Nya Reed and the Gators are vying for No. 1 at the NCAA Championships this week. (Photo: Erin Long/UAA Communications)
Sass and Style a Perfect Combo for Nya Reed
Wednesday, April 13, 2022 | Gymnastics, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — On a typical Friday night during the gymnastics season, they gather at an aunt's house on her mother's side of the family. They boil crabs, fry fish, and cut loose at the end of the workweek in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.
They meet up to watch the show. Nya Reed is always the star attraction. Always.
When the Gators held Senior Night last month, Reed said more than 35 members of her extended family made the trip south and rented a house for the weekend.
"They had a blast,'' Reed said. "I have a big support system."
Reed did her part. She posted her 20th consecutive score of 9.925 or higher on her floor routine (9.950) to help the Gators beat No. 1 Oklahoma. On a team loaded with All-Americans, former Olympians and U.S. National Team members, the 22-year-old Reed arrived less touted than some of her teammates.
That hasn't stopped Reed from matching them on the competition floor. But she admits that it didn't happen overnight.
"I came in, and I was trying to find myself and figure out what I wanted to be on the gymnastics floor and the classroom,'' Reed said. "I was nervous coming in because my class is intimidating to come in with. They are amazing. I was really scared coming in, not knowing if I was good enough."
Senior Nya Reed is a fan favorite during her floor routine. (Photo: Susan Erdelyi/UAA Communications)
Reed was a Junior Olympic standout in the Mid-Atlantic Region growing up. She remembers seeing teammate Trinity Thomas, who grew up in Pennsylvania, at one of those regional meets before Thomas advanced to elite gymnastics. She recalls everyone stopping to watch former Gators All-American Alex McMurtry, a Virginia native, perform her vault performance at another regional event. However, unlike McMurtry and Thomas, Reed wasn't among elite or Junior Olympic champions during her formative training years in Landover, Md.
Reed's mother, Katrina Smith, put her daughter in track, ballet, karate, dance and gymnastics. The gymnastics stuck, but it wasn't until her junior coach, well-respected former Ukrainian standout Tatiana Perskaia, encouraged her to pursue a college scholarship in the sport did Reed truly take off.
When opportunities began to surface, Reed planned to stay near her parents, aunts, uncles and cousins.
"Family means the world to me,'' she said.
However, when Gators coach Jenny Rowland visited to watch her practice, Reed began to imagine other possibilities. Then assistant coach Adrian Burde showed up to watch her at the Junior Olympic National Championships.
Still, Reed told her mom she thought about committing to a school close to home. Her mom told her to wait and see what happened. You can figure out the rest. Reed signed with the Gators and is one of the team's shining stars entering the NCAA Championships this week in Fort Worth, Texas.
"Super talented young lady, and I just still don't think she understands how talented she is,'' Rowland said. "She is a fierce competitor. We as a coaching staff could see that in competitions, could see that in training. Knew she would just continue to elevate her game. That was an immediate thought and reaction, why the Gators chose to go after Nya."
If you have watched Reed perform her sassy floor routine, it's difficult to imagine that Reed sort of hid in a shell as a freshman.
"I was selling myself short,'' she said. "I always have had, I would say, an attitude, a confidence, when I do my gymnastics. But I think when I came to college, it kind of stopped."
Reed said she was trying to fit in and find her place on the team. The coaches wanted her to let loose like her family does when they gather back home to watch Friday Night Heights on the SEC Network.
Assistant coach Jeremy Miranda, who oversees the team's choreography, always knew Reed had everything it took to become a fan favorite. She has blossomed this season, twice earning perfect 10s for her floor routine and garnering All-American honors in the event.
"It was something inside of her that just took a little grooming for it to come out,'' Miranda said. "I think she just needed permission. Once she realized that she had permission to go there, and just really go for it and sell it the way I think she wanted to inside, but never before really got the green light to do it, she just exploded.
"She's just got a lot of sass about her, a swagger. Even the way she walks out onto the floor, you know you're in for a treat."
Community service is important to Reed, standing on the right.
It's challenging to take over the spotlight when you're on the same team and star in the same event as Thomas. But Reed has been able to find her place and play a leading role. But don't expect Reed to forget where she came from.
Growing up, Katrina got Nya involved in an array of activities, but she also introduced her to community service and helping others. Reed has carried on that tradition during her time at UF and recently organized a donation drive among Gators student-athletes to give hats, gloves, jackets and other clothing to the homeless community during the winter months.
"It gets cold here,'' Reed said. "Hopefully, it becomes a tradition."
Traditions are important to Reed. When she first joined the Gators, she noticed the wall featuring UF gymnasts who scored perfect 10s on events during their careers. Reed told Rowland she wanted to be on that wall someday.
That day arrived in January on national television against Alabama. The Gators hope to be on national network television again by advancing to the national finals on Saturday.
Whatever happens, don't overlook Reed. She isn't selling herself short anymore. She is ready to put on another show.
