The past, present and future of Lake Forest girls gymnastics all converged at the Mundelein Sectional on Feb. 9.
One Scout — freshman Jessica Pasquesi — competed at the event. Pasquesi performed in the balance beam and the all-around. Pasquesi is a rising star in the Lake Forest program. Her season-long ascension culminated with her performance at the Glenbrook South Regional and her four routines at the Mundelein Sectional.
“She hit four for four,” senior Laura Blake said. “In the future, I see her progressing to a higher level.”
Blake was one of several Scouts who attended the sectional to support Pasquesi. For seniors Blake, Grace Hogan, Diana Mzyk and Tabatha Jeffers-Fitzgerald, the sectional marked the last event in careers that ranged from competing at the highest levels to being spectators at the state series.
“The senior class has been through three head coaches,” first-year coach Megan Miles said. “This was an interesting culminating season for them.”
Miles replaced Alison Gildemeister, who replaced long-time coach Robin Straus for 2013-2014. Straus, who retired after the 2012-13 season, was in attendance at the Mundelein Sectional.
In back-to-back seasons — 2011-12 and 2012-13 — the Scouts qualified as a team for the state meet. Those teams were dominated by Kylie Carlson, Katherine McKeon and Brittany Moccia. In 2013-14, Moccia was a sectional champion in four events.
This season, Lake Forest had no dominant gymnast. Blake, a member of the two state-qualifying teams and a sectional qualifier on beam in 2013-14, said the lack of high-level tournament achievements doesn’t diminish this season.
“It’s obvious we didn’t have one superstar gymnast as in previous years. One of our biggest accomplishments is our all-across-the-board improvement,” Blake said. “It was evident in how we competed and our scores and confidence as the season [went on].”
Lake Forest’s team scores in January and February reflected progress. At the Lake County meet on Jan. 17, the Scouts posted a score of 128.90, a season high. Their score of 126.80 at Glenbrook South on Feb. 2 reflected another high mark.
Pasquesi’s progression generated the most individual excitement. Her scores at the sectional meet were not high enough to advance to Friday and Saturday’s state meet at Palatine. In the beam, she finished with an 8.25 (21st place), while in the all-around, she ended up in 24th place with a total four-event score of 33.350.
“You can tell she was a little more nervous than her previous meets,” Blake said. “She’ll be doing private [lessons] in the summer, and I know if she works hard this summer, she can make it to state next year.”
Miles added: “[Pasquesi] has the strength and the form and the ability. She can build off this year and hopefully next year, add some harder tricks to put into her routine. She’s a competitor.”
Pasquesi, along with juniors Sara Rossman and Anika Boyd, give the Scouts a strong core for 2015-16. They were handed a strong foundation by the departing senior class.
“With their overall contributions to gymnastics as a whole, they’ve been an awesome group,” Miles said.
Jon Kerr is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.