June 27, 2017
East Texas Baptist University became the second college in Texas and the 20th college in the nation to offer competitive team acrobatics and tumbling to its athletic program for students.
Beginning its season during the 2018-19 school year, the ETBU Acrobatics and Tumbling Team will consist of 18 to 30 female students who excel in strength, flexibility, balance, and power.
ETBU Head Cheer Coach Farrah Dunaway will also serve as the head coach for the new sports team. To begin recruiting, she traveled to Baylor University on Wednesday to attend a local clinic for pre-teen and high school students interested in tumbling and acrobatics.
Baylor University is the only other Texas college that has a competitive acrobatics and tumbling team and the school's athletes would face off against ETBU's team during competitions.
With the addition of the new, competitive sport, more of the university's students will have an opportunity to participate in athletics and the school will become an attractive prospect for female student athletes who are unable to find a competitive acrobatics and tumbling program in their area.
"We will be able to pull more female athletes on campus," Dunaway said. "This will allow them to experience a Christian education while competing in collegiate sports."
The new team will have its first NCAA competition season competing against other Division 1 schools running from February to April 2019.
Acrobatics and tumbling is a discipline of USA Gymnastics and is the evolution of different forms of gymnastics. The sport involves tumbling, tosses, acrobatic lifts, and pyramids.
Acrobatics and tumbling features up to 28 competitors per team, typically competing against other schools in a head-to-head format. Teams are scored on their execution of skills in the following areas: compulsory, acrobatics, pyramid, toss, tumbling, and a team event. Positions in acrobatics and tumbling consist of a top base and back base.
Each meet consists of six events, with a total of 20 heats. Scores are based on pre-determined start values and evaluated on the execution of skills. In any given heat, one to 24 student-athletes may be competing as individuals or in groups.
The idea for the program came from ETBU Director of Athletics Ryan Erwin.
"The sport has been gaining a lot of popularity the past few years and we are always looking for ways to expand options for our students," Erwin said. "We will host tryouts throughout the fall and spring semesters this school year to prepare for competition in 2018-19."