Three gymnasts from Saline came away with multiple medals last weekend at the Level 9 regional championships, competing against the best of the best from Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky.
The Region 5 championships took place April 12-14 at the Summit in Lansing, as the best gymnasts from all over the Midwest competed for medals and a spot in the national championships. Gymnasts earned a spot in the regional meet by placing highly at their respective state meets.
Competing for Gym America in Ann Arbor, Leah Clapper (a seventh-grader at Saline Middle School) and Kendall Carlson (a junior at Saline High School) both earned a trip to the prestigious Eastern National Gymnastics Championships thanks to their outstanding all-around performances at regionals. The Eastern Nationals take place May 3-5 in Battle Creek.
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Hannah Lewis, a sophomore at Saline High School, also had an strong showing at the meet, earning three medals.
All told, 11 gymnasts from Gym America competed at the Region 5 meet, and all 11 came home with medals. Five of the girls (including Clapper and Carlson) earned a trip to the national meet as members of the Region 5 "Dream Team," along with one alternate from Gym America.
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"These girls competed in the toughest regional championship in the country," said Claudia Kretschmer, the head coach and owner of Gym America. "To place on any event in Region 5 is a huge honor. They worked hard and supported their teammates, and I couldn't have asked for anything more out of them."
Clapper had one of the highest all-around scores of the entire meet, cracking the tough 38-point barrier by scoring a 38.05. That earned her a silver medal in the all-around. In the individual events, she soared, taking second on floor (9.650), third on balance beam (9.5), sixth on vault (9.55) and eighth on bars (9.350).
"Leah was in the toughest age group in the toughest region in the country," Kretschmer said. "She came into this meet saying, 'I want redemption!' Last year at regionals, she didn't place in a single event, but this year was different - she was on fire. She had her best meet of the season, and I'm so proud of the hard work that she put into her training for this event."
Carlson was third all-around (37.050), and also picked up medals on the floor exercise (third, 9.425), bars (fourth, 9.225) and balance beam (fifth, 9.2).
"After a year of not competing because of an injury, Kendall really focused her energy into quality training," Kretschmer said. "Kendall worked very hard and was very ready for this competition. She put it all together when it counted, taking third in the all-around and qualifying for the Dream Team. I'm very proud of her."
Lewis had her highest score of the season in the all-around (ninth, 35.9), and also picked up medals on the balance beam (eighth, 9.050) and vault (ninth, 9.225).
"At the end of last season, Hannah was a Level 7, and she set a goal to skip a level and work toward competing as a level 9," Kretschmer said. "This was a huge goal, and most gymnasts would have thrown in the towel. Not Hannah. Hannah worked hard and accomplished her goal – even going beyond that and qualifying for regionals. I am so proud of what she has accomplished this season."