Senior and gymnastics team veteran Hannah Fallanca is entering her last season at N.C. State, where she has excelled both in the classroom and in competition.
Last season, Fallanca was named to the all-EAGL first team and all-tournament on the balance beam, leading the Pack to the EAGL Conference Championship.
“Winning EAGL was the most emotional day I’d ever had in college,” Fallanca said. “It just proved that everything that you were working toward had finally paid off.”
She also scored a career-best 9.95 on the beam, tied for the fourth-best score in N.C. State history.
Aside from excelling as an athlete, Fallanca finds time off the beam to make an impact in the Raleigh community.
This past summer, she interned for the Hillsborough Community Service Corp. her second internship with HCSC— where she helped coordinate a variety of events, including Packapalooza. In that capacity, she assisted participating merchants and facilitated organizational meetings.
“It was wonderful because it was my second summer interning with the HCSC, and it gave me a greater appreciation for Hillsborough Street and all the events N.C. State holds on the street and all the parades, and it made me feel closer and more involved in the school,” Fallanca said. “I understand the merchants, and I’m more comfortable with all the restaurants. It was great. I loved being with my State all summer.”
Now, with her time at State coming to an end, Fallanca said she has begun to reflect on her time with the Pack.
“I was on a recruiting trip, and I just fell in love with the wonderful girls,” Fallanca said. “The coaches were just the sweetest people I ever met and were neighborly toward me. When I walked on campus, they showed me how beautiful it is and how big it is, which I loved. It was just far enough from home that I could handle being homesick, but it was a really quick trip to go home. It was mainly the gymnastics team that made it for me.”
Last year, the gymnastics team finished No. 26 overall, 11-9-1 (5-3-1 EAGL), won the conference championship, but fell short of winning the NCAA tournament.
According to Fallanca, the team may have what it takes to reach the next level.
“I think it’s exciting because we have such a big team, and that will give us even more depth since only the top six people compete in each event,” Fallanca said. “This will give us an opportunity to have more people to be there and be ready to step in when needed, so I think we’re even better off than last year just because we have so much great talent coming in and still on the team. We’re going to be great this year.”
“We had, and still do have, a fantastic team, and it was so fun seeing us improve as a team and individuals.”
