Friendly Competition

It isn't as if sisters Buffy O'Brien and Rebecca Trahin have any shortage of discussion topics at the family dinner table. But what happened to the coaches for the Roncalli gymnastics team at the state meet this past March is sure to make those conversations all the more lively. O'Brien, 25, and Trahin, 22, come from a proud and successful gymnastics tradition. They are the daughters of Karen Trahin, who has coached Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger to five state championships ('93, '95, '03, '05, '06) in her 20-plus years as head coach. Their younger sister Brittany, 15, is a freshman on the Dwenger team. The youngest of the crew, Maria, 11, is in fifth grade and competes out of Summit Gymnastics, a private gym the family owns in Fort Wayne. Karen Trahin's sisters, Rose Nix and Janet Schipper, both help coach the Saints. Brother-in-law Don Schipper coaches at Summit, too. The family dynamics took another unique - and a little awkward - turn when Roncalli finished third at the state meet and one-tenth of a point in front of Dwenger. "At first it was announced there was a tie for fifth," O'Brien said. "We knew we had a great competition and just figured that was us." The fifth-place tie, however, was between Hagerstown and Columbus North. "We screamed," O'Brien said. "We knew that meant we were winning a medal. That was such an accomplishment in itself." And then, the unexpected occurred, a razor-close finish between the Rebels and the Saints. Valparaiso won its state-record sixth title and Porter County rival Chesterton placed runner-up. "When it was announced that Dwenger was fourth, it didn't sink in right away what that really meant," O'Brien said. "To finish third out of all these gymnastics dynasties was just incredible. It didn't hit us until the next day when we thought, 'What did we just do?'" After the meet, both Catholic school teams combined to celebrate Mass - a gathering Karen expects may become a post-state meet tradition, but not necessarily with the same results. "I did have mixed feelings. I was a tad surprised they beat us," Karen said. "They have a lot of nice talent on their team. I thought they would be serious competition, but not quite this soon." "To be perfectly honest, I thought we were a better team, but we had some problems on beam, and that is always the event which can even things out. Afterward, we went to Roncalli to celebrate Mass and to show that we weren't going to pout or be poor sports. When we beat them next year, we'll celebrate Mass with them again. It's good to have spirited competition and a healthy rivalry." O'Brien and Rebecca Trahin are in the enviable situation of returning their entire team for the 2009-10 season, further raising the stakes in the family competition. "Most of them were club gymnasts, and this was the first time they were competing for the high school at the state level," Rebecca said. "They handled it very well." O'Brien and Rebecca both know the stresses and strains of club gymnastics, having grown up in the gym with their mother. It created a complex coach-athlete relationship woven with the traditional mother-daughter relationship. "You always want to please your mom," O'Brien said. "You always want to make her proud, so being coached by her you also have that emotional connection. Being praised or criticized as a gymnast, I personally took it to heart every time, and I made it personal because she is my mom. I found it really hard to differentiate mom from coach." Rebecca had a similar experience, emphasizing her mother's high expectations and avoidance of favoring her daughters. "I don't think I could have imagined anybody else being my coach," she said. "Our mom is a tough coach. They call her Karen the Drill Sergeant, and it's true. I know I worked the hardest for her because she demanded 100 percent. She demanded the highest level out of all of her gymnasts." Karen said she finds it meaningful spending so much time working with her daughters in a world where most parents' professional lives are largely separated from their family lives. "To see them go into coaching, I hope it was positive for them (competing for her)," she said. "I don't think they soured on it too much. If they didn't like gymnastics, they wouldn't be coaching now." It has also changed her outlook toward coaching Brittany and Maria. "When I look at Buffy and Rebecca, it was really such a short time and already a few years ago. I'm trying to enjoy my time with the younger ones. I try to savor it more," Karen said. "I know I am fortunate and have to count my blessings." -