Carmel begins trophy quest with Rolling Meadows title

Carmel has just missed securing a trophy the past three seasons at the girls gymnastics state meet.

After finishing fourth in 2007 and fifth in 2008 and 2009, the Corsairs are looking for a breakthrough this season.

Senior Amber Mirski made sure Carmel got off to a good start on Saturday taking first on the floor exercise with 9.6, leading the Corsairs to first place with 70.7 points at the Al Galatte Invite in Rolling Meadows.

Lake Forest (69.95), another team with state trophy aspirations, took second, followed by defending state champion Stevenson (69.20).

Prospect (66.50) and Barrington (64.85) rounded out the top five in the 20-team field.

Each team was allowed to have only two gymnasts compete in each event and the Corsairs made the most of it by placing seven of their eight in the top 10.

Amber Mirski finished sixth in the all-around and floor at last season at the state meet and is hoping that Saturday's performance is the start of something big for the Corsairs.

"Hopefully this is the year," said Amber Mirski of the Corsairs' near misses. "We've been right there the previous seasons, we want a trophy this year."

Mirski had plenty of help on Saturday with her sophomore sister, Kristin, despite a fall, taking second on the beam with an 8.8 and junior Lauren Bowles (8.7) taking third on the beam.

Freshman Sarah Cohen-Smith (9.3) and junior Dani Clement (9.05) went 3-5 on the vault, with freshman Kari Osowski (8.4) and sophomore Jen Zellar (8.35) going 5-6 on bars.

"We're expecting a lot," added Kristin Mirski, who finished eighth on the bars and 11 on the floor at state last season. "Last year wasn't as good as we thought it would be; this year we want to accomplish our goals."

Carmel showed Saturday they have the experience, and with the addition of a couple of talented freshmen the Corsairs are thinking big.

"I've had high expectations of this team the last several years," said Carmel coach Sarah Doyle of her talented team. "I think they finally believe that they can be on the medal stand at state. My expectations have not changed."

Ofelia Carmichael (9.65) and Grace Kohlmaier (9.5) went 1-2 on vault, leading Lake Forest to second place. Kylie Carlson (9.3) took second on the floor and Mel Foster (8.7) added a second on the bars to aid the Scouts.

Defending state champion Stevenson lost Chelsea Seplowin, Stephanie Wojton, and Shana Manning to graduation, but the Patriots showed they have plenty of talent to make a strong run in February.

Junior Caitlin Pagano (8.75) took first on the bars, and sophomore Ali Castriano (9.1) took first on the beam to lead Stevenson to third place.

Sophomore Theresa Wojton (9.1) added a fourth-place finish on the floor and senior Lauren Patterson (9.1) took fourth on the vault for the Patriots.

"We lost three really great seniors who made a huge contribution to last year's team," said Castriano, who made her own impact by finishing second at state last season on the beam. "We're pretty confident but we still have work to do."

"We see ourselves as a new team," added Pagano, who finished third at state on bars. "It's a new beginning and we're going to have to prove ourselves throughout the season."

Freshman Bailey McGuire (8.85) took fifth on the floor to lead Prospect to fourth place its best finish at this meet.

Senior Katie Colmone (8.35) tied for sixth on the bars. Junior Sarah Pekar (8.5) took 10th on vault and junior Christina Pekar (8.15) adding a 10th on the beam for the Knights.

"We were consistent throughout the whole meet," added Prospect coach Julian Basler. "We have the skills, we just have to clean up our routines. It was a total team effort."

Sophomore Tiffany Persels (8.8) tied for sixth on the floor in leading Barrington to fifth place. Senior Monica Matheson (8.45) took fifth on the beam and Hannah Heider (8.75) added a seventh-place finish on the vault to support the Fillies.

"It's only our second meet of the year so I'm not looking for to much," said Barrington coach Jason Loeffler, whose team has been dealing with its share of injuries. "But it was good to get out here and compete."

Individually, Larkin's Ashley Horne (9.2) took third on the floor with Wheaton North's Kristina Terry (8.8) tying for sixth. Rolling Meadows' Becky Smith and Buffalo Grove's senior Linda Dunne tied for ninth on the floor with an 8.7.

Schaumburg sophomore Ashley Miller (8.25) took tenth on bars and Hoffman Estates' Trina Pasco (8.3) tied for seventh on the beam.