Top gymnasts

In the gymnastics world, the word "amplitude" is used when a gymnast performs a skill bigger or better than other gymnasts.

So we shall borrow from the gymnast glossary to describe the Southeast Missouri State University gymnastics team. The Redhawk women displayed impressive amplitude when it was announced last week that the team had the top grade-point average in the nation. A perfect 10, if you will.

Actually, it was more like a 3.741, beating second-place Southern Utah by 0.008 point.

"We joke that we're pretty much all nerds," junior Maureen Grimaldi said last week. "We're nerds, and we like to do homework."

If anyone should know about hard work, it's gymnasts, who are some of the most dedicated and perfection-driven athletes in the world of sport.

We thank the gymnasts, nerds or otherwise, for taking that competitive spirit to the classroom and representing their school, and our community, in such a positive way.