Talk about bittersweet irony.
The top three schools in the team standings at Saturday’s West Central District 4A gymnastics championship all finished with higher scores than Newport recorded last year as the state champion.
And yet only one of the trio moves on to the Tacoma Dome next weekend.
With 177.3 points, host Mount Rainier won its first 4A district title, which came as a surprise to coach Ali Kestle, even after the Rams won last week’s sub-district meet.
“It’s overwhelming,” she said. “It’s crazy – when we won last week, we knew we could beat them. Now we could win state. It hasn’t set in yet.”
Thomas Jefferson finished second with 176.27 points and Emerald Ridge rounded out the top three with 175.42.
Mount Rainier was led by senior Cheyenne Gavino, a former club gymnast who bested senior powerhouses Madi Kellar of Jefferson and Sam West of Beamer to take the all-around title with 37.75 points.
“It made me so happy,” Gavino said of her victory, which was buoyed by a first-place finish on the vault and a second on the uneven bars. “I haven’t won at all this year. I love to perform – it’s my thing.”
Kellar took the bars title, while her teammate Monica Church cruised to a win in the floor competition. Emerald Ridge junior Elizabeth Clemens won the balance beam.
Because Mount Rainier moves on as a team, Kellar and West, who finished second and fourth respectively, will represent the WCD in the state all-around competition. Gavino’s classmate Baylee Hamilton finished third.
2A/3A district championships: Enumclaw sophomore Olivia Bannerot was the all-around winner at Saturday’s meet at Auburn Mountainview High School, amassing 37.20 points, including a pair of first-place finishes on the uneven bars and floor routine. Kristen Rodal of Highline finished second (37.05) and Molly Mattheis of Enumclaw placed third (35.10).
In team competition, Enumclaw and Auburn Mountainview will move on to the state meet.
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