Hodags gymnasts drop GNC Small dual to Antigo 117.4-106.2

The Rhinelander High School gymnastics team has closed the gap on perennial Great Northern Conference front runner Antigo, but it wasn’t quite enough to pull off a dual meet victory on Tuesday.

The Hodags secured six top-three finishes on the night as they fell to the Red Robins 117.4-106.2 in a GNC Small dual meet in Antigo. 

Though down a few points from their season high, the Hodag coaching staff felt the squad turned in a solid performance in the dual.

“We had some good things that happened. Some of the girls are putting in some new skills. Some of it worked. Some of it didn’t work out the way they wanted, but I think they did well overall,” RHS assistant gymnastics coach April Denis said.

Denis skippered the team on Tuesday with head coach Kristina Aschenbrenner unavailable due to a prior obligation.

Freshman Samantha Aschenbrenner led the Hodags on Tuesday. She scored a runner-up finish on balance beam (7.7) and was also the team’s top performer on uneven bars (fifth, 5.8) as she took second in the individual all-around with a 27.8. She edged Antigo’s Annie Lundgren by one tenth of a point for the runner-up spot in the all-around.

Freshman Alexis Smith continued her strong season on the vault. She tied Antigo’s Ginny Praslowicz for first in the event with an 8.15. Karly Gillingham tied for third on vault (7.9) and added a runner-up finish for the Hodags on the floor exercise (7.75).

“Bars we struggled a little bit with. We did OK on vault. Our floors looked good. The girls had some nice routines. Karly had a nice floor routine,” Denis noted. “It’s always a hard week with finals. I noticed that with both teams. I talked with the Antigo coach and even she said something seemed different tonight. It was just quieter. Every year, on finals week, it seems like all the kids, the schedules are different because they’re taking tests.”

    Rhinelander’s Wendy Fronk performs on balance beam during a GNC Small gymnastics dual at Antigo Tuesday, Jan. 16. Fronk took third in the seventh with a 7.55 and finished fourth in the all-around. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

While not flawless, balance beam offered some solid results for the Hodags on Tuesday. Aschenbrenner’s 7.7 came with a fall, as did Wendy Fronk’s third-place showing of 7.55. 

“They would have been up in the 8s for sure (with a clean routine). And they both fell on a simple skill, which is usually what happens,” Denis said. “Alexis was saying even though beam was one of her lowest scores, she was really proud of her beam because she did her cartwheel on her own. That was one of her prouder moments. It was kind of neat to hear the girls point to things that they did well.”

Fronk finished fourth in the all-around (26.95) while Gillingham finished sixth (25.75) and Smith took seventh (25.7). Praslowicz won the all-around for the Robins with a 32.3.

The Hodags are idle from competition until next Saturday, when they will return to Antigo for the Julie Langseth Memorial Invite. Denis said the down time will give the team an opportunity to fine-tune some of the new skills they have added to their routines.

“We’ll have time to fix a few things and get back on the bars. The girls have been working hard on the bar routines. In practice things work out and then in a meet sometimes it just doesn’t, but they’re trying to clean things up and move forward on there, which is what we want,” she said. “They are getting stronger. We keep telling them, ‘Every time you’re on their — whether it works or not — you’re getting stronger and developing those muscles.’”

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].