Girls gymnastics: Wheaton co-op edges Lake Park for sectional crown

Numbers figure prominently in sports.

The big one for the teams fighting for a trip to next weekend’s girls gymnastics state finals during Thursday night’s Wheaton Warrenville South sectional was 141.425, the final sectional among the four in the IHSA state series.

While the winner automatically qualified, the four highest scoring teams who didn’t win a sectional also qualify for the finals at Palatine on Feb. 16-17.

Wheaton co-op put up the biggest number, 144.55 points, receiving a spectacular effort from senior Haylie Hinckley, who won the all-around (37.575) as well as vault (9.7) and floor (9.55), to win the sectional.

“I was super excited about everything, very happy about the team.,” Hinckley said. “We really pulled it together after regionals because we had a little bit of a hot mess at regionals (141.9), but we definitely pulled it together and I’m so happy for everyone and that we made it.”

That score still would have been enough to qualify for state, but Wheaton co-op cleaned up some things, especially on vault and floor, improving its total by 2.65 points from the regional.

“I was very, very happy about vault, because at regionals it was definitely not my best, and today it just clicked and it was amazing,” Hinckley said. “I was very happy about that. Then on floor I was super excited about that, too. After I landed that double back I knew I just had it and it was great. I was in a lot of pain, but that’s OK, it was still great.”

The Lancers had beaten Wheaton co-op by 0.475 at the DuKane Conference meet on Jan. 24 while Wheaton co-op won the dual between the schools on Jan. 10 by 0.2. The Lancers finished with 144.1 points to earn the top at-large qualifier for state.

Glenbard West (137.95) was third and followed by Maine South (137.85), Geneva (137.475) and York (137.175). The other teams learning their fate as at-large teams included Glenbrook North (142.45), New Trier (141.975) and Lake Zurich (141.45). Lake Forest (141.425) fell short by 0.025.

Wheaton co-op’s Mia LaFratta has enjoyed competing in the same gym with Lake Park during her senior year. That includes against the kind of competition that posts a score on bars (9.375) that Glenbard West junior Grace Flint was awarded along with Lake Park senior Julia Bartnik and York senior Angela Stangarone to tie for second place. LaFratta’s 9.45 won it.

“We were thrilled,” LaFratta said. “We have been going back and forth with them with scores, so it was super exciting to win. Our goal was honestly to qualify to state so we were focused just on the score and being clean and having fun. When we have fun out there we always do better and we definitely did today so I’m very happy.”

The regional proved to be a tougher meet for Wheaton co-op.

“Each meet is different and we were watching scores and seeing what was possible and it all came down to if they were able to replicate their training,” Wheaton co-op coach Maureen Kermend said. “Regional was a little bit of a tougher meet and they made mistakes and recovered well, but I think they just had more mistakes and we left regionals going (thinking) that was a better score than we anticipated for kind of how we did. But we knew with (Lake Park coach) Jake (Luketin), Lake Park has a great team and it was going to be close.”

Both teams saw their preparation methods rewarded with state trips.

“We did a lot of pressure sets,” Kermend said. “We have the boys basketball team here right now helping and the we had the football team and girls basketball team at practice the other day trying to get kids amped up.”

LaFratta praised the previous night’s practice.

“It helped prepare us for today because the crowd today was huge and it was so nice,” she said. “We had so many different students from different sports teams to support us, so being in our home with all of that support definitely contributed to our success.”

Ultimately, the Lancers got what they needed despite coming up behind Wheaton co-op.

“We knew coming in we had to get a 141.5 and we could’ve had three or four teams get that score tonight or four could’ve gotten 142s and all would’ve gone,” Luketin said. “Obviously it didn’t happen, but I told the girls when they were feeling a little of pressure is all we need is 35.3-something average event scores which was an eight-and-change, so when you put it in those terms, and the girls needed an 8.75 average on a couple events, they felt pretty good about that because they know what they’re capable of and I think it worked. It took the pressure off.”

The Lancers weren’t at their best yet scored the fourth most points among the sectionals behind Downers Grove co-op (146.1), Vernon Hills (145.5) and Wheaton co-op (144.55).

“We didn’t hit on any event,” Luketin said. “We kind of had a miss on every event, but it’s something that’s nice of our team, we’re insulated from some of the emotional damage that comes with a miss. There’s more girls coming up behind them and they feel the support of the girls before and after.”

Lancer senior Julia Bartnik was third (37.45) in the all-around to while senior Jordan Wach secured an at-large qualifier for the Lancers by placing sixth (36.075).

Bartnik also was second on vault (9.6) and third on floor (9.25).

“This past season we’ve just been working so hard not to beat anyone, but just to be ourselves and prove to ourselves that we can be a wonderful team,” she said. “And even with the second place finish we couldn’t be happier with how we performed under all this pressure, not at our home gym, nothing, and we did really well and we went to state last year so we kind of had that experience with only one new freshman this year in our lineup.”

Fellow senior Cali Keefe was fifth on bars (9.25) and ninth in the all-around (35.675) for the Lancers.

Angela Stangarone, a first-year senior for York, took second in the all-around (37.5) as well as floor (9.4) and bars (9.375), fourth on beam (9.3) and fifth on vault (9.425). Dukes freshman Melania Veselovsky (35.6) was 10th.

“With the support of this team and these coaches I’ve just kind of grown and gotten a lot cleaner in all of my skills,” she said “And we all supported each other today through the ups and downs. They really helped me personally and I feel ready (for state).”

DeKalb senior Annabella Simpson won beam (9.45), placed second on vault (9.6) and took fourth in the all-around (36.675)

“I’m very happy with the events I normally don’t do well on, so like beam and vault is normally pretty consistent, but I was rally happy I was able to up my score.” Simpson said. “This is probably one of the best scores I’ve gotten this year. I’m glad it all went really well.”

Maine South senior Anastasia Gritsonis was third on beam (9.375) and fourth on vault (9.5) to qualify for state. She finished eighth in the all-around (35.7).

Willowbrook junior Naomi Campbell landed in fifth place on bars (9.25) to qualify for state. She also made it on floor, tying Geneva senior Reese Lackey (9.125) in fourth place. Campbell was seventh in the all-around (35.825), behind Wheaton co-op senior Jordan Wach (36.075).