Falls off beam ruin otherwise fine day
By: Rudy Brandl
PISCATAWAY The Hillsborough High gymnasts found themselves in a familiar predicament in Saturday’s NJSIAA Championships at the Livingston College Recreation Center. For the second straight week, the Raiders had to overcome a bad performance on the balance beam to finish with a flourish on the floor.
While the HHS girls completed their team effort with a bang, it wasn’t enough to propel them any higher than fifth in the team standings. The Raiders matched their highest state placement ever, but the falls off the beam cost the team a spot in the top three.
"We finished strong," Hillsborough head coach Beth Murrin said. "That’s all I asked from them. It was the same thing as last week. We had to show we were better than that and leave this gym with our heads up."
The Raiders continued their trend of tough luck in the state finals. Last year, the team flopped on the uneven bars and stuck the balance beam. This time, the HHS girls were impressive on bars but couldn’t stay on the beam.
"It just depends on how you’re feeling and what you’re thinking about on that day," HHS senior Lauren Watts said. "In the practices before, we were nailing our routines. At this point, it’s more mental."
Watts was on her way to contending for state all-around honors before falling twice on her beam routine. Like a true seasoned veteran, she shook off that disappointment and finished her fabulous career with an awesome floor routine.
"I figured it was the last time I was competing floor," said Watts, who finished tied for ninth in the state with a 9.4 score. "I had to go out and have fun. I knew it was the last time."
Watts began her day with a very good vault (9.25) and outstanding uneven bars (9.25) performance. She executed the Healy-front giant combination on the top bar and finished with a clean, crisp dismount to tie for eighth place in the state.
"I’m definitely happy with bars," Watts said. "We all have stronger skills on bars. Mary Kate (Lynch) did a new routine today and she nailed it. We already knew we had a good score so that made it easier for me."
Leah Goldberg (8.3), Lynch (8.6) and freshman Chrissy Weber (9.15) set the stage for Watts. Goldberg competed again with a broken right foot, while Lynch threw in a double-back dismount for the first time. Weber was very impressive, especially on her explosive dismount.
"I’m pretty happy with bars," said Weber, who had opened her day with a 9.1 on vault. "The straddle-back could have been better, but the top part was good."
The Raiders felt good about their team vault and bars routines and hit the halfway mark on pace to score around 109 points. Then came the nightmare of the balance beam.
Lynch stayed on during the bulk of her routine but fell on the dismount. Freshman Christina Rhoades delivered a superb routine until near the end when she stumbled off completing a difficult backward skill. Weber and Watts fell during relatively easy skills, making the Raiders count three falls and deductions totaling 1.5 points.
"I knew I was capable of hitting my beam routine, but unfortunately it wasn’t my day," said Weber, who placed 20th in the all-around (35.9). "It was the easiest skill, which is kind of upsetting, but I’m only a freshman and I still have three years to go."
Watts was the only senior to compete for Hillsborough in the state finals. Everyone else will be back next year and the trio of Lynch, Weber and Rhoades is intact for two more seasons.
Watts and the three underclassmen came up with great floor routines to end the day in style. Rhoades (8.75), Weber (9.15) and Lynch (9.275) set the stage for Watts, who was proud of her team’s overall performance. Take away those 15 lousy minutes and the Raiders put on a pretty good show.
"Besides beam, we came in and did what we had to do," said Watts, who finished 21st in the all-around (35.875). "For the most part, we did what we wanted."
Bishop Ahr (111.8) repeated as team champions and topped the Raiders for the third time this season. Ridgewood (109.275), Colts Neck (108.975) and Red Bank Catholic (108.95) also finished ahead of Hillsborough (107.625). Despite all the mistakes, the Raiders still posted their highest team score at the state finals. After breaking so many records this year and scoring as high as 113.125, they expected more in their final meet.
"On any given day, we could have been No. 2," Murrin said. "But it’s like I say every year. We’ll be back."

