Anderson, RM on the beam

Rolling Meadows found itself looking up at Conant on Thursday entering the final rotation - as the Mustangs trailed the Cougars by .075 points.

But Meadows put it together at the end, nipping Conant 136.10 to 134.95 to pull out the Schaumburg regional title.

Schaumburg took third with 133.75 points, followed by the Elgin Larkin Co-op (114.40).

The Mustangs scored a 35.125 on the beam, highlighted by senior Jen Anderson, who took first with a 9.45.

"We needed to go 5-for-5 on the beam and we did," said Rolling Meadows coach Mike Costa, whose team's last regional title was in 1997. "The kids came out this week ready to compete."

Meadows advanced to Tuesday's Lake Park sectional at 6:30 p.m.

Conant appears to be in good shape to advance as an at-large team, with the Palatine regional remaining.

Anderson started off the meet with an 8.8 on vault, but the senior finished with a flurry by taking third on uneven bars (9.025) and fourth on floor exercise (9.025) before capping her night with the stunning performance on beam.

"We knew it was going to be close," said Anderson, who finished second in the all-around (36.30). "So we knew we had to bring it together on the beam. We had a great finish."

Mustangs' freshman Lauren Cerza tied for fifth on vault (8.95).

Kelly Hendricks led a strong Conant performance. The senior took second on vault (9.275) and third on floor (9.15).

"We're all nervous and hoping we make it to sectionals, but we don't know yet," said Hendricks, who finished fifth in the all-around (35.15). "I'm pleased with my vault, it was a good score."

Cougars sophomore Nicole Duffy tied for fourth on bars (8.5) and secured fifth on beam (8.775), while junior Kristen Mpistolarides took third on vault (9.125).

"The girls had a great meet for themselves," said Cougars coach Lorel Cunningham, "We're very excited about where we can go."

Host Schaumburg was a bit short-handed, missing freshman Ashley Miller. But the sophomore duo of Caitlin Barrett (36.375) and Brooke Shimon (36.10) went 1-3 in the all-around to pace the Saxons.

Barrett took second on both bars (9.025) and floor (9.325), third on beam (9.05), and tied for fifth on vault (8.95).

Shimon took first on floor (9.375), second on beam (9.125) and fourth on vault (9.10).

"You can't think of the worst that can happen," Barrett said. "You have to be positive, then just go for everything hard."

St. Edward freshman Jordyn Madden competed individually and came up big, taking first on vault with a career-best 9.525 and adding a first on bars (9.10). Madden also took fifth on floor (9.0) and finished fourth in the all around (35.70) despite two falls on beam.

"For her to come in this strong is awesome," said St. Edward coach Douglas Bucholz.

The freshman admitted to being a bit nervous before her first postseason performance but gained a bit of momentum after her bars routine.

"I usually struggle on bars but I nailed it tonight," Madden said. "I felt really relaxed after that routine."

Sophomore Ashley Horne took fourth on beam (8.975) and placed sixth on bars (8.2), floor (8.925), and all-around (34.850) for the Elgin Larkin Co-op team.

"It definitely was shaky, but hopefully going into sectionals I'll be able to hit on my routines," said Horne, who advanced on beam and has a solid shot for at-large berths on bars, floor and all around. "There were some mix-ups, but it's just one meet and I can clean things up."