Lafayette Jeff gymnast tumbles through career-threatening injury

LAFAYETTE — The agony and pain became too much to bear for then sophomore gymnast Katie Graves.

Graves had just finished a floor routine during her team's first meet at Valparaiso High School two years ago. She did her best to keep a smile, and tumble with all the power her 5-foot-2 frame could muster.

She immediately asked for ice to numb the pain after the routine was over. She continued to compete for the rest of the meet but the pressure and pain in her back still lingered.

A couple of weeks later she was walking with her mom Angie and the same shooting pains came back. This time much worse. To the point Graves couldn't walk.

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Graves was taken to the hospital and discovered she had two stress fractures and was told not to compete for the rest of the year.

Now Graves is back competing and qualified for the IHSAA Regional Championships on floor, the routine that nearly ended her high school career. She missed all of her junior year and became the Bronchos' team manager.

But the competitive drive in Graves wouldn't allow her to stand on the sidelines for much longer.

"I have a lot of drive and this is my senior year," Graves said. "This might be the last time I'll ever do gymnastics and I wasn't going to do it again at first."

Graves seemed resigned at first to be a manager and help her teammates improve their skills. But she missed the adrenaline of performing.

Lafayette Jeff coach Cindy Gregg witnessed Graves' dedication to the program after watching her get injured.

"Love runs deep and that's what it says," Gregg said. "She was here every practice moving mats, playing music and pushing the girls to be the best they can be."

More importantly, Graves had to convince Angie that she could compete without hurting herself worse.

"She said as long as I took it easy and watched myself that I'd be allowed to do it," Graves said. "It's definitely a big concern though because two stress fractures is quite a lot."

She became hungry to compete and started practicing on beam and uneven bars, the two events that would put the least amount of pressure on her back.

But the floor routine is where Graves felt at her most powerful. Her music comes on and the star from within comes out. Graves is smiling, engaging with the crowd and feeling that power within her torso, legs and feet to twist and tumble in midair.

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Graves began competing on floor during the Lafayette Jeff Invite on Feb. 3, nearly halfway through the season. She broke past the limitations from her previous injury, one she still has to manage through constant rest.

"I feel a lot of energy and that's the reason why I feel I can keep my routine going," Graves said. "I just have so much fun being on floor, competing my best, putting on my best performance and I have a lot of adrenaline."

Gregg gets to watch and take pleasure in Graves' both in her comeback and performances.

"She has the heart and desire to be better," Gregg said. "When she came back on bars and beam, she wasn't satisfied with that. She wanted to do floor for senior night. Low and behold she's made regionals."

The junior who was forced to watch from the sidelines is now the girl who found the courage to return to the mat as a senior.

"If I talked to myself last year we didn't think we'd be here right now," Graves said. "We'd still be sitting on the sideline. I didn't think I'd be back out here competing."

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Graves returns to the high school this Saturday where she suffered her back injury two seasons ago. An opportunity to compete in the state championships at Ball State is within her grasp.

One final opportunity to feel free and fly in front of a crowd.

"I'm excited to go back up there," Graves said. "It's definitely going to be a thrill seeing how I perform and what my score will be. I think it'll be a good weekend. I'm excited."

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Lafayette Jeff gymnast returns from back injury to compete in regional