Seeking state gold

Half of the teams who will compete in the gymnastics state finals Saturday are regulars.

No. 11 Bishop Dwenger is making its 11th straight trip, and defending state champion No. 1 Valparaiso will be at the meet for the eight straight season. No. 4 Chesterton and second-ranked Columbus North will be there for the fifth and fourth consecutive seasons respectively.

But in terms of individual success, Jay County has carved out a niche for itself. The school will be sending individual competitors to the state finals for the fourth in the last six seasons. And in each of the three previous trips, a Patriot walked away with a state medal.

Nadlie Runyon and freshman Katie Snyder will seek to continue those outstanding results when they compete in the IHSAA State Finals at Perry Meridian High School Saturday at 1 p.m.

Runyon, who earned a state medal last season with her sixth-place finish on the balance beam following state medals on the event by Hannah Williams in 2005 and '06, will be an all-around competitor this season. Her best chance at a state medal again comes on the beam, but she could also be a contender in the floor exercise.

The top six athletes on each event and the all around win a state medal.

"Her being a senior, I'd like her to go out (strong)," said JCHS coach Lora Schlosser before practice Thursday. "Taking some hardware home would be great, but I'd like her to get her personal best so she can feel good about what she's done."

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Runyon and Snyder, who will compete on the vault in the state meet, should be flying high after their outstanding regional efforts.

Just a week after having off days on her two best events - she fell twice on the beam and once during her floor routine - Runyon hit her stride with her season on the line at the regional. Her floor exercise was one of her best performances of the season, giving her a second-place score of 9.35.

And for the second straight season she made school history at the regional meet on the balance beam. Her no-fall routine earned a 9.2, making her Jay County's first ever regional champion one-tenth of a point ahead of runner-up Mary Reed of Carroll.

"I think she seemed and appeared more relaxed, though you'd think she'd be more nervous," said Schlosser. "She was more in the right groove, more relaxed. She was performing, and not trying to hard.

"(Winning a regional championship) is a huge honor."

Runyon's regional explosion was similar to last season, when she finished eighth on the beam at the sectional meet before posting a school-record score of 9.6 for second place in the regional. She added a 9.25 the following week to earn her state medal.

"I think I was just a lot more confident," said Runyon of her success at the regional meet this year. "I just kept my head on straight.

"I just went with the flow and kept it going. I tried not to think about it too much."

Snyder finished second in the sectional on the vault with a 9.35, but was left feeling as if she could have done better because she tripped on the runway during her second attempt. She hit both her tries at the regional - first a Tsukahara in the tuck position followed by one in the pike position - to put up another 9.35 and tie for sixth in the regional.

"I didn't trip, which is always a good thing," said Snyder of her regional effort. "And then I just landed the second one, but it wasn't as clean as I would have hoped. I'm still shooting for that school record."

Danae Klatt holds Jay County's school vault mark at 9.575.

The only change Runyon will make on any of her events Saturday comes on the bars, where she will add a twist to her dismount in an effort to possibly bump up her all-around scores. But practice this week has been focused on the beam and floor, her best chances at bringing home another state medal.

As a regional champion and returning state medalist, she is a contender for the state title on the balance beam. Three other 2009 state medalists - Tori Becher and Alyssa Servie of Roncalli, and Caitlyn Catania from Hagerstown - join her on the event that Kellie Kidd of Valparaiso won last season with a 9.6.

It has taken at least a 9.25 on the event to earn a state medal in each of the last six seasons.

The competition for a state medal on the floor exercise is always strong, as the sixth place finisher each of the last two seasons has scored a 9.65. The best tally of Runyon's career is a 9.6, just one tenth of a point short of Williams' school record.

Snyder will face an equally stiff challenge as she tries for a state medal on the vault. It has taken at least a 9.5 to even have a chance at finishing in the top six over the course of the last five years.

Schlosser said she'd like to see Snyder turn in a career-best score and then build on her freshman appearance in the state meet over the rest of her career.

"It's awesome," said Snyder of the opportunity, noting that she hugged everyone in her first-hour class Monday. "(Runyon and Schlosser) have been telling me, 'It's your freshman year, so you have nothing to lose.'

"We've just been working hard, and hopefully it pays off.

"A state medal would be great, but whatever I get I'll be happy with."

For Runyon, Schlosser said she's hoping for a strong finish to one of the best gymnastics careers in JCHS history.

"I just want to do my best and go out swinging," said Runyon. "It would be icing on the cake (to get a medal)."[[In-content Ad]]