Brown and Dunnihoo in Top 30 at State Gymnastics

Milbank Area’s Hannah Brown, a sophomore, earned 20th place and Macyn Dunnihoo, a freshman, captured 29th place at South Dakota’s 2023 Class A State Gymnastics Meet on Saturday, February 11. The meet was hosted by Aberdeen Central.

It was an event filled with firsts and lasts. Kelly Wollschlager, head coach for the Lady Bulldogs, said, “It was Hannah’s first time competing in the all-around, and  Macyn’s first time competing during Individual Day at the state meet.” 

Wollschlager noted it was the last meet of the season and both girls put forth commendable performances  “Hannah hit her bars by swinging a clean routine. She was also quick and powerful and landed her vault. Macyn competed on the bars, beam, and floor and hit all her routines.” 

“The girls have put in many hours in the gym,” Wollschlager added “and have come a long way since the beginning of the season. Making it to state as an individual is a huge accomplishment, and I am proud they were able to experience it so young in their career.”

Estelline/Hendricks made school history by winning their first state gymnastics championship. The Lady Redhawks reached the pinnacle by fielding top scorers in the all-around, vault, bars, and floor competitions and clinched the title with a score of 138.917. 

The next three place winners were neck-and-neck. Chamberlain finished as the runner up with 137.117 points. Madison and Hot Springs, tied for third with 136.817 points. Milbank did not compete in the team competition

Not only is this the first state championship for Estelline, (now Estelline- Hendricks), it’s also the first time Deuel or Madison has not won the State A team title since 1994. In 1994, Vermillion won it all, but it was the last year of their domination at the championships. They had taken home the title nine times in 13 years, stretching back to 1981.

Individual Results for the Lady Bulldogs:

Hannah Brown

Vault – 8.6333 – 23rd place; Bars – 7.5 – 33rd place; Beam – 7.5 – 32nd place; Floor 8.8667 – 24th place; All Around – 32.45 – 20th place.

Macyn Dunnihoo

Bars – 7.3333 – 35th place; Beam – 7.7333 – 23rd place;  Floor – 8.7167 – 29th place.

The Class AA meet, also held at Central High, concluded on Friday, February 10.  Mitchell took the title with 148.55 points and edged out Sioux Falls O’Gorman with 148.25 points. Last year, their positions were reversed.