Submitted by admin on Wed, 04/18/2018 - 00:19
state2018

There were 1066 gymnasts competing at the 2018 SoCal State Championships, they representing all together 78 teams at Levels 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10. Wildfire, competed Levels 7, 8, 9 and 10.

Wildfire’s Level 10 team of 2018 completed this year’s competition as first runner up, working with a 9.600 team event average. Historically our Level 10 teams have won the State Championship three times, ranked 2nd five times and finished out among the top three nine times. Since 2006, it has been 12 times now that a Wildfire gymnast has won Level 10 SoCal Championship All Around Gold. Three Wildfire gymnasts ranked among the top three in 2018: Junior B State All Around Champion, Sydney Gonzales (1st Vault - 9.725, 2nd Beam - 9.600, 2nd Floor). Sydney (OSU), is currently on the J.O. National Team, Senior B All Around Silver Medalist, Nicoletta Koulos (38.275, 2nd Vault - 9.850, 1st Beam - 9.650, 1st Floor - 9.700). Nicoletta (UCLA) was a 2016 J.O. National Team Member and SoCal Junior B State AA Bronze Medalist, Nancy Kiner. A well done to our top three individual event finishers including - 2017 National qualifier, Jordyn Duffield (2nd Vault - 9.750, 2nd Floor - 9.625), previous Level 10 National qualifier, Emily Lopez (2nd Vault - 9.575, 2nd Beam - 9.600), Tessa Blanchard (2nd Vault - 9.575), 2017 SoCal State Bar Champion, Sanya Glauber (2nd Bars - 9.600), and Alyssa Vulaj (3rd Beam - 9.475).

There were 137 Level 9 gymnasts participating from which four were from Wildfire. Wildfire gymnast, Avery Byun, a 2017 Level 8 Regional AA Champion, finished well in 2018 becoming Level 9 State All Around Champion. She did this by posting a 37.550. Our second athlete, Thu Nguyen, a 2017 Level 7 State All Around Champion, finished a year later at 6th, now as a Level 9. She came off prior to this weekend, an undefeated Level 9 steak. Isabelle Hing, a recent Level 8 Regional All Around Champion, placed 4th AA at this year’s Level 9 State Championships. Isabelle, with her three teammates, including Audrey Easter, will be heading to the Regional Championships and Western National qualifier in Reno, NV mid April.

Also moving on to the Regional Championships, in Reno, this being the Level 8 culminating meet of the year, will be 2017 Level 7 Regional All Around Champion, Kaitlyn Tran and 2018 National Judges Cup Champion, Bri Nguyen.

Thi Nguyen, 2017 State Level 5 All Around Champion, placed 1st AA on this occasion as well, the Level 7 State Championships. She posted a 38.525. Thi also won Vault, Bars and Floor (9.850). Of the 305 Level 7 gymnasts competing at this year’s State Championships, Thi ranked 2nd overall among them. Also a 2017 Level 5 All Around Champion, Dayenu Munoz was Wildfire’s second Level 7 All Around winner of the weekend (38.100, 1st Floor). Notable efforts producing Gold medal individual event results included those by All Around Bronze medalist - Amanda Acosta for Floor (9.675), Makenna Mine for Floor (9.725), Alyssa Morales for Vault (9.500) and 2017 Level 5 AA Champion Arianna Espinoza for Vault (9.475).