March 5, 2018 at 12:41 p.m.
Kuester, Sturtevant compete for Hodags at state gymnastics meet
Kuester, Sturtevant compete for Hodags at state gymnastics meet
Both Stephanie Kuester and Raven Sturtevant finished toward the bottom of the ranks on Saturday. Kuester was 24th out of 25 gymnasts on floor exercise while Sturtevant was last in the 26-gymnast field on the uneven bars.
Kuester, a senior, said she was happy with a solid, but not flashy routine that yielded an 8.1 from the judges while Sturtevant struggled during the second half of her uneven bars performance, leading to a score of 6.7.
"I was hoping for a high 7 so I'm really glad I got into the 8s. I was not looking at an 8 at all," said Kuester, of exceeding her expectations.
Though she scored an 8.8 to qualify for the event out of the Antigo sectional, Kuester said she knew scores would be lower given the extra scrutiny of performing in front of a three-judge panel at the state competition.
"I didn't want to change anything and mess anything up," Kuester added. "I feel like my front pass went well, throwing it for the second time."
"She did a really nice, clean routine and it was really nice for her to go out on that," RHS gymnastics co-coach Heather Sturtevant said. "I'm very happy for her. I know she's very proud of herself and we're very proud of her, too."
Raven Sturtevant, meanwhile, faltered on one of her maneuvers on the high bar, which she said adversely affected the remainder of her routine.
"My double uprise, the first one I shot up too much, which messed up the second one, which threw off my kip after that," she explained. "Then I rushed my handstand, so I didn't make it all the way up. I wasn't getting anywhere out of that, so I just pulled back around and did another handstand."
"She hit all of her elements in warmup," Heather Sturtevant added. "It would have been nice, even though it's an easier routine, to have a nice, clean routine. It was a little heartbreaking to try to make those adjustments in the middle of the routine."
It was the first trip to state for both gymnasts. Kuester said she didn't have many jitters, despite the meet marking the end of her high school gymnastics career.
"Everybody asked my if I was nervous or stressed coming here. I really wasn't," Kuester said, calling the meet a fun experience. "I wasn't nervous competing either. I normally got nervous during invitational, but I wasn't nervous here at all."
The same could not be said for Raven Sturtevant, at least up until show time.
"I never done anything this big before, never had this many people around," she said. "I was stressed before I went on seeing all these girls do huge skills, but once you get on it's not that bad."
Heather Sturtevant said it was a learning experience for both gymnasts and the teammates who traveled to Wisconsin Rapids to watch them perform.
"We had no expectations. It was just come down and enjoy the experience," she said. "The big thing is to, no matter where you're sitting, is to not put those big expectations on yourself, not be stressed and just go and do what you've been doing all season."
While Kuester, and two other seniors, will be gone, Raven Sturtevant said she's eager to lead next year's Hodag team and, hopefully, make a return trip to Wisconsin Rapids.
"I just need to work on my connections. I know what I want to improve so I don't get into that situation again," she said. "I'm excited. I have a lot of stuff that I want to learn."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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