Patriots have big day at OAC (02/13/07)

CONNERSVILLE - The Patriots finished second Saturday, but not without reaching a handful of milestones.

Jay County's gymnastics team broke the 100-point barrier for the first time this season.

Freshman Nadlie Runyon scored a nine - two, in fact - for the first time in her high school career.

Erika Hunt racked up a career-high all-around total to put herself in the school's top 10 all time.

And Runyon used one of her high scores to knock Connersville's Kristin Gilley off the top of the Olympic Athletic Conference podium for the first time.

So while Connersville scored 104.425 and earned its 19th OAC title in the last 21 years, the Patriots walked away happy with their second-place, 100.25-point effort. Muncie Southside was a distant third at 88.175.

"Our goal all year has been to score 100," said JCHS coach Kristin Millspaugh. "I knew we could do it ... it's a big relief to finally have that out of the way. It's a confidence boost going into sectional to know that we can score that high.

"I was especially proud of the girls for making a comeback after bars. I didn't expect the 100 after the bar scores that we had."

Jay County struggled to just 23.35 points on the uneven bars, nearly three fewer than Connersville, but was strong the rest of the day. With Hunt and Runyon leading the way, it scored at least 25 points on the remaining three events, including a winning 25.55 on the balance beam.

Runyon closed out the effort on the beam despite some problems just moments earlier. She attempted her dismount three times during the warm-up session and failed to land any of them.

But after a clean routine she launched off her left leg and nailed the full gainer.

The dismount was something she tried over Christmas break, and Millspaugh thought she might use next year.

"In the past week at practice she's just started to nail it almost every time," said Millspaugh. "I think if she threw 10 of them in the last two or three practices she probably hit nine out of 10.

"I think she feels more confident with that routine. That double toe turn was just giving her fits for most of the season ... when she added the dismount I told her to go ahead and take the double toe turn out."

Runyon became the first gymnast to ever beat Gilley, a senior, at the OAC meet.

Gilley, who was second on the beam with an 8.85, won every event as a freshman and sophomore. She was limited to just two events last year because of an injury, but won both, and was first in the remaining three events Saturday.

"It just felt like any other meet," said Runyon, whose beam score also tied for fifth-best in JCHS history. "When I was warming up I didn't make (the dismount) at all, but then when I get up there I just went for it. I was confident that I was going to hit it, even though I didn't (in warm-ups)."

The dismount finished off Runyon's second nine of the day as she had posted a 9.125 on the floor exercise just minutes earlier.

She also added a new element to her floor exercise, throwing in a one-and-one-half twisting lay-out to end her first tumbling pass. It was the first time she competed the move all year, and it helped lead her to a third-place finish on the event behind Gilley and Devyn Duncan of Connersville.

Kristin Brown was the only other Patriot to walk away with a top-three finish, as she and Hunt teamed with Runyon for the outstanding balance beam score.

Brown finished third on the beam with an 8.25, and Hunt was fourth at 8.15 as the Patriots turned in a run of four straight no-fall routines.

"She has awesome jumps on beam," said Millspaugh of Brown. "If she's not wobbly, she can score really high.

"I've known the whole season that we have really good beam routines, they just couldn't stay on. And I told them the only way I know how to get better at something that you're not good at yet is repetition. ... So Tuesday we made a few changes and they each did five routines. Wednesday night was pretty good, and then Thursday at practice we did two full beam routines. It's definitely been the focus this week."

Hunt was solid all around, especially coming through on the bars after each of the first three Patriot competitors scored in the sixes. She posted a fourth-place 8.225 on that event, finished fourth on the vault at 8.65 and took fifth on the floor at 8.4.

Those scores placed her fourth in the all-around with a career-best 33.425.

"She just had all four events really solid today," said Millspaugh. "That's been two-and-a-half years in the works. She just put it all together in the same day."

Millspaugh said Hunt's routines have been changed slightly so she is comfortable with everything in them and can focus more on performance. The result was the top Patriot score on three out of four events.

"I wasn't expecting that at all," said Hunt of her all-around score. "I kind of felt like I needed to step up for the team in a few events. I just tried to do my best.

"It doesn't usually come together, everything, for me.

"It was pretty exciting. I've wanted to score 100 (all year), and then just to hit it at conference is just huge for our team."

Lacey Thornburg also came up big on the bars, posting a fifth-place 8.175.

Brown added sixth-place efforts on the vault (8.4), where she tied with teammate Kendra Homan, and the floor (8.375). Kayci Ryder was eighth on the bars at 6.95.[[In-content Ad]]