Southern Elite Gymnastics and Cheer (SEGC) participated in the WV State Gymnastics Championships Mar. 18 and 19. Junior Olympic programming for USA Gymnastics consists of 10 levels. SEGC put up gymnasts at Levels 3, 4, 6 and 7.
Each year they have expanded their team program by advancing gymnasts to higher levels. SEGC is a relatively new program in the state with this being only the third year they have had a competitive team program. They expect to continue to expand their program by adding Xcel competition through USAG next year. This will give more gymnasts the opportunity to compete.
Level 3 State Meet
Seven gymnasts represented SEGC at the Level 3 state meet. For many of these girls, this was their first year of competition, and it was fun to see how well they did. All of the girls posted solid all-around scores and are excited to work on moving up to Level 4 next year. Neena McClintic placed third in the all-around competition with a 36.1. She also placed third on vault and bars and fourth on beam and floor. Ruby Dehaven placed fifth all-around with a second place finish on bars, a third place finish on vault and fifth place finishes on beam and floor. Rozalyn Humphreys placed second on floor and had an impressive all-around score of 36.1. Riley Edwards placed fourth on beam and fifth on bars. Ashlynn Pipkin had her highest floor score of the year with an 8.925. Annie Whited posted her best scores of the year with an all-around score of 34.55, and Laney Depriest had solid performances all-around posting a score of 34.25. Other Level 3 team members this year included Lily Latham and Campbell Bundy. The hard work and dedication of these girls was obvious in their fantastic performances at the state meet!
Level 4 State Meet
At level 4, Reagan Cline won the vault title with a score of 9.25. She also placed second on floor (9.4), fourth on bars and third all-around. Laci Ryder posted high scores on bars (9.3) and floor (9.225) placing second on both events. Noelle McClintic had her best meet of the season with several personal bests. Sophia Landers rounded out the team with her scores helping them to place seventh in the team standings. With three scores counting on each event and only four gymnasts in the rotation, just about every score counted and the team pulled through with solid performances. Zoe Tatgenhorst was also a member of the Level 4 team this year. Although she was unable to compete at the state meet, she was there supporting her teammates and making the team complete.
Level 6 State Meet
SEGC put up a strong Level 6 team this year with several girls winning state titles. Brenna Witt scored a 9.6 on the balance beam securing the state title on that event, Claire Wills won vault with a 9.225, and Kylea Wykle won floor with a 9.55. Witt also placed second on floor, third on vault and second all-around, while Wills placed second on bars, third on floor and third all around in their division. Both girls had impressive all around scores with a 36.35 for Witt and a 36.25 for Wills. Also in their age division were Mollie Pack, who scored 9.1 on beam for fourth place and also scored a 9.1 on floor and Kaylee Wiant, who placed fifth on bars. Both of these girls posted their best all-around scores of the year. In the older age divisions, Wykle, mentioned above for winning the floor title, placed third on vault, fourth on beam, fifth on bars and fourth all-around. Kylie Criddle scored an impressive 9.25 on the balance beam, taking fifth place, and a 9.3 on floor. She had a personal best in the all-around competition with a score of 35.5. Edie McMillion rounded out the team by putting up solid performances including her best bar score of the year which contributed to the team score. SEGC’s Level 6 team finished sixth in the team competition with a very competitive team score of 109.1.
Level 7 State Meet
SEGC had two girls competing in Level 7 this year. This is the first year the gym had a team at this level, and these girls represented them well. Both gymnasts competed at Level 5 last year so moving to Level 7 required learning a lot of new skills. Bailey Caraway posted a fourth place finish on the balance beam and sixth place all-around with her highest scores of the year. Ryan White performed a solid beam routine scoring an 8.925 and placing fifth. A strong performance on floor earned White a 9.4 which was also a fifth place finish. With a 9 on vault as well, White finished the day with her highest all-around score of the year. These two have improved all year, and it was fantastic to see them perform so well in their last meet of the season.
The head coach at SEGC is Megan Hartman of Ronceverte She was a Level 10 gymnast who has a passion for the sport and for the kids. She does a great job progressing the girls while still keeping it fun. She states she is very proud of all of them for their hard work and determination. After capping off their season with fantastic performances at the state meet, the gymnasts and coaches are looking forward to the “off-season” so they can learn new skills and keep progressing.
