| Sidelines: She is the OH gymnastics team (The Toledo Blade) Posted: 04 Mar 2010 05:07 AM PST Karla Dixon is the captain of the Ottawa Hills gymnastics team.
That wasn't a difficult honor for the senior to earn, though. After all, she is the team's only member.
"When my mom sits in the stands for meets, she says she hears the craziest stuff," Dixon said. "People will make up stuff like, 'Did you hear that all of the Ottawa Hills gymnasts are sick, and only one girl is here?'
"There's always some reason why my team isn't there."
But when the Green Bears' gymnast is performing, people take notice.
At last year's state meet Dixon placed second in the vault with a 9.275 score. That made Dixon this area's first state place-winner since Findlay's Elizabeth Otto tied for fourth in the floor exercise in 2003.This weekend she again will represent Ottawa Hills at the state meet at Hilliard Bradley High School, looking to become the first local state champ since Northview's Lindsay Puhl won the uneven parallel bars in 2001.
That's not bad for an athlete who spent two years away from the sport.
Dixon entered gymnastics at an early age and began competing in sanctioned events in first grade. But she left the sport when she entered high school.
"While I was competing in gymnastics in junior high, I also was competing in a ton of other sports," Dixon explained. "I didn't realize high school sports would take up so much time.
"My freshman year, I had to choose. So I played field hockey and soccer in the fall, basketball in the winter and both track and softball in the spring."
After two years of that full schedule, she realized something was missing.
"I realized that I missed gymnastics," Dixon said. "It's an individual sport, but you spend a lot of time with a lot of the same people, so you become a family.
"All the girls I competed with in gymnastics, I wasn't with them when I was in other sports. And I missed them."
So she contacted Ottawa Hills athletic director Tim Erickson, who approved of the move. Then she contacted Mike McKee, her coach at Sunrise who also is the coach at Southview, to ask him to be her coach.
Dixon admits she was apprehensive as she returned to the sport following her two-year hiatus.
"I wondered, 'Can I still do anything? Will I be terrible?'" she said. "But I also was excited. And in that first practice, things came back much more quickly than I thought they would. I felt I was only a couple of skills behind where I was when I quit."
McKee said he saw the same thing.
"I've known Karla most of her career as a gymnast," he said. "When she came back, she was stronger - in some ways, she was even better when she came back.
"She was learning some skills that she didn't quite acquire before she left, but when she came back she had had a little bit of a mental break, and she was able to focus on the skills.
"She relearned a lot of skills, and learned some new skills."
Dixon's second-place effort at last year's state meet has led to raised expectations for this year.
"I think [her second-place finish] gave her a little taste of what she could do," McKee said. "She came back a little hungry, more determined. She's added some new skills to her routines, and she has worked very hard.
"She's an awesome worker who is easy to coach. She's also a good listener who works hard to apply what you tell her."
Dixon found success at this year's district meet, tying Perrysburg's Chelsea Williams for the all-around title with a 35.875 score. Dixon also won the vault (9.325), while placing fourth on the uneven parallel bars (8.60) and the floor exercise (9.10). She will compete at state in all of those events.
"I was expecting to come back at the spot I was before, because that's what I did last year," Dixon said after taking another nine-month break between seasons. "Instead I had to come back and fix some things.
"My goal was just to hit everything, because I knew if I did that I could score well."
And while Dixon is officially considered the "team" at Ottawa Hills, she has unofficially become a part of the Southview team McKee has coached for the past 17 seasons.
"I practice with Southview, I travel with Southview and I compete with Southview," Dixon said. "I know my scores don't count for Southview, but in a weird way I feel as if I'm part of their team.
"Even though we're not on the same team, I cheer for them and they cheer for me."
McKee agreed, adding, "She's been accepted as a part of the Southview team. Our team has adopted her. In a fun way, she's a part of the team."
Dixon is only one of the local gymnasts who will compete at the state meet.
The team competition will begin at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow and will include teams from Napoleon and Perrysburg. The Wildcats, who won the district title with a score of 135.475, will feature seniors Kendall Homan and Taylor Dunbar as well as sophomores Riley Dunbar, Jayci Steingass and Bethany Wolf, along with freshman Kendall Anderson.
Perrysburg, which placed second with a 132.325, features seniors Jessica Brown and Samantha Parton, junior Hannah Wheeless, sophomores Chelsea Williams and Abbey Dunckel, and freshman Rebecca Garber.
The individual portion of the state meet begins at noon Saturday and features competition in all four individual events as well as the all-around.
Among those competing for the all-around title will be Dixon, Perrysburg's Williams, and Homan from Napoleon as well as Archbold's Kinsey Smith and Clay's Kylee Ault.
Dixon, Williams, Homan, Smith, and Megan Mastrisciano of Northview will vie for the title in the vault, while Smith, Anderson, Dixon, Williams, and Paige Fricke of Pettisville will compete for the crown in the uneven parallel bars.
Riley Dunbar, Williams, Kyra Schell of Notre Dame and Alexa Settlemire of Findlay will challenge on the balance beam, while the list of competitors in the floor exercise includes Williams, Smith, Homan and Dixon.
Contact John Wagner at:
jwagner@theblade.com
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| PHOTOS: Lakeville North girls gymnastics finish 4th in state (Lakeville Thisweek) Posted: 04 Mar 2010 02:06 PM PST |
| Gymnastics: Doerr and Krenz prep for state meet (Stillwater Gazette) Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:08 AM PST The Stillwater gymnastics team will be represented by sophomore Alicia Doerr and senior Kristina Krenz in Saturday's individual Class AA state gymnastics meet at the University of Minnesota Sports Pavilion.
Doerr is making her first trip to state and will compete in the beam and floor exercise while Krenz is competing at state for the fifth time in her six-year varsity career while competing in the bars.
"My hope is that they can have a good day, hit their routines and feel good about their performance," Ponies coach Traci Swenson said. "I'm not really sure what kind of potential there is for placing, but I think if either of them ended up in the top six it would be a nice surprise."
While Krenz is a familiar face at state, Doerr wasn't sure what to expect in her first season with the Ponies.
"It was a goal, but I wasn't really expecting it," Doerr said. "I didn't know how I would do. I just want to have fun and do the best I can. I'm a little nervous, but also excited. I just want to go in with a good attitude and have fun and not worry about it."
Krenz finished 21st in the bars and also competed in the all-around a year ago. She also advanced to state as a seventh-grader before placing third and second in the beam as a freshman and sophomore. Regardless of what happens on Saturday, she will end her career as one of the program's top gymnasts, but that is just part of the story.
"Her awards for gymnastics and the numbers of all-conference, all-section and all-state is amazing - and the years to get all-conference and all-state in the years she's been a part of this conference and section is doubly amazing," said Swenson, who spent 12 previous seasons as an assistant before taking over as head coach this winter. "She's probably one of the best leaders we've ever had and has really done an amazing job. We have a lot of younger girls on the team, two seniors and just one junior, and she's just really done an amazing job of showing those girls what it means to be a part of a team and support everybody and deal with disappointment in a really great way. We are going to miss her terribly."
It hasn't been easy, as Krenz has overcome numerous injuries during her prep career, including a minor concussion and torn ligaments in her foot this season. The torn ligaments diagnosis was actually positive news for someone who competes with a screw in her foot after breaking a bone in the same foot twice in the past. A year ago she was also severely limited by a stress fracture in her back, which prevented her from any offseason training.
"She's amazingly tough," Swenson said. "She's a really strong competitor and very determined."
Doerr appreciates having a familiar face on the floor for her inaugural state meet.
"I think it will be nice to have somebody there for support and to cheer you on," Doerr said. "I always feel better with somebody there."
"They're just really excited and we're excited for them," Swenson added. "I just hope they have a really good day."
The Ponies, who finished fourth with a season high score of 141.575 at the section meet, will also watch conference and section rival Roseville try to win its fifth straight state title in what is expected to be a competitive battle in Friday's team competition.
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| Gymnastics: Krenz places fifth at state meet (Stillwater Gazette) Posted: 04 Mar 2010 11:09 AM PST MINNEAPOLIS - Competing in her fifth Class AA state meet, Stillwater's Kristina Krenz delivered a stellar performance on Saturday to cap her gymnastics career with a high note at the University of Minnesota Sports Pavilion.
The senior finished fifth in the uneven bars with a personal best score of 9.6 in what will remain the final performance. Krenz has endured numerous injuries during her prep career, including a stress fracture in her back and broken bones and ligaments in her foot.
"I was very excited to end on such a positive," said Krenz, who plans to continue her education at the University of Minnesota in the fall. "It was my highest score ever so that was pretty exciting. It was nice to be able to finish strong. I don't really think it's hit me that I'm done with gymnastics."
Krenz, who placed second at state in the balance beam as a sophomore and third as a freshman, never considered the bars one of her strongest events but dedicated more time to it this season while recovering from those torn ligaments in her foot - which already has a screw in it from the previous broken bones.
"It definitely didn't used to be one of my better events," Krenz said. "Due to the foot injury, I've been able to work bars a little more."
Ponies coach Traci Swenson was unsure what to expect from Krenz on Saturday, but the result should have been more predictable based on her history.
"There was a tiny moment before she started her routine when the look on her face was different," Swenson said. "For a second, I worried that she might be overcome with the idea of this being her last routine. As soon as she started her routine, though, I knew that she was going to do great.
"She was clean throughout the routine with an outstanding release move, the best front giants she has ever done and a solid landing on her dismount. She has a very difficult routine on bars, but she made that routine look easy because she performed it so well."
In addition to her state runner-up and third-place showings in the beam, Krenz competed at state as a seventh grader in the bars - the only seventh-grade state qualifier that year - also advanced in the bars and all-around a year ago.
Her score in the bars on Saturday tied her with Kellie Osborn (1982) for fith place on Stillwater's all-time list in the event and she also holds the school record in the beam at 9.725.
"It was so exciting to see her on the podium in her last state meet," Swenson said. "With five state meet experiences, she is without a doubt one of our most successful gymnasts in school history. I could not have been more proud of Kristina. It was an outstanding way for her to finish an exceptional career as a Stillwater gymnast."
The litany of injuries has done little to sour Krenz on a memorable prep career.
"I've had a lot of injuries, but it's nice to have a team that's always there and coaches that are really supportive," Krenz said.
Krenz was joined at state by teammate Alicia Doerr, who placed 27th in the balance beam (8.875) and 32nd in the floor exercise (8.7) while making her first-ever trip to state.
"She had a couple of small errors connecting skills in her floor routine, however, other than that her tumbling and dance was outstanding," Swenson said. "She was in the process of completing an exceptional beam routine - nailing her back tuck-wolf jump combination - but she had a directional error on the penultimate skill of her routine, which caused a fall.
"Despite the errors, the state meet was a great experience for Alicia. She had the opportunity to see what the best high school gymnasts in the state are doing and she is excited to strive to match them."
n Northfield posted a winning score of 148.325 to unseat four-time reigning state champion Roseville in Friday's Class AA team competition. Roseville placed second with a score of 146.225. Cambridge-Isanti (145.45) and Lakeville North (145.225) followed in third and fourth.
Individual results
Vault - 1. Natalie Merrifield (Bloomington Jefferson) 9.75; 2. Kaylee Jondal (Elk River/Zimmerman) 9.7; 3. Brooke Bistodeau (Rogers) 9.675.
Uneven bars - 1. Jena Jondahl (Elk River/Zimmerman) 9.7; 2. Kellie Dougherty (White Bear Lake) 9.7; 3. Sabrina Hoover (Rogers) 9.675; 5. Kristina Krenz (Stillwater) 9.6.
Beam - 1. Sabrina Hoover (Rogers) 9.7; 2. Sveta Mason (Northfield) 9.575; 3. Mariah Miller (St. Cloud Tech) 9.575; 27. Alicia Doerr (Stillwater) 8.875.
Floor - 1. Jena Jondahl (Elk River/Zimmerman) 9.7; 2. Kaylee Jondahl (Elk River/Zimmerman) 9.675; 3. Kayla Widmar (Lakeville South) 9.625; 32. Alicia Doerr (Stillwater) 8.7.
All-around - 1. Sabrina Hoover (Rogers) 38.575; 2. Natalie Merrifield (Bloomington Jefferson) 38.3; 3. Kayla Widmar (Lakeville South) 38.025.
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