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Flipping Out: Gymnasts excited about prospect of going to Nationals
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
Going up against the top gymnasts in the state is no easy feat.
Try seven states.
That's what Allen sophomore Abbie Epperson, Allen senior Makenzie Johnson and Plano West junior Casey Dreyer, who all train at Elite Champion Gymnastics in Plano, were up against two weeks ago while competing at the Region 3 Championships in Bartlesville, Okla. The challenge was not too much to handle though as Epperson and Johnson came away with spots in the Junior Olympic National Championships.
As anticipated, qualifying for Nationals wasn't easy.
Epperson and Johnson had similar performances even though they competed on different days.
Johnson, participating in the Level 10 Senior D division, went first and opened with a 9.075 on the floor exercise. The BYU signee followed up with a fourth-place score of 9.45 on vault and a 9.45 on uneven parallel bars. Despite placing sixth on the bars, Johnson injured her heel on the double back dismount. That injury hampered Johnson on the balance beam as she fell on her front aerial and scored an 8.525.
Johnson's prior scores were enough to carry her though as she managed a 36.5 in the all-around to qualify for nationals.
"Even though I made some mistakes," Johnson said, "I feel I did my best and my hard work paid off."
Epperson could say the same when she competed a day later in the Junior D division.
Epperson, who is coached by Marcus Harlin and Tammy De Guzman, followed the same apparatus schedule, opening with a 9.05 on floor and managing a 9.425 on vault. Uneven parallel bars was a standout event for Epperson as she scored a 9.7 to procure a silver medal. As Johnson experienced earlier, Epperson fell on the beam and settled for an 8.95.
But Epperson's cumulative mark of 37.125 was enough for seventh in the all-around and a spot at nationals alongside Johnson.
Also representing Elite Champion Gymnastics was Dreyer.
She, however, was not able to move on to Nationals. Dreyer, who, like Johnson, is coached by Helen Verucchi and Anatoli Toropov, placed 14th in the all-around for the Senior B division. Dreyer scored a 9.475 on vault, 9.2 on floor, 9.125 on beam and 8.6 on bars.
That marked an end to Dreyer's run, but she will no doubt be supporting teammates Johnson and Epperson when they commence competition at the 2012 Junior Olympic National Championships, which is May 11-12 in Hampton, Va.
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