Maureen Moody, an uneven bars specialist on the No. 6 Michigan women’s gymnastics team, often goes head over heels while swinging in the gym, but it was during Thanksgiving break in 2008 when her life was flipped upside down.

Her father, Kevin Moody, was diagnosed with terminal metastatic pancreatic cancer after going to the hospital for a blood clot in his leg. Doctors told him he had six months to live.

Kevin held on for eight months, cherishing every last moment with his family.

Her older brother, Nolan Moody, was a senior pitcher for the Michigan State Spartans at the time of the diagnosis — an event that began a roller-coaster ride for the two athletes, home for the holidays.

“It was really tough — surprising more than anything,” Nolan said. “I think that whole weekend was so surreal, just going in for a blood clot and leaving with terminal cancer, it just catches you off-guard.

“Certainly the most difficult break from school that any of us could have had, but the good thing was that we were able to be home and together as a family. It was a very difficult time for those eight months, and it is at times today as well.”

Kevin, a former three-sport athlete at Kalamazoo College who practiced law in East Lansing, resolved to devote his last months to watching his kids play the sports they loved. And alongside his wife Nancy, he did just that, missing only a handful of events.

The couple traveled across the country to watch both gymnastics and baseball. Although his health kept him from attending the event, Kevin was watching on TV as Maureen’s Wolverines captured their third consecutive Big Ten title last March. She posted a career-high 9.900 on the bars.

He was sitting in the stands as his son pitched Michigan State’s first no-hitter since 1993 against Northwestern last April. When Nolan stepped off the mound, he found his father and the two embraced, tears in their eyes.

Kevin’s goal was simple: he wanted to be there for everything.

“My dad didn’t want a lot of attention on his illness,” Maureen said. “So the attention turned to my brother and his baseball and my gymnastics. My parents tried as hard as they could to make it to my meets and his games.”

Battling against the odds, Kevin survived through both sports’ seasons, even living to see his son sign with the Detroit Tigers — Nolan’s first step toward achieving his childhood dream.

Each meet or ballgame was a testament to Kevin’s fortitude and dedication.

“I know watching Maureen is one of my favorite things to do, and it was one of his too,” Nolan said. “And watching me play baseball is the same for him, Maureen and my mom. I think that having athletics for those eight months was sort of therapeutic for everybody.”

Although she had spent the previous two summers in Ann Arbor, Maureen decided to move back home for the summer of 2009 to stay with her family as her father’s life slowly ebbed away.

For a six-week period both kids were home — when Nolan hadn’t yet been signed and Nancy had stopped working — the Moody family soaked in every last moment together.

Nolan reported to Lakeland, Fla. for his assignment for the Tigers organization in mid-July, and that’s when his father’s health took a turn for the worst.

On July 19, 2009, Kevin passed away at home. Although his death was expected, it wasn’t easy.

Maureen was devastated by her father’s passing. In the aftermath, returning to gymnastics for her senior year was hard to envision.

“I just didn’t feel like myself,” Maureen said. “I didn’t feel ambitious at all, and didn’t think I could muster the energy and enthusiasm to come back for another year.”

Her teammates and coaches attended the funeral, and it took all of their support to coax “Mo” back into the gym.

But it was Nancy and Nolan who played the biggest role in this difficult time.

“After my dad died, it was tough on everybody,” Nolan said. “When we talked (Maureen) said she didn’t have the drive, the emotion or the energy that is required to do big-time athletics, but as much as I sympathized with that, I knew that one of the best things that helped me cope was getting back to playing baseball and talking to teammates that I had in college.

“I told her that sports can be a lot of things, and I think one of them is a way to fill your mind with something and move on and have fun,” Nolan added.