“It was an awesome feeling to have all of the other women sports teams at our meet to support us,” senior Ashley Hofelich said. “We would do the same for them and it is nice to know that younger girls can look up to us and see the places they can go.”

The team spent the week leading up to the meet honoring different members of their team on various social media platforms. They even attended the women's basketball game against Maryland on Thursday night to cheer them on.

“The girls were recognized at half time and able to sign autographs and stuff like that,” Michigan State Head Coach Mike Rowe said. “This was the first year we've ever done this for National Girls and Women in Sports Day. We worked to build awareness and get each of the student athlete's opinions on what this day meant to them and putting that out there to educate others.”

MSU gymnastics plans to continue this celebration in years to come with the same intention in place.

Following the conclusion of the meet the women participated in a meet and greet where fans were able to get autographs and photos taken with team members.

The women expressed their gratitude not solely for being a female athlete, but for being a female athlete on this specific team. There is constant support and love present for one another.

“Seeing your teammates on the sideline cheering you on and giving words of encouragement is the best feeling because you realize, 'I'm not just doing this for myself, I'm doing this for them too,'” fifth year Lea Mitchell said. “My favorite part about being a part of this team is definitely the family aspect. These girls are my sisters and I couldn't imagine life without them. It's much bigger than just gymnastics for me.”

Although the national celebration has passed, every day is National Women and Girls in Sports Day for this team. They will continue to celebrate their success as they head into their busy two meet weekend against both Central Michigan and Illinois where they'll look to improve on the little things.

“We came in with a more confident mindset this week,” Mitchell said. “We need to go out into the arena knowing that we are just as good as whoever we are going up against, if not better. We focused on small details and believing in ourselves.”

All of the goals this team set in the offseason are still in front of them, and this meet should have them ready to pounce on those.

“The season has been amazing so far,” Hofelich said. “This team is full of fire, energy and excitement and we are definitely going places. Everyone is committed to the same amount of success and we want to thrive equally. We're ready to see where the rest of the season takes us.”