Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eagles Ink Three for 2017 Gymnastics Team
11/12/2015 3:20:00 PM | Gymnastics
Amanda Arnold, Hollie Minichiello, and Emili Dobronics will join the EMU Gymnastics Team for the 2017 Season
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) — Head Gymnastics Coach Jay Santos announced Thursday, Nov. 12, that Amanda Arnold (Okemos, Mich. - Okemos), Hollie Minichiello (Orlando, Fla. - East River), and Emili Dobronics (Orland Park, Ill. - Carl Sandburg) have signed their National Letters of Intent to further their gymnastics careers at Eastern Michigan University.
"We are extremely excited to announce the addition of Amanda, Hollie and Emili to our team," remarked Santos. "We feel this group has a great combination of power and grace, and they bring with them experience and success at the highest levels of Junior Olympic level competition. During the recruiting process they quickly fit in with our current team and culture and it was easy to see that each of them had a strong positive attitude and a drive to succeed that will help us continue to push the level of our program. I'm looking forward to great college careers for these future Eagles and can't wait to have them with us next year!"
Arnold, a local product from Okemos, Mich. has posted multiple top-finishes on beam, as well as highlights on bars and all-around. Recently, she took the top spot on beam at both the 2015 Michigan State Championships and the 2015 Region Five Championships, earning scores of 9.6 and 9.5, respectively. At the Region Five Championships in 2014, she placed second on bars with a 9.475, in addition to taking the beam title with a score of 9.575. To cap off the meet, she took home third in the all-around with a 37.8. Based on her performance at Regionals, she qualified to the 2014 Level 10 J.O. National Championships as well. "Amanda has an infectious smile and a positive outlook; she won us over right away with how upbeat she is every day," Santos said. "She is a tremendous bar and beam worker! She couples a high level of difficulty with outstanding lines and execution."
Minichiello, who has been competing level 10 since 2012, has had success at both level nine and 10. As a level 10 in 2015, she posted top-ten finishes on every event at the Florida State Championships, including a fifth-place finish on vault, seventh-place finish on beam, fourth-place finish on floor, and seventh in the all-around. On the national stage, she had four top-10 finishes at the 2014 J.O National Championships. Specifically, she took eighth on vault and in the all-around, as well as tenth on bars and beam. She also swept three events at the 2013 Florida State Championships, winning vault with a 9.7, bars with a 9.475, and the all-around with a 37.325. That same year at the Regional Championships, Minichiello notched a second-place finish on beam with a 9.5 and a fifth-place all-around finish, scoring 37.75. At the 2011 Region Six Championships, she placed either first or second on every event, taking second on bars, beam, and floor, while taking the top spot on vault and in the all-around as a level nine. "Hollie is very determined and passionate, and it was clear to us while recruiting her that she was driven for success," Santos said of the Orlando, Fla. native. "She has power on vault and floor, while still adding great swing on bars."
Rounding out the trio, Dobronics comes to EMU as a solid competitor from the very competitive state of Illinois. At the 2014 Illinois State Championships, she took sixth on vault with a 9.4, as well as sixth on floor with a 9.35. In 2013, she competed in the J.O. National Invitational Tournament as a level 10, earning sixth on bars, eighth on beam, and ninth in the all-around. As a level nine in 2012, she had four top-10 placings at the Illinois State Championships. Specifically, she took third on vault with a 9.425, sixth on bars with a 9.125, tenth on floor with a 9.175, and third in the all-around with a 36.575. That same year, she also placed second on vault, sixth on bars, fifth on floor, and sixth in the all-around at the Regional Championships. "Emili is a leader in her club and brings with her a strong work ethic that I'm sure will add to our culture here at Eastern," stated Santos. "She combines power on vault with strong difficulty on beam."
EMU will begin their 2016 season on the road with three consecutive away meets at Pittsburgh, Western Michigan, and Ball State. The Eagles' first home meet comes against Northern Illinois, Jan. 30, at 4 p.m. in the Convocation Center. Specifically, the bout with NIU is part of the 'Beauty and the Beast' event, which features the EMU Wrestling team also competing against NIU simultaneously with the gymnastics meet.
"We are extremely excited to announce the addition of Amanda, Hollie and Emili to our team," remarked Santos. "We feel this group has a great combination of power and grace, and they bring with them experience and success at the highest levels of Junior Olympic level competition. During the recruiting process they quickly fit in with our current team and culture and it was easy to see that each of them had a strong positive attitude and a drive to succeed that will help us continue to push the level of our program. I'm looking forward to great college careers for these future Eagles and can't wait to have them with us next year!"
Arnold, a local product from Okemos, Mich. has posted multiple top-finishes on beam, as well as highlights on bars and all-around. Recently, she took the top spot on beam at both the 2015 Michigan State Championships and the 2015 Region Five Championships, earning scores of 9.6 and 9.5, respectively. At the Region Five Championships in 2014, she placed second on bars with a 9.475, in addition to taking the beam title with a score of 9.575. To cap off the meet, she took home third in the all-around with a 37.8. Based on her performance at Regionals, she qualified to the 2014 Level 10 J.O. National Championships as well. "Amanda has an infectious smile and a positive outlook; she won us over right away with how upbeat she is every day," Santos said. "She is a tremendous bar and beam worker! She couples a high level of difficulty with outstanding lines and execution."
Minichiello, who has been competing level 10 since 2012, has had success at both level nine and 10. As a level 10 in 2015, she posted top-ten finishes on every event at the Florida State Championships, including a fifth-place finish on vault, seventh-place finish on beam, fourth-place finish on floor, and seventh in the all-around. On the national stage, she had four top-10 finishes at the 2014 J.O National Championships. Specifically, she took eighth on vault and in the all-around, as well as tenth on bars and beam. She also swept three events at the 2013 Florida State Championships, winning vault with a 9.7, bars with a 9.475, and the all-around with a 37.325. That same year at the Regional Championships, Minichiello notched a second-place finish on beam with a 9.5 and a fifth-place all-around finish, scoring 37.75. At the 2011 Region Six Championships, she placed either first or second on every event, taking second on bars, beam, and floor, while taking the top spot on vault and in the all-around as a level nine. "Hollie is very determined and passionate, and it was clear to us while recruiting her that she was driven for success," Santos said of the Orlando, Fla. native. "She has power on vault and floor, while still adding great swing on bars."
Rounding out the trio, Dobronics comes to EMU as a solid competitor from the very competitive state of Illinois. At the 2014 Illinois State Championships, she took sixth on vault with a 9.4, as well as sixth on floor with a 9.35. In 2013, she competed in the J.O. National Invitational Tournament as a level 10, earning sixth on bars, eighth on beam, and ninth in the all-around. As a level nine in 2012, she had four top-10 placings at the Illinois State Championships. Specifically, she took third on vault with a 9.425, sixth on bars with a 9.125, tenth on floor with a 9.175, and third in the all-around with a 36.575. That same year, she also placed second on vault, sixth on bars, fifth on floor, and sixth in the all-around at the Regional Championships. "Emili is a leader in her club and brings with her a strong work ethic that I'm sure will add to our culture here at Eastern," stated Santos. "She combines power on vault with strong difficulty on beam."
EMU will begin their 2016 season on the road with three consecutive away meets at Pittsburgh, Western Michigan, and Ball State. The Eagles' first home meet comes against Northern Illinois, Jan. 30, at 4 p.m. in the Convocation Center. Specifically, the bout with NIU is part of the 'Beauty and the Beast' event, which features the EMU Wrestling team also competing against NIU simultaneously with the gymnastics meet.
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