Flipping for Towson University

By Kyle Hobstetter on March 2, 2020

Towson University sophomore Emerson Hurst didn’t have the typical high school education experience — because she never really stepped foot in a class room.

The Jacksonville, Florida native took all her classes online, attending St. Johns Virtual School. And when she wasn’t focusing on her school, she was focusing on gymnastics.

As a high school gymnast, Hurst was a two-time Junior Olympics qualifier, and a former Florida state champion in both balance beam and floor routine.

In life, and in sports, life was balanced. When she was looking for a college, she found herself visiting Towson University and truly discovered a home. 

“During recruitment I visited a lot of schools,” Hurst says. “But when I came to Towson, it just felt right and I followed that feeling. I’m very glad I did, because as soon as I got to campus I felt like I was part of the team.”

Coming from over 700 miles away, feeling homesick wouldn’t be surprising. But according to Hurst she hasn’t had that much trouble adjusting. It helps that the communications studies major found a second family with her gymnastics’ teammates.   

“I love being with this team because it provided me with a built-in group of friends,” Hurst says. “And this group of friends I have on this team will be better than any friends I will ever have, because they just get what we go through. It’s awesome to have a group like that.”

Towson University gymnastics head coach Jay Ramirez is happy to hear about the importance the team has played on Hurst’s experience. He says in the competitive world of gymnastics, it’s better to succeed and struggle together as a team. 

“She is a huge part of this team, not just physically contributing on three events, but her spark that she has in her personality is always fun to watch,” Ramirez says. “Our team is a family, and so she has found her place in this big family. The chemistry is exactly what it is supposed to be.” 

And while she’s found a second family with her team, she does have a cousin in the area — Baltimore Ravens tight end Hayden Hurst.

In a weird twist of fate, Emerson committed to Towson University in 2018 during the same week Hayden was drafted in the first round by the Ravens. After initially being annoyed that he’ll be in the same city —“for like 10 minutes,” she laughed — she started to realize it might be pretty cool having her cousin around.

“I thought to myself that I’m going to look so cool on campus,” Emerson laughs. “It’s awesome having him here because his mom and dad stay up a lot of the year. If I was ever was just down or needed a family meal, or family time, they will be there for me.

“And it just helped being so far away from home to have a little bit of home up here with me.”

Family members introduced her to gymnastics. When she was four-years-old, she would spend time hanging off of, and jumping onto, virtually anything. She rolled and flipped through the house.

That’s when her mom told her if she was going to do all this activity, she is going to do it right. So Hurst’s mom sent her to gymnastics classes, and she fell in love with it.

It also allowed her to start her relationship with the balance beam — which many on the TU gymnastics team call her best event. 

“When you’re four, you just want to do cartwheels on the floor, run down and jump on the table or then in the foam pit,” Hurst says. “Then they make you get up on this four-inch surface and say walk across it, do kicks and you think that they're crazy.

“But now, it's like I just feel comfortable up there. I feel like I should be up there more than I should be on the floor.” 

Hurst has become so comfortable on the beam that, in her freshman season, she earned a spot in the NCAA Regionals. She finished in eighth place and was also named to the East Atlantic Gymnastics League First team for beam.

During the season, she didn’t really think about making it to regionals. But as the season was ending, she realized there was a shot. So, she ramped up her focus for the last meets of the season.

When the competitors were announced online, the team had a watch party. And while Hurst was excited she was chosen, it was even more thrilling for her that her teammate, Mary Elle Arduino ’20, would be joining her at regionals.

“It was the best feeling because I wasn’t going alone,” Hurst says. “I was going with somebody who had done this before, and we were going to compete in the same event. I honestly wouldn’t have asked for it to be any other way.”

Now in her sophomore season, she is expecting even better results. Hurst is one of the team’s all-around gymnasts and competes in the beam, vault, floor routine and uneven bars.

And with the team’s motto for this year being “Let the deed show,” her coach is expecting her to come in every day to practice with an attitude towards winning. 

“If the practice is there, the competitions will be there as well,” Ramirez says. “I would love for her and the team to rise in the rankings this year based on what they do in the practice gym. And of course, it would be great if she can make it to regionals again this year.”

Towson University Gymnastics

More Information 

Hurst and the Towson University gymnastics team will host two more meets at SECU Arena. On Friday, March 6, they will host Maryland and George Washington in the George McGinty Alumni Meet. Then on Sunday, March 15, the Tigers will host Southern Connecticut State in the Shelli Calloway Invitational.

For more information on Towson University gymnastics, visit TowsonTigers.com, or check out their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.