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Trojan gymnasts vault past Magic

WELCOME — Even with high-scoring senior all-arounder Taylor Eggers donning jeans and a Worthington sweatshirt, the Class A No. 9-ranked Trojans literally vaulted by the No. 23 Martin County Area Magic during Tuesday night’s clash of Big South Conference and Section 3 gymnastics rivals.

Sophomore Gracia Elias, junior McKenna Prunty and junior Kara Thuringer each cleared the 35-point plateau to sweep the top three spots in the all-around competition to help Worthington floor MCA, 142.025-132.0, in Welcome.

“Taylor was experiencing some dizziness due to an inner ear infection, so we decided to sit her out tonight,” said Trojans head coach Joni Reitmeier. “Our girls didn’t perform at their usual (level) during our last meet, but they really picked it (scoring) up tonight.”

Elias captured both the uneven parallel bars (8.7) and balance beam (9.425) to pace her first-place finish in the all-around competition (36.375), while Prunty netted second on the vault (9.225), tied Thuringer for second on the unevens (8.45s), placed third on the floor (9.05) and tied MCA’s Ellie Schultze for fourth on the beam (8.575s) to fuel her runner-up total of 35.3 points.

Thuringer added a third-place score of 8.65 on the beam and netted fourth on the floor (9.0) to complement her unevens mark to trigger her third-place all-around total of 35.125.

Eighth-grader Anna Bachenberg paced the Magic’s second-best team total of the current season by pocketing fourth overall with a 32.9-point score, while sophomore teammate Sabrina Segar claimed fifth in the all-around with a 32.625.

MCA entered the Big South clash with a 131.1-point scoring clip, and nearly matched its season-high total of 132.25 against Marshall during its previous dual meet.

“We had our troubles staying on the beam tonight, but Worthington has a strong lineup without Taylor (Eggers) competing,” said MCA head coach LeeAnn Steen.

Worthington hit the equipment in the Welcome gymnasium with an impressive 141.05 scoring pace, topped off with a season’s-best 143.875 — also at the expense of Marshall.

Seventh-grader Hali Bullerman planted her vault for a winning score of 9.25 on the judges’ scorecards to add scoring punch to the Trojans’ rotation, while freshman Mekyla Nystrom chipped in a third-place effort off the vault table at 9.1.

Bullerman also placed second to Elias on the beam with an 8.9, while Nystrom also contributed a third-place mark of 8.025 on the bars.

Segar played the role of spoiler for the Trojans by capturing first-place honors on the floor exercise for the Magic. Segar’s one-and-a-half tumbling pass helped pace her winning total of 9.0 to fend off Elias, Prunty and Thuringer, respectively.

MCA freshman Gwen Kallemeyn earned a tie for fourth place on the unevens with Worthington’s Autumn Drahota with a pair of 8.0s, while the Magic’s Ellie Schultze prevented a Trojan sweep on the beam by sharing fourth place with Prunty (8.575s).

Segar rotated a Tsukahara for a 9.0 score to top the Magic’s effort on the vault, while Emma Schultze turned a handspring full for an 8.75 for second place on the team.

Martin County Area (5-1) plays host to the Magic Invitational at 11 a.m. Saturday in Welcome.

Worthington (7-0) plays host to St. James Area on Thursday night in another conference dual meet.

Varsity Results

Worthington 142.025;

Martin Co. Area 132.0

All-Around: 1. Gracia Elias (WOR) 36.375; 2. McKenna Prunty (WOR) 35.3; 3. Kara Thuringer (WOR) 35.125; 4. Anna Bachenberg (MCA) 32.9; 5. Sabrina Segar (MCA) 32.625.

Vault: 1. Hali Bullerman (WOR) 9.25; 2. McKenna Prunty (WOR) 9.225; 3. Mekyla Nystrom (WOR) 9.1; 4. Gracia Elias (WOR) 9.05.

MCA scores: Sabrina Segar 9.0; Emma Schultze 8.75; Ellie Schultze 8.725; Ellie Hernes 8.675; Anna Bachenberg 8.55.

Uneven Parallel Bars: 1. Gracia Elias (WOR) 8.7; 2. (tie) McKenna Prunty (WOR) and Kara Thuringer (WOR) 8.45s; 4. Mekyla Nystrom (WOR) 8.025; 5. (tie) Gwen Kallemeyn (MCA) and Autumn Drahota (WOR) 8.0s.

Other MCA scores: Anna Bachenberg 7.8; Hailee Schuett 7.65; Anna Utermarck 7.15; Sabrina Segar 7.125.

Balance Beam: 1. Gracia Elias (WOR) 9.425; 2. Hali Bullerman (WOR) 8.9; 3. Kara Thuringer (WOR) 8.65; 4. (tie) Ellie Schultze (MCA) and McKenna Prunty (WOR) 8.575s.

Other MCA scores: Anna Utermarck 7.7; Anna Bachenberg 7.6; Sabrina Segar 7.2; Hailee Schuett 6.775.

Floor Exercise: 1. Sabrina Segar (MCA) 9.3; 2. Gracia Elias (WOR) 9.2; 3. McKenna Prunty (WOR) 9.05; 4. Kara Thuringer (WOR) 9.0.

Other MCA scores: Anna Bachenberg 8.95; Emma Schultze 8.475; Anna Utermarck 8.45; Hailee Schuett 8.4.

JV Results

Worthington 132.1;

Martin Co. Area 124.85

All-Around: 1. Mia Nixon (WOR) 30.5.

Vault: 1. Autumn Drahota (WOR) 8.95; 2. Presley Eggers (WOR) 8.8; 3. Adamari Rangel (WOR) 8.75; 4. Anna Utermarck (MCA) 8.65.

Other MCA scores: Hailee Schuett 8.45; Abi Chavez 8.3; Gwen Kallemeyn 8.2; Sady Ringnell 8.1; Ella Meyers 7.9; Marah Steele 7.8; Kadyn Owens 7.55.

Unevens: 1. Olivia Barber (WOR) 7.95; 2. Marlena Garza (WOR) 7.9; 3. Hali Bullerman (WOR) 7.8; 4. (tie) Ellie Hernes (MCA) and Emma Schultze (MCA) 7.6s.

Other MCA scores: Ivy Kokoruda 7.45; Ellie Schultze 7.4; Hudson Ringnell 6.7; Abi Chavez 6.55; Emily Hagen 4.8; Kara Omundson 4.7.

Beam: 1. Abby Bristow (WOR) 8.7; 2. Emma Schultze (MCA) 7.9; 3. (tie) Autumn Drahota (WOR) and Marlena Garza (WOR) 7.8s; 4. (tie) Mekyla Nystrom (WOR) and Emily Hagen (MCA) 7.7s.

Other MCA scores: Hudson Ringnell 7.0; Ellie Hernes 6.7; Marah Steele 6.4; Ella Meyers 5.3; Kaitlyn Freese 5.0; Breanna Groskratz 4.0.

Floor: 1. Hali Bullerman (WOR) 8.6; 2. Olivia Barber (WOR) 8.55; 3. Mekyla Nystrom (WOR) 8.45; 4. Mia Nixon (WOR) 8.25.

MCA scores: Sady Ringnell 8.15; Gwen Kallemeyn 8.0; Abi Chavez 7.95; Hudson Ringnell 7.8; Ellie Hernes 7.5; Ellie Schultze 7.25; Carolina Hernandez 7.25; Ivy Kokoruda 6.7.

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