Colquitt County High head gymnastics coach Patti Merritt took an around-the-way trip into education. The Valdosta State University graduate originally went to work for the Department of Family and Children’s Services before becoming a middle school social studies teacher. It didn’t take long for the former gymnast and collegiate cheerleader to find a spot on the Colquitt County High coaching staff. And she’s been there ever since.
Merritt grew up in St. Petersburg, Florida, where she participated in gymnastics until ninth grade. With no schools in Florida fielding gymnastics teams, Merritt had a decision to make – continue with gymnastics at the club level or turn her full attention to cheerleading. She chose cheerleading and would eventually cheer for two years at VSU. “They didn’t have scholarships for cheerleaders but they did buy our books for us if we made the team. That was a pretty big deal for us back then,” she recalls.
After graduating, she worked with the state for a few years before changing careers completely. Merritt became a teacher in 2005 and soon found a spot coaching cheerleading and serving as an assistant with the gymnastics team. After two years of working as an assistant, she was named head gymnastics coach.
Coaching gymnastics in South Georgia isn’t easy. Few schools in the area have teams; besides Colquitt, only Bainbridge, Tift, Thomas County Central, and Lowndes have teams. Overall, about 40 schools throughout the state have gymnastics teams. As such, the region alignments as they exist for other sports are different. All the South Georgia schools compete against each other. Occasionally, South Georgia schools travel outside of the region to compete against schools in the metro area. At the end of the season, teams compete for the Area championship. The top six teams move on to state while the top 12 individuals in each event and the all-around advance to state.
This season, Colquitt did well. Two individual gymnasts went to state. The Packers narrowly missed earning a berth in the state meet as a team – they finished seventh by a mere .3 of a point. “Every year that I’ve been here but one we’ve had girls qualify for state,” says Merritt.
One of the biggest successes of Merritt’s career is starting a gymnastics program at the middle school level. The high school team needs a feeder program, and the best way to develop good high school gymnasts is through a middle school team. Merritt’s daughter, Meghan, now a senior, was one of the first middle school gymnasts to come through the program. “I’d like to see more schools jump on board,” says Merritt. “This is a very competitive sport and we need more girls and teams competing.”
Coaching gymnastics isn’t easy. It’s a very demanding and difficult sport. The mental side of gymnastics is more grueling than the physical side, and as such, many of the gymnasts spend much of their time under a great deal of stress. “I try to be very positive with the girls. That’s my main thing – be positive. A lot of our girls, especially those who compete at the YMCA, are very stressed. So I try to be positive and encouraging. You have to let them know they can do it and build up their confidence,” she says.
At Colquitt County High, Patti Merritt has had the opportunity to coach her daughter, Meghan. A Level 9 gymnast, Meghan has flourished under her mother’s tutelage. “I coached her until Level 7 at the Y. Those years were tough for us. When she came back to me, it was nice. We both enjoyed it and it was a unique experience. She was a great leader for our team and coaching her was easy,” says Merritt.
Coach’s Corner/South Georgia/June 2014
Patti Merritt
Colquitt County High School
Moultrie, Georgia
Robert Preston Jr.
Colquitt gymnastics coach uses encouragement, positive reinforcement to develop state-caliber gymnasts
