TACOMA — Soon after reaching state as a team last year for the first time since the 1990s, the Port Angeles gymnastics team set a goal to come back in 2016.
The Roughriders stuck to that goal when practices started in the fall, even though it would be more difficult this season because their region had one less state berth up for grabs.
“We checked back in at the beginning of this season and they were still wanting to go for that,” Port Angeles coach Megan Monds said.
Port Angeles made it by taking third at last week’s regional meet, and now will have six gymnasts competing in each of the four events at the 1A/2A/3A state championships at the Tacoma Dome on Friday and Saturday.
Sequim’s Ennisa Albin, who trains with Port Angeles at Klahhane Gymnastics, also will be at state after qualifying on the uneven bars.
The Riders had a lot of success on their way to state, including five consecutive first-place finishes at one point.
“I think we’ve really focused on putting in that extra 10 percent, at both practices and competitions,” captain Nikki Price said.
The Riders also have been balanced.
“We really focused on the depth of the team,” Monds said.
“Sometimes people stay focused on those girls that are more advanced, but our team really is focused on keeping the middle girls, you know, biting at the heels of the better performers.
“And I think that’s what carried us through. Our No. 6 girls are really close in scores to our top performers.”
Price, a junior, is one of five all-around competitors Port Angeles will have at state. Those five will participate in the vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor routine.
Cassii Middlestead, Maya Wharton, Lexi Hefton and Sydney Miner are the Riders’ other all-arounds.
Middlestead, a sophomore, was the team’s top all-around placer at regionals last week, taking 13th with a score of 32.7.
She’s taking a practical approach to her second state meet, her first as an all-around performer.
“I try not to expect to get first or anything, because it’s very hard to, so I just expect that I do my best and I have fun, and my teammates have fun, too,” Middlestead said.
Wharton was 15th at regionals, Hefton, the team’s only senior, was 19th, Miner was 21st and Price took 24th.
That leaves one spot in each event up for grabs.
Monds said some of those state positions were up for grabs as of Tuesday night, although freshman Julienne Jacobs has been chosen for the floor routine.
Monds said that it is important for younger gymnasts to not psyche themselves out and also to not get caught up trying to be the warm-up champion.
“We try to tell them to stay focused on themselves and their team because when they start looking outside of themselves, that’s when it becomes very intimidating,” Monds said.
“The other thing is, when you get to a meet like that, sometimes you are in competition even in warm-up with the other people, like they’ll start doing these moves to kind of show up the other girls, and what happens is they don’t have any energy left for their routines.
“So that’s been a focus for us this year: go out, do the least amount of warm-up you need to do just to warm up and then get off the equipment, because the real battle is in competition, not during warm-up.”
For such a young team — Middlestead and Miner are sophomores, Price and Wharton are juniors — Port Angeles has a lot of state experience. The five all-arounds have prior state experience, and are back and better this year.
“The top five have all gone to state, so they kind of know what to expect,” Monds said.
“The first time you step in that event, it’s kind of overwhelming, but we don’t have to face that this year because they’ve all been.
“They all have new moves this year, so that’s exciting.”
Albin, the only Sequim gymnast to make state, also has state experience, but in a different event. In 2015, she qualified in the beam, this year it is the bars.
“She worked hard,” Monds said.“She thought she was going to go in beam and it kind of came as a surprise that she is going on bars instead.”
Now that the Riders have made it to state, the hope is that one or two will make it to the second day of competitions.
“We would like to send an athlete or two onto finals. But we don’t know if that will happen,” Monds said.
“Maya last year was about a tenth [of a point] away from going. She’s only improved on her routine, but we can’t control the other competitors and what will be there.”
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Sports Editor Lee Horton can be reached at 360-417-3525 or at lhorton@peninsuladailynews.com.
