Somewhere, perhaps, there’s a group of athletes who have been as immediately successful as the girls of the Enumclaw High gymnastics program.
Just maybe. But it’s unlikely.
Friday, under the guidance of coach Ben Skipworth, the EHS crew captured its second state Class 2A/3A championship in only its third year of existence. The only “slip” came during the program’s inaugural season, when the Hornet girls finished second, painfully shy of the top spot.
Competing at the Tacoma Dome exhibition hall, EHS used a final-event rally Friday to overcome Kamiakin and again grab the state’s top honor. The Hornets finished with a season-high 181.5 team points, compared with Kamiakin’s 179.6. Rounding out the top five were Mount Si, Columbia River and Decatur.
“We worked really hard all year,” Olivia Bannerot said, a junior. “The second place team (Kamiakin) was really close. We competed out of our minds. It was awesome.”
Senior Molly Mattheis said of the state met, “The whole experience was fun. This team is just one of kind. We’ve all grown up together.”
In winning another team title, EHS outscored its opposition in three of the four events. It all came down to the vault where, with a championship on the line, the Hornets nailed their performances to clinch the team trophy.
In the all-around scoring, Enumclaw’s Olivia Bannerot placed fourth, Molly Mattheis was sixth and Maddison Ward was ninth. Also contributing to the championship cause were Victoria Hernandez, 14th, and Emily Berte, tie for 20th.
With Friday’s team competition behind them, Saturday’s action was all about individual performances — and Enumclaw’s gymnasts showed the depth that made them the state’s best.
Bannerot brought home the gold in the bars, a silver on the vault and floor.
Mathheis took home a bronze on the bars.
Individual Results
Bars: Bannerot, first; Mattheis, third; and Ward, fifth.
Vault: Bannerot, tied for second; Mattheis, tied for ninth; and Hernandez, tied for 11th.
Beam: Mattheis, tied for fifth; Berte, eighth; Bannerot, ninth; Ward, 12th; and Hernandez, 16th.
Floor exercise: Bannerot, second; Mattheis, tied for seventh; Berte, 11th; and Ward, tied for 12th.
