Team unity.

That's one of the most important lessons sophomore gymnast Allison Barber has learned at Penn State.

"She's much more team-oriented this year than she was last year," Coach Judi Avener said. "She's becoming a real team leader."

But it took Barber a while to adjust to the unity of the women's gymnastics team.

Before she came to Penn State, Barber had only trained in gymnastics clubs, which stress individual acheivement rather than team achievement.

Barber grew up in St. Louis, Mo., where she took up gymnastics when she was 10. Before gymnastics, she tried swimming for two years.

"My whole family was in swimming, but I didn't like it," Barber said. "My mom would always say that we'd go to swim meets and I'd be up and down the hall turning flips."

Barber trained at the St. Louis Spirits until she was a sophomore in high school. The following two years she trained at the All-American Gymnastics Club.

At the All-American, Barber practiced year-round, 25 hours a week, getting only two weeks off for vacation. The competitive season lasted from November to June. The season is shorter at Penn State because it revolves around the college semester.

"It's taken me a while to get used to the long preseason, but it's nice to have summers off," Barber said.

She said that sometimes the practices are too long and hard.

"It's difficult to get excited for practice from day to day," she said, "especially since we're up in the morning doing stuff for gymnastics."

Upholding her own responsibilities is another lesson Barber has learned from gymnastics.

"I can't worry about carrying anyone else," Barber said. "I feel that I need to take on an individual responsibility."

Barber said that each gymnast has to carry her own weight and that that leads to team strength and consistency.

That philosophy has worked for Barber so far. She holds Penn State's all-around competition record at 38.55, which she scored her freshman year. Barber is ranked No. 3 in the all-around in the Northeast region with an average score of 37.35.

"She is very talented physically," Avener said. "That's what drew our attention to her to begin with."

Barber said the balance beam is her favorite event. Her highest beam score is a 9.725.

"It's not a scary event. I like being able to do hard skills under pressure," she said. "It's really neat to be up in front of everyone like that."

In contrast to the beam, Barber thinks the uneven bars is the scariest event. Her top score on the bars is a 9.55.

"The vault is my most consistent event," Barber said. Her highest score on the vault is a 9.825. She is ranked No. 1 in the Northeast region with a 9.71 average and No. 10 nationally.

Recently Barber scored a 9.75 on the floor exercise, boosting her confidence in her potential. Her previous high was a 9.55. She is tied for third place in the region with a 9.47 average.

"She's a national contender on three events," Avener said. "She has an outstanding vault, she's great on the beam, excellent on the floor; the bars hold her back."

"She's got so much left to give," Avener added. "She could be one of Penn State's best ever."

Even though Barber has had such a remarkable career, she often lacks consistency.

"I feel like I'm almost repeating last season," she said. "I got off to a slow start last season, too."

In a home meet against Oklahoma and Indiana (Pa.), Barber scored a 9.75 on the vault, Penn State's first event. However, she only scored an 8.5 on the bars.

"I was excited after my vault," Barber said. "When I got to the bars, I wasn't going to let anything stop me. But I tried too hard and overthrew my release move. I pulled in too close to the bar, hit my heel and missed the other bar with my hands."

She said that in practice she usually misses both her hands and feet and falls off the bars.

Barber then broke on the beam and only scored a 9.2, finishing with a 9.55 on the floor and a 37.0 in the all-around.

"Another lesson I've learned is to not give up when things are going wrong or when I'm not feeling right," Barber said. "Sometimes it turns out for the better."