Turning Blue
BUTLER TWP— A Butler connection is forming in Michigan.
Knoch senior Natalie Beilstein, in her final season as a member of Steve Heasley's Butler Gymnastics Club, is headed to the University of Michigan on a gymnastics scholarship.
Butler native Beverly Plocki coaches the Wolverines
"Those are probably the two best female gymnasts to ever come out of Butler,"Heasley said. "This is a pretty cool thing."
Beilstein is the first gymnast from the Butler area to join Plocki's program. Plocki is entering her 19th season at Michigan.
Beilstein considered North Carolina, Ohio State and Alabama before deciding on Michigan.
"Once I made my visit there, it was all over,"Beilstein said. "Ireally like the coach and the gymnasts there made me feel like I was on the team already."
Despite a twisted ankle, Beilstein placed sixth in all-around, third in floor exercise and second in vault at the Level 10 Junior Olympic Nationals earlier this year.
She is a two-time National Junior Olympic floor champion, winning those titles in 2006 and 2007.
"She might have fared well nationally as a freshman, too, but she broke her ankle that year,"Heasley said. "Hands down, she's the most accomplished Level 10 athlete I've coached, and we've had some talented gymnasts come through here.
"She has incredible natural talent, is physically strong and has the right body type for the sport. She always knows exactly where she is when she's in the air and she's very, very powerful."
Beilstein has been coming to the Butler Gymnastics Club since age 2.
"She's going to one of the best programs in the country and she should shine there,"Heasley said.
Under Plocki, Michigan is one of four women's gymnastics programs to qualify for the NCAAChampionships in each of the past 16 years. Plocki is a nine-time Big Ten Coach of the Year and was NCAACoach of the Year in 1994.
During her career at Michigan, she has coached 128 NCAAAll-Americans and six gymnasts to individual national titles.
"I really haven't thought about my long-range goals there,"Beilstein admitted. "I want to compete and that's going to be a challenge right there. You have to be among the top six girls on the team to compete in an event."
There are 12 gymnasts on the Wolverines' roster this year: three seniors, five juniors and four sophomores. They come from eight states and none are from Pennsylvania.
Michigan finished 24-1 last year and won its sixth Big Ten title. Plocki is 362-97-1 with the Wolverines, 178-29 in the Big Ten.
In Michigan's seven years before Plocki's arrival, the team was 27-60 overall, 5-39 in conference meets.
"It's just a great program,"Beilstein said. "I had talked to Coach Plocki a few times before I found out she was from Butler. We talk a lot.
"I want to keep developing, become an all-around gymnast at the college level and help win the Big Ten championship."
