A little more than one point was all that separated the top squads at the North sectionals last weekend. With those same teams being the top seeds at Saturday’s Massachusetts state gymnastics championship, every rotation will count and every routine will matter in the race to the top of the podium.
The Danvers/Lynnfield co-operative team as well as Masconomet are two of the top seeds heading into Saturday’s anticipated competition at Algonquin Regional (2 p.m.). Defending state champion and North sectional winner Central Catholic is the other favorite, carrying a score of 147.575 as the top overall seed.
The Chieftains are seeded second at 146.925, with the Falcons third at 146.525. Out of the South, Mansfield carries a 146.05 and Newton North is 145.95, so the margins are razor thin between at least five of the eight schools that qualified to compete (Bridgewater Raynham, Reading and the Brockton/Stoughton/Cardinal Spellman co-op being the others).
A season ago, Masconomet missed out on a fourth state title since 2019 by a little more than half-a-point. All-Around state champion Bella Misiura graduated and is now competing at Penn State, but the Chieftains reloaded and went unbeaten in the regular season before finishing second at North sectionals by amassing the best team score on both bars and floor.
Sarah Aldrich of the Chieftains is a threat for the All-Around title, having scored 37.45 for fourth place last weekend. She had top five showings on both vault and floor. Kate Mugee also placed in the top 10 for All-Around, was sixth on floor and hit the top 10 in three of the four disciplines. Fallon Eberhardt is also one of the top specialists in the state, having scored 9.375 for third place on bars.
Fellow Chieftain Janey Young notched a 9.5 on vault (good for 5th place) and a 9.650 on floor (4th place) while Ava Nolan scored a 9.35 on bars (4th place). Rounding out the Masconomet roster for coach Vasko Vetzev are Natalia Cafarelli, Luchia Beviloacqua, Carly O’Heir, Veronica Bloxam and Meredith Brandt.
One of the winningest gymnastics programs in Massachusetts history with six state championships, Danvers has a chance to win its first title in 20 years behind NEC/CAL MVP Kaylee Wescott. Just a sophomore, she won the state individual meet and is a major threat for this weekend’s All-Around title, being runner-up in the North last weekend with a score of 38.275 after winning on floor (9.875) and being second overall on vault (9.7) and beam (also 9.7).
Maddie Wescott and all-star Camryn Donovan are the captains for the Falcons, who went 6-1 in the regular season with a lone narrow defeat coming against Masco. Donovan placed sixth All-Around at the North meet with an impressive 9.65 on vault (3rd place) and a 9.5 on beam (5th place).
Sophomore Sophia Catinazzo (7th on vault) was also an NEC all-star for the Falcons, who posted a top regular season score of 148.4. Also completing for Danvers are sophomore Callie Donovan, sophomore Delainy Murphy (who is excellent on vault), junior DeAnna Figueiredo, junior Olivia Marshall, sophomore Hannah Moccia and freshman Rylee Sheppard.
The Falcons burst onto the state scene 12 months ago by placing third overall and could be ready to take the next step after a highly successful regular season this winter.
“We’ve put in so much hard work this season, and I am incredibly proud of how far we’ve come,” said Danvers/Lynnfield coach Jennifer Habeeb. “The team has been pushing each other every step of the way, and now it’s all about bringing that energy to the state championship.
“It’s going to be a close meet, but I believe we have what it takes — I’m excited to see how we compete this weekend.”