February 19, 2018 at 12:44 p.m.
Hodag gymnasts reclaim GNC Small title
Hodag gymnasts reclaim GNC Small title
The Hodags turned in a score of 119.4 points Saturday to take first place in the Small division at the GNC meet in Wisconsin Rapids, claiming their second division title in three years as a result.
Saturday's meet was more a coronation than a competition for the Hodags, who came into the meet needing to finish only third or better to lock up the championship. Despite a rough start to the day on balance beam, the Hodags accomplished their goal with ease, finishing nearly six points ahead of Mosinee for the top spot.
"The girls still pulled it together and did what they needed to, to win it outright," Hodag coach Heather Sturtevant said. "That's what we set out to do, not just carrying on the fact that we were coming in (with a big lead) but actually go down and do what we've been doing all season."
The Hodags bounced back from a poor first rotation on the day. Starting on balance beam, the Hodags fell 10 times in their first four routines and posted only the third-best score in the event.
"It made us nervous," Sturtevant said. "We were really looking around, especially when it was Alyssa (Mitchell) and Stephanie (Kuester) that fell three times a piece, that's very uncharacteristic. That was kind of nail-biting there."
Junior Raven Sturtevant salvaged the event for the Hodags with a no-fall performance as the Hodags' fifth performer. Her score of 8.225 won the conference title in the event.
"Raven came in, got a personal best and a no-fall routine. That kind of helped set the tone a little bit," Heather Sturtevant said. "There's still room for improvement. She didn't get her pass connection, but she stayed on. Her jumps were big and she really fought for it."
Stephanie Kuester bounced back from a 6.625 on beam to place first on floor exercise (8.0), second on uneven bars (8.1) and tied for second on vault (8.3). Still, it was not quite enough to catch Mosinee's Lydia Ruthe for the all-around title. Ruthe posted an all-around score of 31.575. Kuester was second with a 31.025.
"She probably had one of her worst beams ever, but she was able to come back, just put it away, and moved forward. She just kept chipping away at that gap. She had a great bar routine that helped push her into second place in the all-around," Heather Sturtevant said.
Raven Sturtevant finished third in the all-around (30.9). The top three finishers in each event and the all-around received all-conference recognition.
A pair of freshmen cracked the top 10 in individual events for the Hodags on Saturday. Autumn Shafer was sixth on uneven bars (6.925) and ninth on the floor exercise (7.25). Lilli Bishop placed sixth on the floor (7.625).
"These were freshmen coming in and this was new to them. It really bodes well for our team next year," Sturtevant said.
The third freshman who has been a staple in the starting lineup, Bridget Koser, suffered an elbow injury at practice on Thursday and will miss the remainder of the season.
Makayla Kuester added a seventh-place finish for Rhinelander on uneven bars (6.7) and was tied for eighth in the vault (8.0).
Rhinelander travels to Antigo Thursday for a WIAA Division 2 sectional meet.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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