So instead of tumbling, jumping, and vaulting at Henderson, Jones works on her gymnastics at a club, First State, in Newark. Next year, for the first time, she will get to compete for a school.
Last month, she signed a letter of intent with the University of Maryland, accepting a gymnastics scholarship.
Once again, a gymnast from Henderson will compete in NCAA Division I.
"There are usually two styles of gymnasts - your power athletes and your finesse athletes - and she kind of has that finesse, the grace, the technique," Terrapins coach Brett Nelligan said. "It's really kind of pleasing to the judges and usually scores very well, her style."
That style, Nelligan said, serves Jones well on the beam and in the floor exercise, the two events he considers her best.
She won the gold medal in the beam at the 2011 Junior Olympics National Invitational Tournament in Long Beach, Calif. She also placed third there in the floor exercise and fourth in the all-around. The Junior Olympics NIT is held in conjunction with the Junior Olympic national championships. Nelligan said the National Invitational is to the Junior Olympic championships what the NIT is to the NCAA tournament in men's basketball.
Competing at such a level requires quite a commitment.
Jones works out at First State, a 45-minute drive from her West Chester home, four days a week after school and again on Saturdays. All told, she puts in about 20 hours a week at the gym. She said she has had that schedule since she was a sixth grader.
"I always had a goal of doing college gymnastics, so I guess I just tried to work as hard as I could for that goal," said Jones, a diminutive 17-year-old who said she is "5-foot-1, maybe."
