Boys gymnastics: Glenbard West earns at-large berth to state

Glenbard West is used to being chased.

The Hilltoppers aren't accustomed to chasing another team, though, but this season they've been trying to catch Lyons Twp.

They didn't get to the Lions during Saturday's Lyons Twp. sectional, but they were right up there with the Lions, getting narrowly edged, 158.35 to 156.85, but scoring more than enough to advance to state.

Now, the Hilltoppers will try to catch Lyons when the two schools head to Hoffman Estates, which is hosting the state finals this year, beginning Friday.

"The boys were happy," Glenbard West coach Frank Novakowski said. "They were not satisfied with the outcome, but we're trying to build their confidence and get them to believe that we can catch Lyons and we had some dismounts on (parallel) bars that cost us 1.8 (points) and they beat us by 1.5 (points)."

Aiden Rudolph won floor while his brother Shea Rudolph took third. Aiden Rudolph also paced second on vault while they tied each other for second on parallel bars. Shea Rudolph also was fifth on pommel horse and high bar.

Sophomore Alexander Demeris came up high for the runner-up Hilltoppers, winning high bar while also winning the all-around with a 53.45. He also took fourth on still rings and vault.

Senior Carlos Sandoval advanced to state with a fifth-place effort on still rings, while senior Daniel Eichin, who didn't attempt gymnastics until he got into high school, qualified on pommel horse, taking fourth place.

"My routine was OK," he said. "I hit it and to get to state for me is the culmination of four years of hard work. I'm excited for the team finals, but I'm far more excited to try to win state as a team."

While the Hilltoppers were very good, they know they still need to be better if they hope to be in the running for a top trophy.

"We think we have a shot of winning state if we just fix some things," Eichin said. "If each of us can raise or score by one-tenth that would make a big difference."

Deerfield, Lyons and Wheaton co-op are some of the other top teams that will be in the running next weekend.

"Deerfield scored a 160, but there are a lot of teams that are real close to each other," Novakowski said. "It's going to be whoever puts together the best meet that comes out on top or takes second or third."

Hinsdale Central finished in third place with a 143.25 but fell short of the final team at-large big which ended up going to Downers Grove North with a 151.45 earlier in the week.

Alex Roca took second on floor and third on vault to lead the Red Devils and qualify for state.

Glenbard East was fourth with a 137.55. Senior Marc Le extended his season, taking second in the all-around with a 52.95, second on still rings and tying for third on both parallel bars and high bar.

Hinsdale South finished its season with a 117.45 and Downers Grove South had a 113.8.

Malcolm Moore tied for fourth place on floor for the Hornets and earned a trip to Hoffman Estates.