Carmel cruises to regional title
Carmel Catholic’s Kristin Mirski handles pressure differently than most gymnasts.
Mirski’s way worked Saturday night, as she earned a 9.7 on beam to chalk up second place.
“Pressure is good for me,” Mirski said. “When I’m under pressure, I feel I can do well. I usually don’t watch the other beam routines. I get really focused. I feel bad for not watching. If there’s anyway to help this team out, I will do it.”
Meanwhile, defending state champion Carmel won its seventh straight regional title with a 149.75. Prairie Ridge was second with a 146.375 at Lake Forest.
Both schools earned spots in the Stevenson sectional Monday at 6:30 p.m.
Carmel had a good meet with the exception of a few falls on beam (36.475).
“We need to improve on beam and get things together,” Carmel coach Sarah Doyle said. “We’ve been “on” in the other events, including vault and floor.
“The girls want to be doing their best. We just need to get this out of our system before the sectional and state.”
Jenny Covers of Prairie Ridge won the all-around with a season-best 38.55. Covers also had top honors on beam (9.75) and bars (9.75).
Carmel’s Lauren Feely was second in the all-around with a 38. Mirski (37.975) and Jen Zeller (37.025) placed third and fifth, respectively.
Feely earned top honors on vault (9.75) and floor (9.65), placed third on bars (9.4) and took fourth on beam (9.2). Mirski also finished third on vault (9.55), fifth on bars (9.175) and third on floor (9.55).
Zeller was second on floor (9.6) and fourth on bars (9.3). Lauren was fifth on floor (9.275). Sarah Cohen-Smith tied for fourth with Nikki Novak of Prairie Ridge (9.525).
Alison Rossmann of Warren tied Sarah Kramer of Prairie Ridge for fifth on beam (9.05).
Palatine earned a spot in the sectional as an at-large team with a team total of 143.55 joining Stevenson and Fremd from earlier in the week.
Also at Lake Forest, as part of the Lake Forest regional, Barrington posted a 139.45. Lake Forest claimed the regional championship with a 146.55.
“The girls had a great meet and I’m happy where they ended,” Barrington coach Jason Loeffler said. “We didn’t get the team (to sectionals), but we did get some individuals through.”
Barrington’s Lexi Marsella finished fifth in the all-around (35.575), fourth on vault (9.2) and fifth on floor (9.15).
The Fillies’ Marissa Krzysko scored a season-best 9.25 on bars to place third.
“I was nervous going up there, but as soon as I hit the bars, it was all fun,” said Krzysko, who had a bone contusion on her knee freshman year and last year dealt with a concussion.
“My main focus was to have fun up there. All of a sudden it was like the best part of my life. It was the first time I hit everything and landed the dismount.”
Barrington’s Laine Leedstrom took fifth on bars (8.8) and fifth on beam (8.95).
Tiffany Percels didn’t compete because of personal obligations.