Gymnasts from all around the state meet at Medford’s Simek Center

The Simek Recreation Center in Medford served as the center of Wisconsin’s gymnastics universe over the weekend, hosting more than 650 athletes and 25 clubs in the Badger State Games.

Hub City Gymnastics of Marshfield served as the host for the three-day event, which was one of the last events of the 2021 winter portion of the Badger State Games. The Simek Center offered enough space to host fans and all of the clubs, while spreading out the competition over 12 different sessions from Friday afternoon to Sunday evening.

Medford’s Rainbow Gymnastics Club placed fifth in Level 2 and Level 7 team competition and seventh in Level 6. Several more individuals found success as well during the second meet held in the Simek Center in four weeks. The club hosted its own Rainbow Spectacular there on March 20.

The Level 2 group posted a team score of 107.7 to earn its fifth-place finish out of 10 clubs. The Marinette-Menominee Gliders won the Level 2 championship with 112 points. Ruby Holtman led the way with a secondplace total of 35.8 points in Group AA. Out of 15 girls, Holtman tied for first on the vault with a 9.4, took third on the floor (9.0) and the uneven bars (8.9) and fourth on the balance beam (8.5). Tenley Colby (35.6) and Alyssa Doriot (33.3) were fifth and 12th out of 16 girls in Group BB. Colby tied for second on the floor with a 9.1 and got a 9.1 on vault. She added 8.7s on bars and beam. Doriot tied for eighth on bars with an 8.7, got 8.4s on vault and floor and added a 7.8 on beam. In Group CC, session 1, Aliyah Galan tied for fifth out of 15 competitors with 34.8 all-around points, including a 9.2 on vault that was good for third, a 9.25 on floor, an 8.95 on beam and a 7.4 on bars. Lydia Schaefer tacked on a sixth-place finish in Group CC, session 2, with 34.45 total points that included an 8.8 on floor, an 8.7 on beam, an 8.6 on vault and an 8.35 on bars.

Rainbow’s four Level 7 gymnasts compiled 98.7 points to take fifth out of seven teams. Team Up of Lake Hallie was first with 110.4 points. Delaina Meyer placed fifth in Group A with 33.0 points and Madilyn Mueller was 11th out of 15 girls with 31.05. Meyer earned a solid 9.1 that placed third on the floor and added an 8.8 on vault and 7.55s on bars and beam. Mueller earned an 8.55 on vault, an 8.45 on floor, a 7.45 on bars and a 6.6 on beam. In Group B, Shayla Radlinger (31.3) and Sadie Moore (26.95) were 13th and 15th. Radlinger’s total included an 8.7 on floor and an 8.6 on vault. Moore didn’t compete on bars, but had a good meet otherwise, placing second on vault with a 9.2, fourth on floor with a 9.45 and sixth on beam with an 8.3.

The Level 6 crew scored 101.75 to finish seventh out of 13 clubs. GymSport of Wausau earned the title with 110.05 points. Veronica Mateer earned the silver medal in Group C with 34.1 all-around points. She tied for second out of 16 girls with a 9.15 on floor, took third on bars with an 8.05, tied for fifth on beam with an 8.45 and added an 8.45 on vault. Kailyn Haenel wasn’t far behind, placing fourth with 33.55 all-around points. She won the floor competition with a 9.2, took third on beam at 8.65 and was fifth on vault with an 8.8. She got a 6.9 on bars. Aliyah Pilgrim was 11th with 31.55 all-around points, including an 8.6 on vault, an 8.3 on floor, a 7.55 on beam and a 7.1 on bars. Finley Arndt was third out of 15 girls in Group B, using a 9.0 on vault, 8.6s on floor and beam and a 7.55 on bars to total 33.75 points.

Olivia Schaefer (33.2) and Mackinley Mueller (31.65) were fourth and eighth out of 15 entrants in Group A of Level 4. Schaefer placed third on beam (8.7), fourth on vault (9.0), fifth on bars (7.2) and seventh on floor (8.3). Mueller’s day included an 8.55 on beam, an 8.4 on floor and an 8.2 on vault.

Medford high schoolers Katelyn Malchow and Makala Ulrich competed at Level 8. Malchow was fifth out of 11 gymnasts in Group B. Scores of 8.6 on floor, 8.35 on vault, 7.2 on beam and 7.0 on bars gave her 31.15 all-around points. Ulrich was eighth of 12 in Group C, including a second-place score of 7.5 on bars. She got an 8.45 on floor and an 8.2 on vault while totaling 30.95 points.

Jordyn Grant (33.9) tied for fifth out of 13 gymnasts in Group E of Level 3. She tied for third on vault with a 9.2 and had solid scores of 8.7 on beam and 8.3 on floor. Raylin Rothmeier (32.45) was eighth out of 16 girls in Group A of Level 5, highlighted by an 8.6 on vault, an 8.3 on floor and an 8.1 on beam.

The Xcel Gold competition included Rainbow’s Bethany Jokiel and Sophie Koester. Jokiel (34.1) was 11th of 18 gymnasts in Group C with strong scores of 9.15 on floor, 8.55 on bars, 8.3 on vault and 8.1 on beam. Koester (32.05) was 16th in Group A, led by an 8.3 on beam, an 8.2 on vault and a 7.9 on bars.

Olivia Johnson (32.55) and Elizabeth Nelles (29.45) finished 14th and 15th in Group B of the Xcel Silver competition. Johnson’s efforts Saturday morning included an 8.85 on vault, an 8.7 on beam and an 8.0 on floor. Nelles earned an 8.55 on vault, a 7.8 on beam and a 7.6 on bars.

Brooks a winner