TPHS girls gymnastics wins league championship
photo courtesy of Scrippix
TPHS Varsity Gymnastics team has had a busy month competing in the Palomar Leagues Division, earning a first-place title, and collecting a third-place title at CIF.
TPHS Gymnastics competed in the Palomar division for Leagues located at Rancho Bernardo High School on May 10. They competed against Rancho Bernardo, La Costa Canyon High School and Del Norte High School. This first-place win at leagues marked the end of a successful regular season and the opportunity to compete in CIF San Diego Section Championship, which was held on May 19th.
Although they had a successful record going into Leagues that did not make the team any less nervous.
“We were a little nervous after getting our scores back but we still pulled it out in the end with some pretty high ones,” four-year TPHS gymnast and varsity captain Tristen Palmberg (12) said.
At Leagues, TPHS placed first with a score of 213.875 points. This was an impressive win as the second-place team earned a score of 210.275.
Advancing to CIF marked a historic moment for Head Coach Jennifer Parker, as it was the first time in her nine years of leading the team that they had won Leagues.
“We won this year because we have very talented, hard-working athletes who together made this year undefeated and super successful,” Parker said.
Confidently yet cautiously facing eight schools at West Hill High School in the champion round, the TPHS gymnastics team knew who their toughest competitor was going to be.
“For CIF, Westview [High School] is definitely our competition … they won CIF last year and have had the highest team score for a while,” Palmberg said.
Falling to Westview by only 3.35 points, TPHS finished third.
Overall, competing in CIF resulted in gymnasts performing in ways they were proud of.
“I am most proud of my beam performance because it was one of my best routines of the season,” Dylin Dean (11) said.
For these past two high-stakes competitions, two junior varsity athletes advanced to compete with the varsity team. These athletes proved themselves worthy with their scores, helping contribute to TPHS’s third-place win at CIF.
“I did pretty well; my score was used in the team score for valet because I placed as one of the four highest on my team,” Reese Dugdale (11) said.
With their season now at a close, dedicated gymnast Palmberg finds herself reflecting on what she wishes she could tell her younger self.
“[I would tell freshman me to] not give up on myself and keep working hard,” Palmberg said. “I am impressed with where I have gotten at this point.”
The TPHS Varsity gymnastics team had success at both leagues and CIF and hope next year brings just as many trophies.