Staff Photo by Jake Olson: Martin County Magic gymnast Adriana Leiding performs her beam routine during Thursday night's mathcup against Worthington in the Fairmont Armory.

FAIRMONT – Lillie Schultz and Jadyn Montgomery each earned top five All-Around finishes during Martin County Area gymnastics’ 140.25-134.3 defeat to Worthington on Thursday night at the Fairmont Armory.

Schultz (36.25) and Montgomery (33.625) notched first and fifth place to lead all Magic individuals. Nola Thedens (31.225) wasn’t far behind in sixth. Worthington’s Isabella Lazzu (35.05), Jada Milbrath (35.025) and Lucy Thier (34.325) rounded out the top five by placing second, third and fourth, respectively.

“I was impressed how we started on vault,” Magic head coach Anne Post said. “Bars were a little rough, but we really came back and hit beam. I was super impressed. …Then it was fun at the end to have everyone watch us on floor.”

The aforementioned vault apparatus was immediately impressive for fans packed inside the Fairmont Armory. Ellie Perkins and Lauren Elliot earned scores of 8.55 and 8.6 to start the Magic on the right foot.

MCA’s All-Around competitors finished the rotation off strong.

It started with another solid routine from Montgomery, earning an 8.725. Thedens came firing across the vault for a score of 8.775. Post called this one of her more impressive routines on this apparatus this season. Schultz closed things off after nailing her high-voltage routine for a score of 9.275.

“It’s fun to have four handspring fulls with Lillie’s pike tsuk to end it all,” Post said. “It’s powerful and fun.”

Post’s team couldn’t seem to find its footing on their next rotation on bars. A couple of mishaps on different routines proved fatal in the end, leading to a team score of 37.05. Schultz walked away from the apparatus with a team high performance of 8.4.

“I told Nola, ‘Now would be a great time for a captain’s speech,'” Post said.

Whether it was the wise words of Thedens or the motivation to improve, something changed in the air going into the Magic’s beam routine. An apparatus that MCA has struggled with at times this season, Post was happy not only with the performance, but the team’s ability to maintain confidence going forward.

The Magic’s team score of 41.25 was fueled by the final three routines of Montgomery, Schultz and Adriana Leiding. Montgomery stayed consistent with a score of 8.5 before Schultz impressed everyone with a dazzling 9.125. Leiding closed the apparatus with an 8.525.

“I was impressed by how they worked towards their level instead of being down on themselves,” Post said. “It could have gone either way.”

The event wrapped up with a floor routine from MCA that tallied a total team score of 42.95. Four of the routines finished with scores above an 8.2, with Schultz and Montgomery leading the way with a 9.45 and 9.025, respectively. These scores earned first and third place marks on the apparatus.

The Magic will continue its season next Monday. Post’s squad will travel to Luverne for a head-to-head contest starting at 6 p.m.