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| Amanda Davenport All-Missota Conference (photo by Jim Lindquist) |
The girls didn't quite reach their team goal of 140 points but improved steadily as the season progressed and showed great promise for the future. They started the year with a team mark of 123.8 that improved to 138.25 by the end of the season.
The Tigers finished fourth at the Missota Conference Championships and ranked fifth at the Section 1AA finals.
Perhaps the biggest highlight of the season just completed came after the competitive season had been completed. First, the team earned Section 1AA academic honors and later it was named state academic champions by virtue of its almost perfect 3.995 (on a 4.00 scale) grade-point-average.
"We are a young and building team," Tiger coach Lynn Bauman said. "The girls were positive and worked very hard."
About the only negative to take away from the season was a spate of injuries, the most critical coming early in the year when all-state performer Kylie Wharton was lost after suffering an ACL injury.
"It was also tough moving back to Section 1AA," Bauman said. "We're now in the toughest section in the state."
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| Tahra Eckert all-state in vault |
Bauman and her staff awarded varsity letters to 13 individuals for their efforts during the 2013-14 season with Tahra Eckert and Kathryn Beckett the only seniors among them.
"It will definitely be different not having Tahra and Kathryn in the gym next year," Bauman said. "They will be missed by everyone."
The other 11 monogram winners are all underclassmen, including Abby Schwartz, Sam Kramer, Amanda Ruth, Gina Mercurio, Racquel Beckett, Rachel Kiminski, Ashley Ellefson, Kyla Bauman, Mackenzie McCuddin, Amanda Davenport and Sidney Comes.
Davenport had an outstanding season, posting team-high scores in vault, bars and all-around and landing a spot on the prestigious all-Missota Conference team.
Eckert, who earned all-state recognition based on her vault scores, received all-conference honorable mention.
Davenport (four events and all-around); Kathryn Beckett (two events); Schwartz (two events), Kiminski (two events) and Racquel Beckett (one event) each received all-state honorable mention for their scores.
The Tiger coaches also announced several other awards at the team's post-season banquet, including
Hardest Workers: McCuddin, Davenport, Kiminski and Kramer
Most
Improved: Samanatha Maynard
Most Positive
Spirit: Kramer
Best Form: Schwartz
Best Crash
Award: Davenport
Tiger Award
(Most Team Spirit): K. Beckett
Captains for 2014-2015: Wharton and McCuddin
Top individual scores in each event: Vault, Davenport 9.425; Uneven Bars, Davenport, 9.0; Balance Beam, Wharton 9.35; Floor Exercise, Wharton 9.25 and All-Around, Davenport 35.725.
With 11 of 13 letterwinners returning and a healthy Wharton back in the lineup, Bauman said she is looking forward to the 2014-15 season. She cautioned, however, that the move to the South Suburban Conference will mean a new level of challenge.
"We are looking forward to competing there," she said of the impending move, "but there will be even more competition for our team...We have the talent. We need to work on our consistency and our maturity."
Captains for 2014-2015: Wharton and McCuddin
Top individual scores in each event: Vault, Davenport 9.425; Uneven Bars, Davenport, 9.0; Balance Beam, Wharton 9.35; Floor Exercise, Wharton 9.25 and All-Around, Davenport 35.725.
With 11 of 13 letterwinners returning and a healthy Wharton back in the lineup, Bauman said she is looking forward to the 2014-15 season. She cautioned, however, that the move to the South Suburban Conference will mean a new level of challenge.
"We are looking forward to competing there," she said of the impending move, "but there will be even more competition for our team...We have the talent. We need to work on our consistency and our maturity."
