A dual-meet victory over Yale. A personal best all-around score of 39.275. A first-place score of 9.900 on the uneven bars balance beam. A third-place score of 9.725 on vault. Three all-around wins in four meets. Three wins in bars and beam for the season.
These impressive accomplishments belong to University of New Hampshire (UNH) senior Danielle Mulligan, who was named Gymnast of the Week by the East Atlantic Gymnastics League. The Farmingdale resident has been involved in gymnastics since she was just 3 years old.
Growing up, Mulligan was heavily involved in athletics, but there was something about gymnastics that prevailed over other sports she had tried.
“As a little kid, my parents put me into a bunch of different sports and I would always be doing cartwheels on the soccer field,” Mulligan said.
It was the freedom, adrenaline and opportunity to always learn new things that led to gymnastics quickly becoming Mulligan’s passion, and she landed a spot on the UNH Division I team. But the sport has never been without its challenges. In October 2014, Mulligan underwent a full knee reconstruction after suffering an injury on the vault.
“It took hearing from my club coach at home,” explained Mulligan, who had sworn off of vault since her accident, of how she finally got back to performing vault. He reminded the athlete that her one fluke mistake couldn’t keep her from doing something she had excelled at so many times before, so she started from square one to regain the power and confidence she once had. “I’ve proven a lot to myself.”
When she’s not flipping across the competition floor or showing off her moves on the uneven bars—one of her favorite routines—Mulligan can be found working toward her degree in biomedical science. But she balances it all well and earned her spot on the Fall 2018 Dean’s List.
“It’s just a lot of time management,” said Mulligan. “Lots of maturity, commitment an sacrifice. You have to be able to buckle down and just do it.”
With graduation close on the horizon, Mulligan said that while her gymnastics era will be coming to a close, she would gladly take a job in coaching or judging should the opportunity arise. Until then, she is studying for the MCAT Exam.
“I would love to be an orthopedic surgeon,” Mulligan mused. “It’s been my dream for a while. It stemmed from doctors who have helped me; I wouldn’t be able to continue with gymnastics if it weren’t for them. I want to be that person who can get other people back to where want to be.”
