Gymnast Earns Silver at Nationals

Allen gymnast Makenzie Johnson recently earned second place all-around at the Junior Olympic National Invitational Tournament(JO-NIT) held in Long Beach, California on May 14.

Johnson, a junior at Allen High School, earned bronze on vault with a score of 9.5, took fourth place on uneven parallel bars (9.1), sixth on balance beam (9.15) and ninth on floor exercise (9.375). Her total score was 37.125, earning her silver all-around out of the 25 competitors in the Senior B age group.

One month earlier Johnson, who trains at Eagle’s Wings Athletics, missed qualifying for the JO-NIT by two-tenths of a point. At Regional championships, the top seven all-around athletes in each age group advance to the Junior Olympic National Championships. Those who place 8th, 9th, and 10th all-around qualify to the JO-NIT.

Johnson, who received an uncharacteristically low score by the judges on the balance beam at Regionals, earned the 11th spot all-around. However, she was notified two days later that one of the other JO-NIT qualifiers had chosen not to go, opening a spot for her to attend.

Johnson moved from Southern California almost seven years ago, and was excited to go back to see family, the beach, and to compete. “It was great getting to go back to California - I had such a good time with all my family,” said Johnson. “Although the weather wasn’t exactly perfect, everything else was great. I am really pleased with how I did at NIT and I am very glad I got the opportunity to go.”

The Junior Olympic National Invitational Tournament (JO-NIT) was developed to allow an additional 192 athletes the opportunity to compete at the national level, with college coaches in attendance.

Johnson is coached by Helen Verucchi and head coach Alex Atamas.

Gymnast Places at State, Advances to Regionals

Allen’s own Makenzie Johnson was one of the 101 level 10 gymnasts to descend on Texas Women’s University March 26 for the Texas State Championships. Johnson, who trains at Eagle’s Wings Athletics (EWA), won fifth place all-around out of the 18 competitors in the Senior B age group.

Johnson’s highest score came on the floor exercise, a 9.675 that was awarded 6th place. She earned a 9.625 (9th place) on vault, and took 6th place on both uneven parallel bars (9.375) and balance beam (9.35), earning 38.025 out of a possible 40 in the all-around.

Johnson easily moves on to the Regional Championships, to be held April 15 at Lovejoy High School in Lucas. Gymnasts from Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming will be competing for the top few spots that will advance to the Junior Olympic National Championships in Long Beach, California in mid-May.

Johnson, a junior at Allen High School, lives about a mile from the Regional competition site. After having traveled to Regionals at Denver two years ago, and New Mexico last year, she is excited at the prospect of being the level 10 gymnast who lives the closest to the venue. But she doesn’t want the season to end there. “I really want to make it to Nationals,” says Johnson. “I want to show myself and everyone else that I have the skills, work ethic, and determination to be a great gymnast and an asset to college teams.” Johnson moved to Texas from Southern California over 5 years ago, and would also enjoy the opportunity to return and see family, friends, and the beach.

Once, Twice, Three Times a Champion

Shianne Orr of Eagle’s Wings Athletics in Allen earned the state championship title on two individual events and the all-around at the USA Gymnastics Level 6 Texas State Championships held Nov. 20-21 in Cedar Park.

Orr won the top spot in the all-around with a score of 38.175, having also taken gold on balance beam (9.825) and floor exercise (9.7). She placed fourth on uneven parallel bars (9.35) and tied for ninth on vault (9.3) out of the 20 competitors in the Jr. C2 age division.

Teammate Ashleigh Rose competed in the Jr. A1 division and took silver on vault with a score of 9.525. Rose also earned sixth place on balance beam (9.65) and floor exercise (9.575) to earn a total of 37.00 and tenth place all-around.

The girls are coached by Alex Atamas and Helen Verucchi at Eagle’s Wings Athletics.

The Results Are In!!

The level 6 USA gymnasts in Texas were gearing up for Halloween in more ways than one. In addition to shopping for costumes and carving pumpkins, these talented young girls have been training and preparing for one of their most exciting competitions of the season. On October, 30, 2010, approximately 150 level 6 gymnasts from district 1, 2 and 3 competed at North State in Metroplex Gymnastics located in Allen, Texas.

Two gymnasts representing the Eagle’s Wings USAG team were among those 150 level 6 gymnasts who competed. Ashleigh Rose and Shianne Orr, age 8 and 11, competed in Junior A1 division and Junior C2 division respectively. Shianne Orr captured the title of all-around champion in her division (38.275). She was also gold medalist in floor exercise (9.7), balanced beam (9.775) and uneven bars (9.55). Her score of 9.25 on Vault won her a silver medal. Ashleigh Rose had strong showings in two events. She was North State champion on floor exercise (9.775) and the silver medalist on vault (9.475). Her praise-worthy all around score of 37.25 placed her sixth place in Junior A1 division, one of the most competitive divisions at the entire competition.

Shianne Orr and Ashleigh Rose are on the USA gymnastics team at Eagles Wings, coached by Alex Atamas and Helena Verucchi.

Mooyah Fundraiser

Please help our EWA Girls Teams raise money for their season! Mooyah in the Village of Allen is holding a fundraising event for our girls this Thursday, November 4th from 4 p.m. until 10 p.m. Guests must mention Eagles Wings when ordering so that the receipts can be set aside. EWA will then receive 15% of those receipts.  So mark your calendars and tell your friends!!

Eagle’s Wings Owns Spotlight at Allen Classic

The performances of the Eagle’s Wings USAG gymnasts could not have been classier at the Allen Classic meet on September 18, 2010.

Winning 13 gold medals, 6 silver medals and 9 bronze medals, two level 6 gymnasts and seven level 4 gymnasts have lots to smile about after competing at Allen Classic hosted by Metroplex Gymnastics. This was just the second meet for these Eagle’s Wings gymnasts this season and their performances not only enchantingly highlight their talents but also strongly reflect their hard work and dedication.

Two level 6 gymnasts, Ashleigh Rose and Shianne Orr, competed at Junior A and Junior B division respectively. Ashleigh Rose, a third-grade Plano resident, captured the all-around gold medal with a score of 37.25, thanks to her gold-medal performances on floor exercise (9.65) and vault (9.55). She also placed third on balance beam (9.25) and on uneven bars (8.8). Shianne Orr, a relatively new Lucas resident from California, won the title of all-around champion (38.050) in the Junior B division. Shianne had strong showings on balance beam (9.75) and uneven bars (9.45) and placed first in these two events. Third place in vault (9.45) and floor exercise (9.4) also helped secure her all-around championship.

The level 4 team consists of 7 talented gymnasts, and they won the first place team award with ease. In the Junior A division, Abigail Haigwood, the all-around champion scoring 38.05, had great performances on vault (9.7) and balance beam (9.45), winning her gold medals in both events. Her floor exercise (9.6) and uneven bars (9.3) also won her second place medals. Her teammate, Abigail Johnston, placed second all around (37.4) and was the floor exercise champion (9.65). Abigail Johnston also placed second on vault (9.6), third on bars (9.15) and third on beam (9.0).

In the Junior B division, Madelyn Johnson was the all-around (38.25) and balance beam (9.65) gold medalist. In addition, she won second place on vault (9.75), third on bars (9.3) and floor exercise (9.55). Rounding out the gold medal winners, Alexandra Brownlee was Junior B vault champion (9.8) and a bronze medalist on balance beam (9.45). Jillian Goodrich, a silver medalist on uneven bars (9.4), Grace Felton and Kynsey Hennen also contributed to a successful first place team finish with outstanding performances.

“We are very proud of our gymnasts and are pleased with their performances. We are always looking for ways to perfect their techniques. There is still a lot to do and we will get on it right away when we return to practice on Monday,” coaches Alex Atamas and Helena Verucchi said with a smile. Alex Atamas and Helena Verucchi are the coaches for the USAG girl’s team at Eagle’s Wings Athletics

The Results Are In…

The results are in and our girls did great at their first meet!  Check out their individual scores, team placements and more on their results pages!

Red Team Results

Green Team Results

EWA Gymnasts Compete at Nationals

EWA GYMNASTS COMPETE AT NATIONALS

Two Level 10 gymnasts from Eagle’s Wings Athletics (EWA) competed at National competitions in Dallas the weekend of May 8 - 10. USA Gymnastics (USAG) sponsored the Junior Olympic (JO) National Championships and the National Invitational Tournament at the Dallas Convention Center. The meet was attended by dozens of collegiate recruiters looking at the some of the best talent in the country.

Casey Dreyer, a freshman from Plano, was one of 56 athletes competing in the Junior C division at JO Nationals. She tied for eighth place on balance beam (9.525) and 13^th place all-around (37.725). She earned 9.575 on vault, 9.425 on floor exercise and 9.2 on uneven parallel bars to round out the individual events. Her coaches, Alex Atamas and Helen Verucchi, were pleased with her performance.

USAG also sponsors the Junior Olympic National Invitational (JO-NIT), a competition held to allow an additional 192 athletes the opportunity to compete nationally and be seen by NCAA coaches. Less than one-third of the 1500 Level 10 gymnasts that compete at State competitions are seen at Nationals. USAG developed the JO-NIT so that coaches already in attendance for JO Nationals can see and evaluate more athletes for recruiting purposes.

Allen High School sophomore Makenzie Johnson competed in the Junior D division at the JO-NIT. She tied for silver on vault with a score of 9.375. She earned fifth place on uneven bars (9.025), tied for eighth on balance beam (9.05) and took seventh all-around (36.25).

USAG Women’s Level 7 State

USAG WOMEN’S LEVEL 7 STATE

Two girls from EWA’s USA Gymnastics team became state champions at the Level 7 State meet held in Frisco April 24-25. Isabella Gordillo, who competed in the Jr. B3 division, was the balance beam champion with a score of 9.65. She tied for first place on vault (9.7) and tied for second on floor exercise (9.6) to place fifth all-around (37.575).

Natalie May tied for gold on balance beam in the Senior A3 division, earning a 9.65. She placed fourth on vault, fifth on floor, and seventh on uneven parallel bars to finish with the bronze medal all-around (37.9).

Sierra Thain placed sixth on beam, seventh on floor, and ninth on bars for a ninth place finish all-around (37.175) in the Junior B1 division.

Congrats!!

Congratulations to Casey Dreyer-3rd AA at the Regional level 10 in NM -JO National Championships qualifier! And Makenzie Johnson- NIT qualifier! Way to go girls!!!!

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