Preview: Reigning Champs Set High Bar
March 7, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Farmington United could be on the verge of one of the most dominating Finals weekends in MHSAA gymnastics history.
The co-operative program with athletes from Farmington, North Farmington and Farmington Hills Harrison won its first team title last season since finishing a string of three straight in 2006, and enters Friday’s team competition at Rockford High School having won all of its meets this winter.
Saturday’s individual competitions provide similar opportunities. Farmington United gymnasts Elena Vargo and Kacey Noseworthy won Division 1 and 2 Regional titles, respectively, last week.
But there are plenty of challengers – like Rockford/Sparta, which won three straight team titles before finishing second a year ago. Rams senior Reagan Ammon posted the highest Division 2 Regional score of last weekend and will make a run at that title, while Grosse Pointe United sophomore Cate Gagnier is the reigning Division 1 all-around champion and knows the competition after finishing second to Vargo at their Regional meet.
Team competition begins at 2 p.m. Friday, with the final rotation scheduled for 6:40 p.m. Individual competition in both Divisions 1 and 2 begins at noon Saturday.
Below is a glance at a number of contenders, both team and individual, who could work into the mix this weekend. Click for rotation schedules for both days of competition.
Team Contenders
Farmington United – The reigning champion is undefeated this season and won its Regional at White Lake Lakeland by 8.4 points with a 148.450 – also the highest Regional score regardless of site by more than three points. Comparatively, Farmington won last year’s Finals championship by two tenths of a point scoring 144.750. Four of seven scorers at last season’s Finals are back, with wins at the annual Jeanne Carruss Invitational at Lakeland by 2.5 points, the Rockford Flip-Flip Invitational by just under three points and at the Canton Invitational by more than three. Junior Elena Vargo is a Division 1 individual favorite, and Farmington also qualified five Division 2 all-around competitors for Saturday.
Fowlerville – This co-operative program, which also includes gymnasts from Byron, Pinckney and Perry, won its first Regional title last week to advance to the Finals as a team for the first time. The Gladiators’ 143.075 was the fourth-highest Regional score across the state, an exciting jump from sixth place and 138.025 a year ago. Fowlerville has three Division 2 qualifiers and one in Division 1 competing all-around Saturday.
Livonia Blue – Blue improved from 10th at the 2017 Final to fourth last season and won its Regional last week with a 143.450 – the third-highest Regional score statewide. Blue was undefeated in dual meets this winter and finished second to Farmington at the Carruss Invitational and third at the Canton Invitational. The team has two qualifiers in Division 1 all-around and one in Division 2 competing Saturday.
Rockford/Sparta – The Rams won three straight team championships from 2015-17 and could provide the biggest challenge again to Farmington after finishing third at last season’s Final, only three tenths of a point off the lead. Rockford/Sparta won the Lowell Invitational and Kenowa Hills Invitational and took second to Farmington at both its Flip-Flop Invitational and the Canton Invitational. The Rams won their Regional by more than five points with the state’s second highest score of the weekend, 145.325. Five gymnasts will compete all-around in Division 2 on Saturday.
Division 1
Ariana Adams, Hartland junior – Adams finished second at the Regional at Grand Ledge with a 35.375 all-around and second places on bars (8.8) and beam (8.85). She tied for 14th on bars at the 2018 Division 1 Finals.
Hannah Biesbrock, Grand Rapids Forest Hills junior – Biesbrock repeated as all-around champion at the Regional at Kenowa Hills with a score of 35.575 and first places on bars (8.925) and floor (9.200). She finished eighth all-around at the 2018 Division 1 Finals.
Aniessa Conway, Livonia Blue senior – Conway will compete at her third Division 1 Finals and finished third all-around a year ago while taking first on bars. She finished fifth among a strong group at her Regional at Plymouth last weekend with a score of 35.025, again winning bars (9.150) and also floor (9.400).
Isabella Dyer, Fraser sophomore – After qualifying for the Finals in two events last season, Dyer will compete in the all-around after following up championship contenders Elena Vargo and Cate Gagnier at the White Lake Lakeland Regional with a 36.650. She tied for ninth on vault at last year’s Finals.
Makenna Fedrigo, Livonia Blue sophomore – Fedrigo finished 14th in the Division 1 all-around at last year’s Finals as a freshman, with a third place on bars. She will return as a Regional champion, coming in first at Plymouth with a 36.150.
Cate Gagnier, Grosse Pointe United sophomore – Gagnier closed the first year of her high school career as the Division 1 individual champion, winning vault and beam on the way to an all-around 37.225. She finished second at the Plymouth Regional last week to Vargo, scoring a 37.275 while winning beam (9.625).
Jessica Huddleston, Livonia Red junior – The all-around runner-up at the Plymouth Regional scored a 35.975 to miss the championship by just 0.175 points. She took second on bars and third on beam.
Maddie Girard, Jackson senior – A Division 2 Finals qualifier on beam last season, Girard moved up to Division 1 and finished second all-around at the Kenowa Hills Regional with a 35.075. She won beam (9.125) and was second on bars.
Lizzie Maurer, Grand Ledge sophomore – She improved from fourth at last year’s Regional at her school to first last week, scoring a 37.125 with first places on floor (9.475), beam (9.425) and bars (9.075). She finished fifth all-around at the 2018 Division 1 Finals.
Katelyn O’Brien, Northville sophomore – O’Brien placed third all-around at the Plymouth Regional with a 35.925. She finished second on vault and fifth on beam and floor.
Ashlyn Shudick, Hartland junior – Shudick finished third all-around at Grand Ledge with a 35.225, less than two tenths of a point behind runner-up teammate Adams. Shudick took second on floor, tied for fourth on vault and tied for fifth on beam.
Maisie Swafford, Plymouth sophomore – After finishing 13th all-around at last season’s Finals as a freshman, Swafford will take a run at the top 10 after finishing fourth at the Plymouth Regional with a 35.375. She won the beam with a 9.625.
Elena Vargo, Farmington United junior – At the bottom of this group by alphabetical order, Vargo very well could finish at the top Saturday afternoon. She won the Lakeland Regional with a 38.200 all-around including first places on floor (9.775), bars (9.475) and vault (9.675).
Division 2
Reagan Ammon, Rockford senior – Ammon finished first among five teammates and all Division 2 gymnasts at the Regional at Kenowa Hills with an all-around 37.050 including first places on beam (9.275) and bars (9.100). She finished fifth all-around at the 2018 Division 2 Finals.
Morgan Case, Rockford junior – Case finished all-around runner-up at last year’s Division 2 Finals, scoring 36.825 and missing the title by a quarter of a point – although she did take first place on floor. She finished third all-around last week, scoring 35.600 while taking firsts on floor (9.550) and vault (9.400).
Ava Farquhar, Farmington United senior – After placing seventh all-around at last season’s Division 2 Finals, Farquhar will aim for one more strong finish after coming in fourth all-around at the Lakeland Regional with a 35.600. She tied for first at the Regional on beam (9.450).
Ashley Faulkner, Rockford junior – Faulkner improved from tied for 10th two years ago to sixth all-around at last season’s Division 2 Finals, and the climb could continue after she finished second at last week’s Regional only to Ammon. Faulkner scored 36.000, finishing second on bars and beam, and also is the reigning Division 2 Finals champ on bars.
Nicole Graham, Huron Valley sophomore – Graham was the only non-Farmington gymnast to qualify all-around from the Division 2 Regional at Plymouth, scoring a 36.175 to finish second while tying for first on beam (9.450). She finished 17th all-around at last season’s Division 2 Finals.
Lauren Hayden, Linden sophomore – Last year’s 19th-place all-around finisher at the Division 2 Finals could make a big jump after winning the all-around at the Grand Ledge Regional with a 35.675. She also won the beam (9.300) last week.
Isabelle Litz, Fowlerville junior – Litz competed on bars and vault at the 2018 Division 2 Finals, but will return as an all-around competitor. She finished second at the Grand Ledge Regional with a 35.600, just 75 hundredths of a point off the lead.
Sarah Litz, Fowlerville freshman – At her first Regional, Litz came in fourth all-around with a 35.500 and top-seven places on beam and floor.
Chantal Lokers, Rockford senior – Lokers has finished ninth and eighth, respectively, in the Division 2 all-around at the last two Finals. She came in fourth among teammates and overall at their Regional last week with a 35.505.
Kacey Noseworthy, Farmington United senior – Noseworthy tied for third all-around in Division 2 last season and is among favorites again coming off the Regional title at Lakeland. She scored 36.850 to win by more than six tenths of a point, taking first on floor (9.625) and bars (tied – 9.000).
Ella Seale, Plymouth sophomore – Seale finished 18th all-around at last year’s Division 2 Finals with two top-eight event places, and she was the only Division 2 gymnast to break 35 at the Plymouth Regional. She won with a 35.725 while taking first on beam (9.725).
Sydney Schultz, Farmington United sophomore – A freshman contributor to last year’s team title, Schultz also finished 12th in the Division 2 all-around and could move up as well this weekend. She finished third at the Lakeland Regional with a 35.975, taking first place in the vault (9.550).
Apryl Smith, Linden sophomore – After competing at last season’s Finals on just beam, Smith also will return this time in the all-around. She finished third at her Regional with a 35.525
PHOTO: A Rockford gymnast competes on the uneven parallel bars during a meet Feb. 11. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
LFLF Gymnastics Turns Rivals Into Teammates, Friends
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
March 16, 2021
When members of the Linden/Fenton/Lake Fenton gymnastics team come together, new friendships are formed, and school rivalries are put to the side.
Well, mostly.
“Lauren (Hayden) is actually on the Fenton soccer team,” Linden senior Apryl Smith said. “My friends are on the Linden girls soccer team, so when I’m at the game, I’m cheering for both. But I tell her, ‘Linden is going to beat you.’”
It’s all in good fun for the LFLF teammates, as the three schools have been competing together for seven years all under the direction of Nancy Holden, who runs the local youth program, Gymstars Gymnastics, and started the high school co-op team.
This year’s team features nine gymnasts, with six from Linden (Smith, Reygan Acox, Kynleigh Copeland, Grace Cross, Eva Lau and Avery Miller), two from Fenton (Hayden and Maty Temrowski) and one from Lake Fenton (Natasha Duden). It carries the Linden name, as that’s the school that originally had the largest contingent and helped Holden launch the program.
“When they were younger, their competitions were more about themselves and their own placements and ribbons,” said Holden, who competed for Hartland High School. “Now that it’s a high school team, it’s a team event. Even though they’re individuals, it’s still a team event, so doing well for your team is kind of the goal. We’re getting ready for Regionals (Saturday at Grand Ledge), and we’re just trying to go in there as a team and do well as a team. We want to keep the girls focused on that, because if they do well for the team, they’ll do well for themselves.”
Smith and Hayden – the only seniors on this year’s team – are both appreciative of the opportunity to compete at the high school level, even if they’ve never really thought it wouldn’t be an option for them.
“I think it started out when I was young enough to not even realize that it had started,” Hayden said.
If that appreciation ever were to fade, the LFLF gymnasts don’t have to look far for someone who didn’t have their same opportunity. Katie Holden, Nancy’s daughter and assistant coach, graduated from Fenton in 2011, before her mother had started the high school team.
“I’m living through them a little bit,” Katie said with a laugh. “But (coaching the team is) very rewarding.”
While Katie couldn’t compete as a high schooler, she did start her coaching career with the Gymstars while she was at Fenton, and has been doing so for more than a decade. She’s been an assistant with LFLF for the past three years.
The mother-daughter team meshes well with one another.
“We get along 99 percent of the time, so it’s really great,” Katie said. “I think we balance each other perfectly, especially age-wise. I can connect with the girls, then my mom’s there to lay down the law. It’s a really nice dynamic. I got to watch growing up how she taught, and what helped me get through my years of gymnastics. I’m a personal trainer, as well, so I have more of that conditioning aspect that I can bring to the team.”
Katie handles the team’s choreography on the floor and balance beam, while Nancy brings nearly 30 years of experience coaching gymnastics.
“I think we are a great team together,” Nancy said. “With her youth, she can connect with the girls really well. She’s got that great, fun, young personality, so the girls really like her and they can relate to her. She has that youthful dance expertise, and I think together, we make a great team.”
Perhaps as important as the way the Holdens complement one another, is the fact they’ve been working with most of the LFLF team members since they were young gymnasts.
“I think it’s helpful because if I was going into a new gym, I think I would have been a little wary,” said Hayden, who joined Gymstars 15 years ago. “Knowing them for years, then going to the next level already knowing them, I could be myself and progress as a gymnast without having to worry about showing them what I can do.”
Hayden has thrived in high school competition, winning a Division 2 Regional all-around and balance beam title in 2019. Smith was third in that year’s Regional, as Linden qualified for the MHSAA Finals as a team. While there were no 2020 Finals because of COVID-19, Smith was a Regional runner-up.
That experience helps build confidence for Saturday’s Regional, and also allows them to assist their younger teammates as they enter the postseason.
“I think it helps stress-wise,” Smith said. “We all get super stressed out because you get one chance and it’s make or break. It’s not like throughout the season I did good, so I get to go to states. It’s not like that. It gives me a little more reassurance that I have the skill to get there, and I just have to perform well. As someone in a leadership role, I try to tell them to focus on the skill rather than being at Regionals.”
There’s some optimism within the program that another trip to the Finals is possible.
“We’ve had a great team this year,” Nancy Holden said. “We have really nice team dynamics, and everybody's having fun and getting along, which is sometimes a challenge when you have three different schools coming together. We are hoping that we can be one of the top three teams (in the region) so we can make it to states as a team. That’s always the goal, but it doesn’t mean that it will happen on that day. We just have to make sure we hit our routines. We’re looking forward to that opportunity.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Students from three schools form together the Linden/Fenton/Lake Fenton girls gymnastics team again this season. (Middle) LFLF’s Apryl Smith performs her routine on the balance beam. (Below) Katie Holden, left, and Nancy Holden form a daughter/mother coaching team. (Photos courtesy of Nancy Holden.)