Continue reading...
The OU gymnast was working her way back from a torn ACL when she was working on her uneven bars routine Oct. 7 at the Sooners’ gymnastics facility.
The routine felt good until the dismount.
“When I landed, I knew immediately that I had re-injured my knee,” Fletcher said.
Before it even began, Fletcher’s expected senior season was over.
But that hasn’t been the end for Fletcher.
Instead of sulking off into the shadows, Fletcher has been front-and-center for the top-ranked Sooners this season.
Not in the events, of course, but Fletcher has been a strong voice in the practice gym and has been among the biggest supporters during meets.
When Faith Torrez wrapped up her 9.900 floor routine against Arkansas on Jan. 31, Fletcher was the first one to greet her teammate in celebration.
“If you’re injured like that, you can make a choice,” Sooners coach K.J. Kindler said. “You make a decision — I’m going to be a part of it or I’m not. She has made the choice to be a part of it and she has made personal goals for herself to be impactful in those moments.
"If she hadn’t, you would not notice her. You notice her, because she is making it her objective to be impactful. What a great example for those who will face adversity, and they will.”
More: How OU gymnastics stars Jordan Bowers, Audrey Davis built lifelong bond through sport
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Fletcher figures to be right in the center of things Saturday night when the Sooners open their postseason at the SEC Championships in Birmingham, Alabama.
“She is so passionate about this sport, so passionate about all of us,” teammate Jordan Bowers said. “She is our biggest cheerleader out there. You can always hear Danae. You can always count on her to run up to you and give you the first high five, give you the first hug and be screaming for you.
“She is such an amazing teammate and such an amazing person inside and out as well.”
It wasn’t necessarily easy for Fletcher to get herself to a spot mentally where she could encourage her teammates and remain involved day to day.
Especially after suffering her initial injury the previous January after competing on bars and floor in the season opener.
“I had some time to process what happened with it happening in October vs. January last year,” Fletcher said. “That kind of helped me wrap my head around what was happening and my role on this year’s team. It was definitely a rough, rough first few months.”
In the immediate aftermath of Fletcher’s injury, Kindler was cautious with how she approached conversations with Fletcher.
“I was very careful at first because there’s a lot going on in an athlete’s mind when something like that happens and talking about the future is not one of the things that might be the best thing to talk about,” Kindler said.
“So I really stayed back for a period of time after the injury, with an exception of obviously consoling her and trying to find what the bright side of this might be. I think it’s a really difficult thing to go through your senior year.”
Whatever it was, though, those conversations helped lift Fletcher out of what felt like a deep hole.
Torrez was one of the keys to getting Fletcher’s mind right after the injury, both in lifting Fletcher’s spirits and for the physical help she was able to offer.
“She was really a rock for me during those first few months and literally drove me to the gym like every single day after my mom left (after the surgery) until I was able to drive,” Fletcher said.
More: Meet Addison Fatta, the farm girl bringing a unique background to OU women's gymnastics
You must be registered for see images attach
Fletcher was down not only one leg but two, as the surgery used a graft taken from her right knee.
Fletcher and Audrey Davis connected quickly during their time in Norman, bonding over their shared experience of losing their fathers at a young age.
“I think we connected on a deeper level,” Davis said. “We had something in common and I think that grew throughout the years. This year isn’t exactly what she wanted and it hasn’t been exactly what she wanted but she’s always in the frontline, she’s always screaming for you. She’s going to be your biggest supporter no matter what. She cares and she wants to learn about you.”
Another of the bright spots that has emerged from the injury is that Fletcher will be able to wrap up her master’s degree at OU.
Fletcher is pursuing her master’s in criminal justice and plans to attend law school after wrapping up her gymnastics career.
For now, she’s focused on making her mark emotionally on this year’s team, coming back from her latest injury and competing for the Sooners for another season.
“I’m kind of looking at it that way because once you start looking at anything in a bad way, that can overtake you and take you away from what the goal is,” Fletcher said, ‘which is obviously to win a national championship.”
More: OU women's gymnastics getting more exposure than ever with SEC move
SEC women's gymnastics championships
- When: 2 p.m. Saturday for Session I; 7 p.m. Saturday for Session II (featuring OU)
- Where: Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Ala.
- TV: SEC Network
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU women's gymnastics: Danae Fletcher lifts Sooners where she can
Continue reading...
