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Panthers can’t match Forest Lake gymnasts
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Wednesday, 23 January 2008
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Glen Strandberg
Sports Editor
The end of an academic quarter tends to be a difficult time for both the athletes as well as their coaches. The stress level is up, the sleep hours are down, and oftentimes a team’s performance will start to sag.
For the Forest Lake gymnastics team, the girls were able to focus on their Lakeville North meet on Jan. 18, get past the quarterly tension and pull off a 138.90 to 133.945 victory.
“We did not score our season high as a varsity team, but the jayvee team scored their season high,” head coach Nancy Ellias said. “And we hit our season high for varsity and jayvee beam.”
For those who have followed the gymnasts this winter, the news about the balance beam might read like a misquote. But the Rangers have spent a lot of time working on their balance beam routines, and last Friday night the effort paid off.
“We had four of five ‘sticks’ (no falls) on varsity beam, and three of eight sticks on jayvee beam,” Ellias added.
The extra attention to the balance beam took away from the uneven bars, however, as Forest Lake had falls on four out of five routines in that event.
“So guess what we will focus on this week, in addition to beam sticks?” Ellias said.
Following suit in how the team would give over here, only to take from over there, the roster was in a bit of transition against the Panthers.
While Chelsea Uram continues on a steady comeback from her knee injury, the Rangers had Taylor Brett sit out of the all-around competition so she could rest a painful leg.
Ellias said Uram is already in fine form in the bars (first place) and the beam, and her presence makes a big difference on the squad.
“It really adds a lot to our team mentally and physically to have her back competing, even if it isn’t in the all-around yet.”
As a team, the Rangers had 24 personal bests, which has Ellias hoping to see that positive pattern hang around for awhile.
“Maddie (Crew) had a great meet and finally showcased her incredible talents on the beam and floor,” Ellias said.
Crew took first in the all-around, compliments of a first place on the balance beam, a first on the floor exercise, third on the uneven bars and third on the vault.
In second overall was Jessie Ramberg, whose solid progress is evident in her second place on the floor and a second on the vault, which put her into that second spot in the all-around.
Junior varsity
Allie Bey – first on bars; Marissa Moravec – first on beam; Esther Jandrich – second on bars, second on beam; Scottie Sampair – second on vault; Jenny Kunshier – third in all-around.
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