Marty Gordon
NRVsports@ourvalley.org
For as long as Raena Worley can remember, she has been involved in gymnastics, walking a beam or back flipping across a mat. This week, she took the next step in that dream when she signed a letter of intent to attend the University of Kentucky.
Raena Worley has been participating in gymnastics since she was four years old. Now, she is headed to the University of Kentucky to continue her career.
“I started gymnastics when I was four years old. One of the birthday presents from my parents was a gymnastics class and after that class, I was hooked,” she said.
Worley has trained at Virginia Techniques in Christiansburg since then, winning honor after honor.
This past year, she was a national Beam Silver Medalist and Floor Bronze Medalist, and was a part of the Junior Olympic national team that traveled to Peru.
Her awards are almost too many to even list, but they include: fourth place in the Virginia State Championships, state all-around champion, state vault/beam and floor champion, silver medalist in Virginia bar competition, regional all-around champion, regional beam and floor champion, regional silver medalist in bars, Junior National Silver Medalist in the beam and Region 7 All-Star Team.
Other outstanding marks include: first place in the Techniques Invitational in vault, bars, beam and floor; first place at the Gymstrada Invitational in vault, bars, beam and floor; first place at the Rock Star Invitational in All-Around, vault, bar, beam and floor; first place at the Manhattan Classic in vault, bars, beam and floor; first place at the Presidential Classic in All-Around, vault, beam and floor; first place in the Charleston Cup for All-Around, vault, bars and floor; and was a member of first place teams at the Gymstrada Invitational, Manhattan Classic and Charleston Cup.
On Thursday, she signed on the dotted line with Kentucky in front of family, friends and coaches to continue her career in college this fall.
Kentucky started communicating with her coaches shortly after her freshman year. Her ultimate goal is to go to NCAA nationals with Kentucky and set new records with the team.
The university is fresh off another successful season that saw its first national semifinal appearance in program history.
Kentucky gymnastics head coach Tim Garrison, who is in his eighth season at UK, and assistant coaches Chuck Dickerson and Rachel Garrison were named the 2018 National Association of College Gymnastics Coaches/Women (NACGC/W) National Coach and Assistant Coaches of the Year. The awards are voted on by Division I coaches across the country. Both awards are the program’s first.
The Wildcats finished the 2017 season ranked No. 12 in the nation after finishing with a score of 196.0625 at the NCAA Championships.
Worley is projected to participate in the all-around events at UK.
“I chose Kentucky, because it felt the most like home while not being so close. The campus was beautiful and the girls’ relationships with each other just felt perfect,” she said.
Her plans are to major in dentistry, then pursuing orthodontics.
“I would definitely like to go pre-medical and do something that helps people, and I hope to have the opportunity to travel more.”
