Glenbard South celebrates, but Willowbrook wins
It was standing room only in the comfy environs of Glenbard South's upstairs gym on Monday night.
Weeknight girls gymnastics dual meets aren't normally this well-attended, but this wasn't any ordinary meet. This was Senior Night.
Elizabeth "Libby" Kohout and Kate Rumel - along with JV seniors Rachel Kralicek, Monique Martinez, Pearl Opem and Carli Schwanebeck - were recognized, but it was visiting Willowbrook that took home the victory, edging the Raiders 126.85 to 125.85.
"Their goal has always been 130, and last Friday they had a 129.9," Willowbrook coach Annette Nocek said. "We had some mistakes (on Monday) that we could fix, so we'll get there to 130 as long as we hit all the way around."
Senior Tamara Mendez is one of the biggest reasons the Warriors are finding success. She won bars with an 8.5 and floor with an 8.65 on her way to winning the all-around with a 33.7 despite battling a lingering leg injury.
"It was a pretty good meet, but I've been injured a while and am just coming back from it, but I'm feeling much better now," she said. "I'm hoping to overcome this injury and be as good as new, and hopefully be able to do all the tricks that I can."
Mendez is in her first season at Willowbrook. She performed for Addison Trail last year, after spending her first two high school years not competing but attending Hampshire.
"She's fit in quite well and they adopted her and she became part of the team," Nocek said. "I didn't name a team captain, but she naturally became a leader, more by an example than anything. Her work ethic is unmatched, and the kids have seen her fall and get hurt and keep going. She walks the walk and it's awesome that she came in from another school and just morphed into a leader."
Riley McFarlane was right behind Mendez, placing second in the all-around with a 33. She also won vault with an 8.8. Gloria Johnson added an 8.5 on vault for the winners.
Rumel paced the Raiders, taking third in the all-around with a 32.9. She was destined to finish higher but closed her night by having to count a pair of falls during her floor routine.
"My teammates made me feel better, so it wasn't the biggest deal," she said. "I finally got my back tuck on beam and I threw my superior release on bars too, so it was a night to try new things, which was nice, because it obviously went well."
Rumel scored an 8.7 on vault, an 8.2 on bars and won beam with an 8.8. Freshman teammate Michelle Glover added an 8.5 on both floor and vault, while Stephanie Mondragon was awarded an 8.35 on floor and 8.2 on beam.
"It's probably one of the best meets we've had since I've been here with the skill set, the scores and the parents," Glenbard South coach Lee Wood said. "All the parents, both Willowbrook's and ours, and even the basketball players coming up to watch and packing the gym. That doesn't happen very often, so it was great to see."