Darien YMCA coach Vladamir Kovalenko spots nine-year-old Octavia Molkenthin on the bars during warm-ups at the FUNomenal Flippers Invite in Glastonbury on Jan. 21.
The Level 5 girls of Darien Y Gymnastics Travel Team finished first at the FUNomenal Flippers Invite in Glastonbury. Darien’s 20 gymnasts were grouped according to age, and competed against eight other teams from Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York on Saturday, Jan. 21.
In the 13-year-old division, Fiona Brock led the team with a high-scoring 36.2 in the all-around standing, finishing first, with teammate Aisling Brock (35.2) finishing third.
Twelve-year-old Toni Cardini took first on beam (9.2) and floor (9.45), while Emma Hinton took first place on bars (9.4). All three performances resulted in team-high scores.
Eleven-year-olds Wren Stewart (34.75) and Alexandra Nason (34.65) finished third and fourth, respectively, in the all-around competition. On floor, Elena Savas excelled in taking first with a 9.4, while Jane Ogden delivered a 9.0.
Ten-year old Annsley Martin (35.7) led her age division with a first place in the all-around. Teammates Emma Hunter (9.0, first place), MacKenzie Biele (8.8, third place), Gianna Cardini (8.7, fifth place) and Lucy Holzinger (8.7-sixth place) had strong performances on beam. Kaitlyn Moussignac (8.4, fourth place) and Maeve DeGulis (7.9, 13th place) shined on vault. Dorothy Browning (9.0, eighth place) was a standout on floor.
Level 5’s youngest gymnasts Lana Schmidt (28.9), Stella Kamensky (26.35), Octavia Molkenthin (26.2), and Tess Keating (26.2) finished seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th, respectively, in the nine-year old all-around standing.
Led by coaches Vladamir Kovelenko, Valentina Kovelenko, Yury Vasilyev, and Antoniana Surmenko, the travel team will compete at the Gymnastics Revolution Team Challenge at Western State Connecticut College in Danbury on Saturday.
