R.C. Central wins Class AA state meet; Mitchell finishes close behind Brookings

BROOKINGS — The Mitchell High School gymnastics team took fifth place at the team portion of the Class AA state tournament Friday.

The Kernels scored a 137.461, which was less than .01 of a point behind fourth-place Brookings. Rapid City Central won the Class AA state meet with a 150.510, Watertown took second at 147.262 and Sioux Falls O’Gorman was third with a 143.243.

“We were really hoping for third,” Mitchell coach Audra Rew said. “That was our high goal, but the kids fought to the end and they gave it their all.”

Mitchell’s best event of the day was the floor, with a 35.148. It was the fourth and final event for the Kernels at the first day of the state tournament. At 4:30 p.m. today, the Mitchell gymnasts who have qualified will compete on individual day.

“The floor really hasn’t been a strong event for us this year,” Rew said. “Going into it, we knew we were two points behind Brookings for the last event. The kids were really fighting all the way to the end. It wouldn’t have been any closer.”

The Kernels scored a 34.649 on the vault, a 34.316 on the beam and a 33.348 on the bars.

Rew said one of the team’s top performers, Rebecca Sadler, injured her ankle on Wednesday at practice. She said that could have affected the team’s confidence on Friday.

“Overall, our warm ups were pretty rocky and shaky,” Rew said. “I think with (Sadler), she’s always rock solid for us. When she was a little off, I think that made everyone a little nervous.”

The gymnasts who competed for Mitchell on Friday were Bailey Eidahl, Ellie Rew, Emily Prill, Josie Dierks, Nicole Wittstruck, Quinci Herll and Sadler.

Chamberlain takes third in Class A

By The Daily Republic

BROOKINGS — Deuel won the Class A state gymnastics championship Friday in Brookings.

Deuel finished with 145.846 points. Madison finished second with 141.979 and Chamberlain took third with a 129.395.

Gymnasts competing for Chamberlain on Friday were Vanzi Knippling, MaKenna Hancock, Ciara Stewart, Shantel Bairey, Rikki Hancock, Sarah Knust, Halee Larson and Marilyn Nasomwat.

Wagner High School took eighth in the nine-team field. Wagner finished with 120.794 points.

Gymnasts competing for Wagner on Friday were Rachel Dion, Hannah Fleming, Kylee Lightenberg, Krista Dvorak, Adrian Weber, Miranda Weber, Megan Kocer and Bobbi Jo Soukup.

Tags: sports, updates, kernels, gymnastics