Maddie Gustafson Earns State Qualifying Mark on Vault

Maddie Gustafson, sophomore gymnast for Milbank High School, earned her third state qualifying score on the vault, sending her to the state Class A gymnastics meet in February. She did so with a score of 8.60 during the Winter Wonderland Invitational in Vermillion on Thursday, December 28.

Milbank finished third overall at the meet with a team score of 122.50. “It was a disappointing finish,” stated Milbank head coach Amber Fraasch. “We should have won this meet.”

Fraasch also noted that the locals started off strong on the floor exercise with good routines and solid scores. Senior Jodi DeVaal then suffered an injury on vault. “That seemed to take the wind out of our sails,” added Fraasch. “There were a lot of injuries across the field of teams at this meet. It will be interesting to see how next year’s moratorium will affect this meet and the ability of athletes to safely practice and compete after the lockout period.”

Despite the disappointing finish, new skills were performed by Greta Snaza on vault and bars, Joci McFarland on vault, bars and beam and Dani Yamaura on bars. McFarland also had another no-fall beam routine and was rewarded with a personal best score of 7.9.

Following are the complete results form the Winter Wonderland Meet:
Team scores – Hot Springs, 123.95; Vermillion, 123.45; Milbank, 122.50; Chamberlain, 121; WBH, 119.95; SF Washington, 118.05; West Central, 115.35; Britton-Hecla, 110.65; Wall, 105.55; Stanley County, 76.35.
All-Around Competition – 8. Mackenzie Weinkauf, 31.05; 16. Maddie Gustafson, 28.75.
Vault – 8. Maddie Gustafson, 8.60; 10. Mackenzie Weinkauf, 8.40; 19. Tori Hooth, 8.10; 24. Greta Snaza, 7.90; 30. Joci McFarland, 7.70.
Uneven Parallel Bars – 12. Mackenzie Weinkauf, 7.20; 12. Dani Yamaura, 7.20; 18. Maddie Gustafson, 6.90; 25. Greta Snaza, 6.60; 43. Joci McFarland, 4.20.
Balance Beam – 7. Joci McFarland, 7.90; 15. Mackenzie Weinkauf, 6.90; 16. Dani Yamaura, 6.80; 22. Tori Hooth, 6.40; 39. Maddie Gustafson, 5.25.
Floor Exercise – 6. Mackenzie Weinkauf, 8.55; 6. Dani Yamaura, 8.55; 10. Jodi DeVaal, 8.50; 17. Maddie Gustafson, 8.0; 35. Greta Snaza, 7.35.

Pictured – Maddie Gustafson