The Darien YMCA boys and girls gymnastics teams were in action across Connecticut and all the way to New Hampshire in recent weeks.
Four boys from the YMCA team qualified to compete at the USAG Region 6 Level 4-5 Championships in Brentwood, NH. Isaac Bell competed in the Level 4 Division 1 age 9-10 group, taking second on floor, third on pommel horse and vault, fifth on rings, fourth on high bar and sixth All-Around (AA). In the 11 and up group, Jackson Lawrence was the floor champ with 9.4 and was second on rings, third on parallel bars and fourth on high bar and AA.
In the Level 5 Division 1 competition, Ryland Herzog took second on high bar, sixth on vault and fourth on floor in the 9-10 group while Nate Smith was second on high bar and seventh on vault in the 11 and up group.
The Darien girls’ team competed in meets across Connecticut. At the Level 6 USAG State Championships in Southbury, Kristie Alianiello set the pace, taking first on beam and AA with 9.275 and 36.20 in the Junior D age group along with second on vault and bars and third on floor. Abigail O’Brien was champ on bars and floor with 8.775 and 9.225 and was sixth on beam and third AA.
In the Junior B age group, Anna Altier flipped to first on floor with 9.3 and was fifth on beam, seventh on bars and fourth on vault and AA. Julia Decsi vaulted to fourth and was seventh on floor and beam. In the Junior C group Melina Cardini earned ninth on vault.
At the YMCA Tri-State Invitational in Trumbull, the Level 3 squad captured the team championship and five gymnasts won the AA title for their age group and Level.
Olivea Rosenbaum paced the champion Level 3 team, taking first on vault, beam and AA with a huge 37.35 in the 12s age group and placing second on bars and floor. In the 13 and up group, Brooke Wallace swept the podium, taking first on every event and AA with 37.25. Meghan Canavan was just behind her in third on all events.
In the 7-8 group, Anna Rogers swung to first on bars and was fourth on vault, floor and AA. Lily Royce was the champ on bars and AA in the 9s group with 36.2 and was second on vault, sixth on beam and third on floor. Hannah Reyna earned third on vault, bars and AA, fourth on beam and seventh on floor. Sylvia Mickels took fourth on bars, third on beam and fifth on floor and AA.
In the 10 Senior group, Tanner Shanley earned second on beam, fourth on floor and AA and sixth on vault and bars. Kaia Woodman scored third on beam, fifth on bars and eighth on floor and AA.
Emma Bookless topped the podium on vault, bars and AA with an impressive 37.25 in the 11s group and was second on floor and third on beam. Grace Riva took second on beam, sixth on bars and seventh on vault.
At Level 4, Elise Hole vaulted to third and was fourth on bars and AA in the 7-9 age group. Madeleine McGivney swung to sixth on bars and was ninth on beam and AA in the 10s group.
Annelise Enters was the vault champ in the 11s group and placed fourth on bars and floor. In the 12-13 group, Mia MacDonald vaulted to second and was fourth on beam where Theodora Tertiropoulos placed seventh.
Competing in the 9-11s group, Emily McKee paced the third place Level 5 squad, taking first on floor with 8.9 and placing third on bars, beam and AA and fourth on vault where she tied with teammate Sophia Geffner. Geffner was also fourth on bars, beam and floor and fifth AA. In the 12-13 group, Alex Decsi swung to third on bars and earned fourth on floor and sixth on beam and AA.
Ali Kolman led the second place Level 6 team, taking first on beam and floor, where she tied teammate Lauren Smith, and placing third on vault and bars and second AA in the 9-11s group. Smith was also second on vault, bars and beam and third AA.
In the 12-13s group, Anna Primmer flipped to first on floor with 9.2 and was third on vault and beam and second on bars and AA. Sommer Schmidt was steady for second on beam and placed fourth on vault and bars. Kerry McDermott was the sole Level 7 competitor for Darien and swept the titles for the 16 and up group.
The girls’ team will compete next at the Connecticut YMCA State Championship meet in Southington.