The Becker gymnastics team traveled to St. Cloud Tech High School Dec. 21 to participate in an eight-team invitational. 

As a Class A team, Becker placed fourth behind three strong Class AA teams. Becker’s final score was 140.5 compared to the first place team’s total score of 142.95. 

Bar Routine

The first event of the night was bars and Becker was able to pull off what they thought were their best bar routines of the season even though they didn’t receive the scores they were hoping for. The team plans on working more on the execution errors in their up and coming practices, but coaches and players said they are very proud of the skills they managed to improve on so far. 

Becker’s top scorers for bar included sixth place finisher Karli Kirk with a score of 8.55, ninth place finisher Maggie Graning with a score of 8.25. Violet Johnson had a score of 8.15 and Alyse Denne had a score of 7.825. 

Beam Routine

The second event of the night was beam and the Bulldogs pulled off several solid beam routines. 

“It’s great to see so much depth and potential on this event,” said Coach Jen Harmoning. 

Beam is typically one of the better events for Becker, so they plan to continue to work towards perfecting their routines. A highlight from this event included a season high team total of 35.7 points. Becker’s top scorers for beam included third place finisher Alyse Denne with a score of 9.3; seventh place finisher Violet Johnson with a score of 9.05; eighth place finisher Lillian Bonsante with a personal record of 9.0 and Maggie Graning with a score of 8.35. 

Floor Routine

The third event of the night was floor with the girls showing off their skill. Becker’s top scorers for floor included second place finisher Karli Kirk with a personal record of 9.5; fourth place finisher Maggie Graning with a score of 9.4; Lillian Bonsante with a score of 8.85; Alyse Denne with a score of 8.8 and Brielle Kuschel with a personal record of 8.65. 

Vault Routine

The final event of the night was vault which wasn’t Becker’s best event of the night. Since two of Becker’s best vaulters graduated last year, it’s taken a little longer than expected to figure out the new dynamic, said Coach Harmoning. 

“I’m expecting us to keep moving up on this event by the end of the season,” she said. 

Becker’s top scorers of the night included fifth place finisher Maggie Graning with a score of 9.1; seventh place finisher Karli Kirk with a score of 9.0; ninth place finisher Bella Kuschel with a score of 8., and Bella Brandt with a score of 8.6. 

All-Around

Becker’s top all-arounder of the night was Maggie Graning with a season-high total of 35.1, which placed her in seventh place overall. Other Becker finishers included ninth place finisher Karli Kirk with a final score of 34.85 and 10th place finisher Alyse Denne with a final score of 34.1.

The state ranking list for Class A was released for gymnastics and Becker found themselves ranked fourth overall. The team plans to continue to work towards their goals which include “focus on their own gymnastics, keep working to improve little by little, and to have fun competing.