By Tucker Paquette
@tpaquette17
It is not often that a first-year collegiate athlete finds instant and significant success. Oftentimes, there is an acclimation period, where an athlete needs to find a rhythm before performing to their full capabilities.
First-year men’s gymnast Peyton Cramer is an exception to that rule.
During Cramer’s first meet with the Pride – the West Point Open on Jan. 13 – he won gold in the pommel horse event. He is the only gymnast since 2013 and the second in Springfield program history to place first in an individual event at this competition.
Considering this was Cramer’s debut, it was only natural for him to not know what to expect. But the extensive amounts of practice under his belt left Cramer feeling hopeful, regardless of his lack of experience at the college level.
“I was nervous, but we’ve definitely been putting in the work in the gym,” Cramer said. “The big thing was confidence, and I tried to approach it [in] the most confident way I could.”
Cramer feels his gold medal gives him something to show for an extended period’s worth of preparation, while also providing him with a boost moving forward.
“It felt good to be working all summer, and this is the culmination of a bunch of hard work,” Cramer said. “To start off really strong and give a good confidence for the rest of the season makes me ready to compete.”
Cramer, who has been competing in gymnastics since he was about 5 years old, credits his ability to establish a repeatable routine as a reason why he was primed for a historic opening meet with the Pride.
“I’ve gotten a lot better at [knowing how to] get set in a routine and being able to lock in my mind and lose all of the distractions,” Cramer said. “It was my first college meet, so obviously you’re going to have a lot of nerves. I just fell into that same [routine] of calming myself down, locking in and keeping it focused.”
Also helping Cramer gain his footing at Springfield College is the fact that there are key commonalities between his high school gymnastics program and what he has encountered in college so far.
“It’s a lot similar, we do a lot of the same things training-wise,” Cramer said. “[The commitment involves] less hours than [it] did in high school, [but] that’s not a huge difference. It’s just what you do in those hours.”
“Competitions are a little different, but it’s nothing I haven’t [gotten] used to,” Cramer added.
As the season progresses, Cramer is focused on team success. In particular, he has his eyes on the chance to compete in front of Springfield fans.
“I’m looking forward to having our ECAC Conference Championships here in Blake [Arena],” Cramer said. “That’s going to be a really cool thing that usually only happens once every four or five years. I’m excited to have [that] here at home, and have a lot of people from Springfield there. Hopefully, as a team, we get first place there. We’ve been working really hard for it, and that’s the end goal, getting that cup.”
Photo courtesy of Springfield College Athletics