County-record eight gymnasts earn total of 19 bids for state meet

CHESTERLAND — Medina County will have an unprecedented number of gymnasts competing at the 48th edition of the state meet. Highland freshman Paige Yu, Medina junior Meghan Deighton, Highland senior Mackenzie Yu and Brunswick junior Jordyn Thomas each qualified for state in multiple events Saturday at the West Geauga District, along with the Bees and Blue Devils teams. Medina junior Addison Kasian, Wadsworth sophomore Jensen Heppner, Highland freshman Jenna Pennington and Medina freshman Colleen Johnson also advanced as part of a county-record eight athletes and 19 bids for the Feb. 29 meet at Hilliard Bradley. "To have three individual qualifiers, as well as our team, is quite an accomplishment and really proves how hard these girls work and shows how they feed off each other to continue to improve," Bees coach Darcy Ranallo said. "Our coaching staff couldn't be more proud of them." Paige Yu joined Thomas in punching her ticket in the maximum five events. She was second in the all-around, third on the uneven parallel bars, fourth on the vault, sixth in the floor exercise and tied for seventh on the balance beam. Older sister Mackenzie Yu and Deighton became two-time state qualifiers, both having competed in 2018 on the beam. Yu was third on the beam, seventh on bars and grabbed the 17th (and final state) berth in the all-around. "When Paige is smiling, I'm smiling," Mackenzie Yu said. "We're both very happy to be competing together." The Bees' fourth-place showing sent them to state for the first time since 2013. Medina will make its 11th appearance at the event on Feb. 28 but was in little mood to celebrate after Deighton suffered a significant right knee injury. Deighton attempted an upgraded vault and landed awkwardly on the final rotation of the final event of the day, bringing a hush to the capacity crowd. She left the gym on crutches, unable to put weight on her leg, and will consult with an orthopedist today. "It's definitely heartbreaking seeing a teammate injured like that and in so much pain," Kasian said. "We were super excited to go to state, but everyone was shaken up after Meghan got hurt, knowing she won't be able to compete with us." Deighton finished second on the beam and seventh on the floor, while Kasian was sixth on the beam and counted scores in each event. Johnson tied for 13th on the bars and netted a team-high 35.075 in the all-around. Freshman Macy Maxworthy, senior McKinley Kerans and Deighton contributed three scores to the Bees' 140.175. Johnson chipped in a pair and sophomore Madelyn Deighton did so on the vault. "We're hoping to keep a positive mindset after Meghan's injury and rally these girls for one last great performance of the season," Ranallo said. "She is such a hard worker and has picked up this team so many times. Now, it's our time to pick her up." Pennington and Heppner defined grace under pressure to claim their initial state spots and push the county to its record total. One week earlier, Pennington was the 12th and final bars qualifier at the West Geauga Sectional. She returned to the site with an 8.975 — a quarter-point improvement — and finished 11th, giving Highland's four-girl team three state participants. Heppner came through in the last of her four district events, nailing her vault for a 9.325 to earn ninth place. She is the first member of the Grizzlies to advance to suburban Columbus since Callie Almes in 2015. "I was a little cautious on my first vault, but I went full-out on the second and it really paid off," Heppner said before breaking into a broad smile. "It's such a relief to make it. "I'm so grateful for the support of my teammates and coaches the whole day. When things didn't go well, they kept me focused on what I had to do instead of the chaos." Contact Brian Dulik at brisports@hotmail.com. Follow him @BrianDulik on Twitter.