Name: Katya Sander
Club: Perfection Gymnastics School
High School Graduation Year: 2021
NCAA Team: Stanford
Commitment Announcement: Instagram
Social Handles: Twitter | Instagram (main) | Instagram (gymnastics)
Personal Bests
| Vault | Uneven Bars | Balance Beam | Floor Exercise |
| 9.525 | 9.800 | 9.575 | 9.500 |
Videos
| Vault | Uneven Bars | Balance Beam | Floor Exercise |
| 2019 Region 5 Regionals | 2019 Region 5 Regionals | 2019 J.O. Nationals | 2019 Region 5 Regionals |
About Katya
Sander is a two-time J.O. nationals qualifier (2018 and 2019). She tied for third place on bars in 2018 (Junior D) and was fifth on beam in 2019 (Junior F). She is the 2018 Region 5 champion on beam and the 2019 Ohio state co-champion in the all around.
What She Brings to Stanford
Vault
- Skill: Yurchenko full
- Results: tied second place at the 2018 Ohio state meet
- Margin of Improvement: Sander performs a solid vault but pikes down slightly on the landing.
- Impact on the Team: Stanford will hope to add some 10.0 start-value vaults to its roster. Sander will not fulfil this goal, but her vault could be strong in the first half of the lineup.
Uneven Bars
- Skills: Maloney to Pak salto, double layout dismount
- Results: tied third place at the 2018 J.O. nationals (Junior D)
- Margin of Improvement: The main deduction comes on her double layout dismount, as she pikes down significantly. The rest of the routine is solid, though she may want to work on her handstands a tad more.
- Impact on the Team: This is Sander’s best apparatus, and she will be expected to contribute to the lineup from the start.
Balance Beam
- Skills: switch leap to switch leap, full turn, BHS + LOSO, beat jump + straddle jump ¾, front aerial + back tuck somersault, double twist dismount
- Results: first place at the 2019 Ohio state meet
- Margin of Improvement: She has a slight knee bend on her first acrobatic series, but her execution is otherwise strong.
- Impact on the Team: Sander is a very good beam worker. Head coach Tabitha Yim will hope to have her compete here from the beginning of her career.
Floor Exercise
- Skills: double pike, front layout to front twist, double tuck
- Results: tied fifth place at the 2018 Region 5 regionals
- Margin of Improvement: Sander’s routine is not the hardest, but she performs a respectable set. She just needs to become a bit more consistent with her landings.
- Impact on the Team: Yim will be happy to add Sander to a freshman class that already includes Brenna Neault, Anapaula Gutierrez and Jimena Gutierrez. It will be a competitive lineup.
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Article by Talitha Ilacqua
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