Warren captures crown
The North is rising again.
That is, the teams located in Lake County put on a show at the Conant gymnastics invitational on Saturday afternoon -- taking the top three spots while the host Cougars placed fourth.
Warren won the meet with 110.425 points.
Carmel placed second with 108.70, while Stevenson was third with 107.225.
Conant (105.5) took fourth and Glenbard West (105.05) was fifth 105.05.
"This really was exciting and what the girls intended to do," said Warren's first-year coach Carrie Parker. "Winning a meet like this is going to give them extra confidence and motivation. We still have some new things we want to put in."
Leading the way for Warren were Kim Gotlund, who won vault (9.525); Kacie Holop, who placed first on beam (9.75); and Gotlund and Holop, who finished second (37.175) and third (37.125) in the all-around.
Carmel features a mix of veterans and new varsity gymnasts who are already making an impact.
"This was our first full meet," said Corsairs coach Sarah Doyle. "This was the first time our two new freshmen competed."
Ophelia Carmichael worked two events, while Dani Clement did three. Sophomore Amber Mirski won bars (9.45), took second on vault (9.475) and was fourth in the all-around (36.9).
"It was the most successful day I've had in gymnastics, except I fell on floor," Mirski said. "I tried my double full on floor, but then I messed up. It'll be better next time."
"She was one of our strongest all-arounders last year, but she had that freshman thing," Doyle said. "And I think she was under the radar with Nicole Viltz on the team."
Stevenson was right behind Carmel.
"This was kind of an interesting meet because only three scores counted," said Patriots coach Judy Harwood. "It's easier at the beginning (of the season) because you don't have to have that much depth."
Conant continues to show that it is a legitimate contender in the MSL and beyond.
"I was impressed with how the teams did," said Conant's Cara Cosentino, who won the all-around with her personnal-best score (37.5) and posted her highest beam score (9.6) while placing second. "I haven't really added new tricks yet. I've been concentrating on cleaning things up."