After spending the last two years at Cal State-Fullerton, junior Maddie Steinauer decided to return to her native state and try to walk on to the Nebraska women’s gymnastics team.
The Omaha native had two different reasons for heading west to begin her career.
“I just wanted to get out of Nebraska,” Steinauer said. “I have always wanted to live in California, so I thought I’d try it. But it wasn’t for me.”
She also had two reasons for coming back.
“I missed my family a lot, and I missed the state of Nebraska.”
After getting a release from Fullerton, Steinauer began working over the summer to become a part of the Nebraska squad.
“She just showed us a lot during the summer,” coach Dan Kendig said. “She worked hard: We felt like she earned (a scholarship), and we were happy to give it to her.”
Performing gymnastics since she was 3, Steinauer said she loves the challenge the sport presents. This has shown up in how she’s embraced the task of making the Cornhusker team.
Assistant coach Tim Garrison said Steinauer worked like a scholarship athlete over the summer months, even though there was nothing guaranteed to her. In the end, all three Husker coaches had no reservations about giving the scholarship to Steinauer, Garrison said.
Well liked from the moment she started with the Huskers, Steinauer has been a pleasant addition to the team, Kendig said.
The biology major spends most of her free time studying, according to her roommate teammates Kylie Stone and Lora Evenstad, and her coach said Steinauer has developed into a silent leader for the team.
She currently leads off the team’s rotation on vault and performs in the floor and beam.
“She brings a lot to our team as a gymnast, but she brings equal amount to our team as far as a person,” Kendig said. “It is hard not to like somebody who comes in and works hard and does what they are supposed to do.”
Steinauer not only has a cheering squad in the stands, but also in her teammates who will sometimes get together to chant, “What time is it? Stein hour.” She just rolls her eyes and takes it in stride, Garrison said.
The No. 10 Huskers will travel away from the Devaney Sports Center tomorrow for the first time in almost a month when they take on the No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Woman’s University in Norman, Okla. The Huskers hope Steinauer will continue to shine when it is her time.
“She was a real find,” Garrison said. “And she found us.”
brendancarl@dailynebraskan.com
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