Finding their footing: Mount Si gymnasts coming into their own for first home 4A meet | Photo Gallery

After a rocky start on beam and vault, Jen Rogers upped her game on the beam and just plain rocked it on the floor in the Wildcats’ first home meet of the gymnastics season.

Like other gymnasts, Rogers is starting to find her footing in 4A.

Mount Si gymnasts competed against Redmond last Thursday, Dec. 11, in a three-way double dual with Interlake and Newport. The Wildcats had the second-highest team score of the match, 159.25 to Newport’s 165.65.

Rogers was first on floor with a 9.7.

“I’m basically perfecting what I’ve been doing,” the senior said. “With me and my floor routine, I like to keep it as clean as I can. If it’s not going to be clean, I don’t like putting it in. I’ll work, and by the end of the season, I’ll have some new tumbling passes.”

Sophomore Samantha Holmes was third with a 9.5, senior Hailey Johnson was ninth with an 8.7, junior Maggie Kenow was 12th and sophomore Lauren McCallum tied for 13th.

On floor, “the adrenaline really kicked in, and that’s what took me to a great routine,” McCallum said, in this, Mount Si’s second meet of the season.

“After the first meet, we went to practice and broke it down—this is what you need to do” for higher start values and better performances, said coach Jessica Easthope. “I threw at them so many corrections, and they took the time to to listen and implement those. It showed tons.”

“We’re matching up in 4A, which is nice,” said Hailey Johnson. That’s good, she said, because the team wasn’t sure quite how they would transition from 3A.

Holmes had a great night on floor, the coach commented, and on beam, Kenow and Holmes both had very strong routines.

“It’s early in the season, we have room to grow,” coach Easthope said. “I think they’ll do great.”

“By midseason, not only mine but everybody else’s skills are going to be upped,” Kenow said. “It’s all going uphill.”

In her floor routine, Holmes tried out a new double salto (flip) pass, with a double handspring, a front pike (a jump that looks like you’re trying to touch your toes in the air) and a front tuck, or somersault.

“It adds more value to my routine,” she said. “I really think that influenced it.”

“I’ve definitely improved a lot, everywhere, but specifically on floor,” Holmes added. “It feels really good to be able to do that.”

Rogers got second on beam with an 8.5. Freshman Morgan Lowell was fourth with an 8, and Johnson tied for sixth with a 7.8. Holmes was ninth with a 7.6.

Beam has always been a challenge, said Lowell, who was proud of her result.

“This meet, I added a dive cartwheel, which improved my score a lot,” she said. “I feel more solid this year.”

On bars, Rogers was second with a 7.8. Holmes was fourth with 7.35, followed by Lowell at fifth with a 7.1. Johnson was seventh with 6.85, followed by Kenow with a 6.7. Sophomore Lauren McCallum was 16th with 5.65.

Rogers was third on vault with 8.3. Holmes was eighth with a 7.95. Lowell tied for ninth with 7.9. McCallum tied for 12th with 7.8.

In all around scores, Rogers was second. Holmes was third. Lowell was 10th and Kenow was 12th.

Mount Si always emphasizes their team dynamic, and this season is no exception.

“This group is really good about cheering each other on,” said Easthope. “Younger ones are not afraid to cheer on the older ones, and the older ones are doing a good job of mentoring the younger ones.”

“We fit together as a team,” says McCallum. “Even though gymnastics feels like an individual sport, we come together and support each other.”