Columbus North’s Reese Euler preforms her beam routine in the Conference Indiana meet at Columbus North, Monday, Feb. 13, 2023.
The Republic file photo
The Columbus North gymnasts are hoping for a podium finish.
The quest begins for the Bull Dogs when they travel to Worthen Arena on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie on Saturday for the Gymnastics State Finals. Opening ceremonies are at 11 a.m., with competition starting at 11:30 a.m.
North won’t be the favorite to capture the state title as a team and are projected to finish as high as fourth or as low as seventh in the standings. Homestead, Valparaiso and Crown Point likely will be the three in the mix to claim the title. The top four teams earn a podium spot.
“It’s going to take the girls hitting their routines, working hard and motivating each other and cheering each other on,” North co-coach Kaitlyn Rediker said. “Hopefully we can have potential to be in the top four and podium at state.”
North co-coach Bob Arthur used the analogy of comparing basketball and football with gymnastics, with basketball and football having four quarters and gymnastics having four rotations. The Bull Dogs will need to show up for all four of the events if they want to be successful at state.
“The goal is not really necessary to get to fourth place as much as to have 12 hit routines and then letting things shake out as they are. I told the girls that if you can do the best possible routine that you can do, then it doesn’t matter. You’ve done things successfully no matter how where we end up,” Arthur said. “The worst thing is to go out and not have a good routine and then have those ‘would of,’ ‘should of,’ ‘could of’ in the back of your head.”
However, sophomore Reese Euler has a chance at winning any of the four apparatus events and even the all-around competition for the Bull Dogs. Euler said the biggest thing for her is being consistent.
When Euler was a freshman in last year’s state meet, she got to see first-hand her then-senior teammate Emily Moore win two individual events, plus the all-around competition.
“It’s doing what I’ve known how to do on every event because some meets, I’ll hit real good on some events, and some meets, I won’t do my best as I can on that event, so making sure I’m focused and do every event the best I know how to do it,” Euler said. “One thing about Emily is that she was very clean, so maybe cleaning up some of my stuff will help, too.”
Euler could have a state title in any of the four individual events or the all-around, but she’ll be in chase mode.
In regional competition, Euler had the second-best score, only .05 off the best regional score. Her score off 9.55 on the bars from the sectional is only .05 behind the best bars score at regional. Her score of 9.55 on the beam at regional was the third best score regional score in the state, only trailing by .1 of a point. Her floor routine of 9.625 at regional was the third best regional state score, only .1 off the state best regional score. Her 37.65 all-around score in the regional is just .575 off the state’s best regional score.
Columbus North’s Lindsey Mullis competes on the bars in a gymnastics meet against Columbus East at Columbus North High School in Columbus, Ind., Monday, Jan. 9, 2023.
The Republic file photo
Senior Lindsey Mullis was North’s top gymnast on the bars in the sectional, finishing second. Junior Laney Acton also does the all-around, while freshmen Hannah Perry and Ellie McIntier each compete on two events.
Euler has the potential to give North back-to-back individual state champions.
“When you get to that level, it gets back to which girls have the best day. Now, the one thing about that level is that every tenth of a point counts. When you get to the all-around level at the state meet, every single tenth will count. Ironically it didn’t turn out that way for Emily because she actually won (the all-around) by six-tenths and that was even with the fall (on bars, her last event),” Arthur said. “But if everyone is hitting, then it’s going to be every little step, every little toe point, every little knee-bend, it’s all going to be critical. (Euler) can do it, there’s no doubt about it. She’s got the power to bring home the championship if she has a good meet.”
