WORTHINGTON - Technically, you can’t say the Worthington Trojans gymnastics team is improving each week by leaps and bounds. But they’re improving, and in gymnastics even tenths of a point are significant.
“If we keep climbing each meet just a few percentage points, I’ll be very happy. That’s where we want to go; we want to keep going up,” said WHS head coach Joni Reitmeier Thursday night after outscoring visiting Windom/Mountain Lake.
The Trojans totaled 141.75 points at the local armory, compared to the Cobras’ 123.45. Worthington’s strong performance came just two days after a season’s best 141.075 in another home victory over Martin County Area.
Worthington captured the top three positions on every event Thursday.
Freshman Taylor Eggers won two individual events, the uneven parallel bars (8.525) and the floor exercise (9.250). Maria Contreras was first on vault (9.275) and Kara Thuringer first on balance beam (9.025). Another Trojan, McKenna Prunty, won the all-around with a 35.725 score after placing second in two events.
The armory building is a tight, confining place for a gym meet. But to the Trojans, it’s home, sweet home.
“It’s nice to be home. They feel really comfortable,” Reitmeier said.
Reitmeier said she was especially pleased Thursday night with Worthington’s performances on floor and beam.
“We’re getting way more comfortable on balance beam. And floor, we were more consistent today,” she said.
The Trojans out-pointed the Cobras on floor 36.625 to 31.575, on beam 34.825 to 30.7, on vault 36.7 to 33.475 and on bars 33.6 to 27.7.
Eggers was second on vault (9.2), third on beam (8.675) and second in the all-around (35.650). Contreras was second on floor (9.225), third on bars (8.373) and third in the all-around (34.875). Prunty’s second-place scores on bars and beam were 8.475 and 8.975 respectively, and she was third on vault with a 9.150 and third on floor with a 9.125.
Thuringer was fourth in the floor exercise with a 9.025.
Amy Muller of Windom/Mountain Lake placed fourth on the bars (8.250) and teammate Mareah Carlson was fourth on beam (8.550).
In JV action, Worthington defeated W/ML 128.85 to 91.6. Kara Thuringer (vault), Autumn Drahota (bars), Rachel Spartz (beam), Alyssa Williams (floor, all-around) were event winners.
The undefeated Worthington varsity is off until Jan. 16 when it travels to Jackson for the Sweetheart Invitational. WHS and Jackson County Central have enjoyed a friendly rivalry at the top of southwest Minnesota gymnastics for the past several years, and Saturday will be the first time the two squads will meet this season.
But rather than dwell on who the next opponent is, Reitmeier said Thursday that she’s much more concerned about helping her girls install new wrinkles in their routines.
“We really take one day at a time,” she said. “And we worry about Worthington.”
