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The State “A” and “AA” Gymnastics Meet will be held this year at Stevens High School in Rapid City. The TEAM competition and INDIVIDUAL & ALL-AROUND competition are divided into two separate days.
This year will showcase a new format for the team competition. While each class will be competing only against other schools in their own class, the two classes will be competing at the same time alternating gymnasts on each apparatus. The opening ceremony for the combined team session will begin at 10:45 a.m. on Friday, February 15th.
Saturday, February 16th, competition continues at Rapid City Stevens High School with the INDIVIDUAL & ALL-AROUND COMPETITION. Opening ceremonies for Class “AA” competition begin at 9:20 a.m. Opening ceremonies for Class “A” competition will begin at 4:20 p.m. The top 20 individuals in the four events, plus all-around, will be crowned following each session on Saturday.
All session will be using the Capital Cup format with teams warming up in the practice gym, then immediately competing on that event in the main gym.
Class “A”
New this year for Class A: 12 teams will compete for the Team Championship. Those teams are Britton-Hecla, Chamberlain, Deuel, Hot Springs, Madison, Milbank, Sisseton, Stanley County, Vermillion, Wagner, Wall/Kadoka Area, and West Central.
The Deuel team will be defending their 2012 championship.
No region meets were held this year. All 12 Class A teams qualified. Individual and All-Around competitors will qualify during the team competition on Friday, February 15th, and will be added to the list of those who qualified during the season. Each gymnast can qualify during the season by scoring an 8.5 or better in one of the individual events at three different meets during the season. To qualify during the season in the all-around competition, a gymnast must meet or better the standard of 31.00 at three meets during the season. In addition to those 12 teams who will be competing to qualify for individual day, Erin Punt from Warner High School is an in-season qualifier in the all-around competition.
Sam Wiekamp, senior from Deuel, was the individual champion in vault and uneven bars in 2012. She will return to defend her titles this year. Deuel sophomore, Meaghan Sievers, will return to defend her titles in balance beam, floor exercise, and all-around.
107 gymnasts will be competing in Class “A” over the two-day state meet.
