The state championships are around the corner, and MSHS’s figure skating team has been hard at work.
MARQUETTE -- Whenever Katharine Greene falls, she gets back up and tries again. That kind of determination is what earned Marquette Senior High School's figure skating team a shot at the high school state championships.
"Everybody has their own individual practice time and that varies how much we practice, but we practice as a team every other week, sometimes at six in the morning, which takes motivation," laughed Green, a junior at MSHS.
Practicing their jumps and spins at the crack of dawn isn't all the motivation the girls have. Coach Chris Gauthier is also there, pushing all sixteen skaters to their very best.
"The competition downstate will be very stiff. It'll be tough competition," said Gauthier, the team’s coach for the past nine years.
Gauthier, who has taken her team to the finals eight times, doesn't assume her skaters will glide away with the title.
"High school sports changes from year to year as the athletes change and go through their four years of school,” she explained. “Sometimes it's a surprise. You just never know."
Senior Kortney Boyle is more confident after a month of practicing since qualifying.
"We have more time to prepare, more time to get ready for everything," said Boyle.
The team hopes to outskate their competition at the state championships in Midland on Saturday, March 28, and Sunday, March 29.
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