May 31, 2020, began like any other day for a 16-year-old gymnast, enjoying a peaceful afternoon sunbathing in her driveway. But how could she have known that this ordinary day would quickly turn into a life-altering moment? In the blink of an eye, she was struck by a vehicle driven by a relative. The impact was devastating, with fractures in her skull, shoulder blade, and clavicle, along with severe road rash from being partially run over.

Chaos erupted around her, and soon Raynham firefighters and paramedics arrived on the scene. Was it too late for them to help? Given the severity of her injuries, they called for a medical helicopter to rush her to Boston Children’s Hospital.

That gymnast was Lily Moreira. When she arrived at the hospital, her condition was critical. Lily’s mother, Helene, recalls that making those first decisions was critical in helping to save her life. But if they had not made a decision in the blink of an eye? Imagine if the medical team had not acted quickly enough. Although she was immobile due to a neck brace that wouldn’t allow her to move at all, her years of practicing gymnastics sustained her strength.

Several months later, Lily was very focused on trying to ensure that the outcome of what had become an accident never held her down. Finally, after months of rigorous, intensive training to regain her health, she visited Brockton’s Spectrum Gymnastics again. When in the first competition of her accelerated pacing after the accident, she did not just take part but joined four events—she came second in all except one.

Now, at 16, Lily’s fighting spirit is the drive as the Bridgewater-Raynham/West Bridgewater gymnastics team prepares to begin their ‘comeback season.’ In 2023 the team had a rough time, but now Lily decided to make a turning point as she will help the team to become great again after the four-year break. But can Raynham make it again?

After a 16-year-old gymnast made a strong comeback, will BRWB reclaim glory?

As the 2024 NCAA gymnastics season kicks off, Bridgewater-Raynham/West Bridgewater (BRWB) is all in on making a strong comeback. For the last decade, they have been one of the best gymnastics teams in the state; they won the state two years in a row in 2017 and 2018. But they failed to reach the state meet in 2023 for the first time since 2016 as they finished fifth at the South Sectional championship last season. Now they are ready to dominate the gymnastics mat again! But, as Lily is making a comeback, not all the gymnasts are as fortunate as Lily to come out alive and get back to training. Remember Melanie Coleman of Connecticut College?

Tragedy occurred in November of 2019 when Melanie Coleman, a sophomore at Southern Connecticut State University, was critically injured during a Hick’s drill. It happened while she was training at the New Era Training Facility in Hamden; she skidded on the bars and fell down. However, Melanie died two days later in Yale-New Haven Hospital even though her coach and other emergency services tried to help her immediately. It was an unfortunate incident, which even the team could not have foreseen, but it changed the future of the sport forever during a practice session.

Melanie had indeed a lot to celebrate; she bagged All-America Scholar-Athlete awards and was also a teacher to young gymnasts. Melanie’s case is quite unfortunate, but it was also a good message to always embrace every day!ng`154