Klein thrilled with 2nd-place finish

The daredevil was on her game Saturday in Palatine.

Wheaton Warrenville co-op senior Lenna Klein had a fantastic finish on the balance beam, scoring a 9.55 to place second during the IHSA girls gymnastics individual championships.

Klein had improved upon the 9.275 she tallied during Friday's preliminaries.

"I love beam because I like the daredevil aspect of it," she said. "It is going to be very tough to not compete anymore, especially since I was hurt last year, so this was my first time at state. Now that I've been here, I want to come back, but I can't, which is sad."

Her success left her ecstatic.

"It's almost surreal," she said. "Beam's my favorite thing to do, so to stick my routine and then on top of it to place second, when I didn't think I'd be able to place that high, I don't know what more say other than I'm really glad that on my last time competing I was able to stick my routine."

Her finish was the best at the school since Carmen Meier took second on vault in 2005.

"She had less control on Friday but was really on point (on Saturday)," Wheaton Warrenville co-op coach Maureen Latimer said. "It's great to see this happen with a senior, especially after all the years of gymnastics she's put in."

Naperville North senior Michaela Robert wrapped up her years of high school gymnastics by tying for sixth on bars with a 9.5 and also sharing ninth place on floor with a 9.425.

She was also named "Senior Gymnast of the Year."

"I'm very happy with how I ended my career," she said. "I really couldn't ask for anything more and it really hasn't sunk it yet that it's over, because I know I'm going to miss it."

Addison Trail sophomore Kennedy O'Neill had a couple falls on beam but was smiling afterward. She wasn't going to let an atypical performance get her down, especially after she was just one of a dozen gymnasts to qualify for the finals.

"I just tried to stay positive, knowing that I made it here, which was amazing in itself," she said. "I just tried to finish strong."

O'Neill didn't even think she'd be in Palatine on Saturday.

"I thought someone had scored higher (on Friday) but she was just an all-arounder, so then I realized I had made it, which I really couldn't comprehend. It was an amazing feeling. I can't describe it."

All but one of the 11 finalists on bars, Glenbard North sophomore Erin Bregman, improved their score from Friday to Saturday. That included Bregman's junior teammate, Allison Wahrman, who went from a 9.3 to a 9.425 to place ninth. Bregman's routine was also solid, but her score dropped from a 9.45 to a 9.35.

"I did the best routine that I could honestly do," Wahrman said. "I think they were judging a little low (on Friday). I could've done it better, but I was happy with it, and it was nice for three of us to make it (to Saturday).

Glenbard North junior Katie Murphy was one of the final competitors on floor, which was also the final event of the competition. She tied for seventh with a 9.45, which was an improvement from her 9.4 on Friday.