The Level 9 Eastern Championships is a competition that boasts clean gymnastics from stars of the future. It is the largest meet for which a Level 9 gymnast can qualify; forty-eight gymnasts qualify in six different age groups. The youngest age group, "Junior A," is the one from which the most stars come, and that session will be the basis of this meet report. These gymnasts are all twelve years old or younger, doing skills of intermediate level - "C's and some occasional D's," as one judge put it, in reference to the difficulty of skills being performed. This year's Easterns was held on the campus of Springfield College in Massachusetts and proved to be a very strong competition.

The meet began with a strong floor routine from Natalie Beilstein of Butler Gymnastics in Pennsylvania. Dancing to "Jumpin' Jack," Beilstein's tumbling included a tucked double back, front layout full to punch front, and closing with two consecutive front layouts. Certainly among the more difficult tumbling of the field, She set the standard with a 9.625; however, there were many other strong floor routines in this rotation, including the champions of Region 7, Shelby Geis (tucked double back; front layout + front layout; 1 1/2 for a 9.425) and Region 8, Kimberly Jacob (double pike; whip 1/2 + front layout + punch front; double full for a 9.35). Ali Stakem of Hills also hit floor for 9.3 (tucked double back; two front layouts; double full).

Meanwhile, Kyra Platt of Coast Elite had a clean beam set (flic flac to layout step out) while Region 5 champion Ashley Sledge nailed a laid out Yurchenko for a 9.3 to tie for 6th. Also on the vault was a TOPS veteran, hometown favorite Ming-Ya Zhou, whose handspring to front tuck was stuck for 9.275.

Standings after Rotation 1:
1. Natalie Beilstein, Butler, 9.625
2. Kyra Platt, Coast Elite, -0.100
3. Shelby Geis, Will-Moor, -0.200
4. Kimberly Jacob, Gym Carolina, -0.275
5. Britney Taylor, River City, -0.300
6t. Ashley Sledge, World Class, -0.325
6t. Ali Stakem, Hill's, -0.325
8t. Ming Ya Zhou, Brestyan, -0.350
8t. Shonda Clore, Twistars, -0.350
8t. Krystyn Misheck, Aerials, -0.350

The second rotation saw a clean floor routine from Platt, who double-backed into the lead (she also tumbled a front layout to punch front and a double full). Beilstein nailed a Yurchenko layout for a 9.075, while Jacob's handspring front was sky-high (9.3). Sledge was strong on bars (gorgeous straddle back to handstand) while Zhou also nailed an albeit simple bar routine (tucked double flyaway dismount).

Geis vaulted a piked Yurchenko for 9.05, while Stakem's Yurchenko layout was a bit low for 8.975. Brittney Taylor backed off her strong floor routine with a great piked Tsukahara, while Savannah Foss was excellent on floor for a 9.30.

Standings after Rotation 2
1. Platt, 18.925
2. Beilstein, -0.225
3. Jacob, -0.275
4. Sledge, -0.325
5. Zhou, -0.375
6. Geis, -0.450
7t. Foss, -0.500
7t. Taylor, -0.500

The third rotation's centrifugal event was the uneven bars, which hosted Jacob, Geis, and Beilstein. Jacob had a very clean routine including a high bar sequence of giant blind turn, front giant 1/2 turn, immediate double back dismount, for a 9.425. However, Shelby Geis, a little upstart from Will-Moor Gymnastics in New Jersey, easily beat this score. Also a TOPS veteran, Shelby's form is so immaculate, so perfect - she swings through every skill with ease, including a stalder to handstand, a straddle back to handstand, and a giant blind turn, front giant 1/2 turn, immediate double pike dismount - rare for this level of competition - and was rewarded a 9.60, the highest score on any event so far. This spectacular bar set was one of the most beautiful pieces of gymnastics I've ever seen. Unfortunately, Beilstein couldn't keep the streak going; a few form breaks (especially on her high-bar blind change sequence) resulted in a score of 9.10.

While Geis' bar set was the highlight of this rotation, there were some other strong performances. Platt continued her amazing meet with a 9.15 on vault (laid out Yurchenko), while Zhou's beam set included some excellent elements (front tuck mount; back handspring + whip back; switch leap to back tuck). Zhou is a young, talented athlete, who works the beam very aggressively; I'd be interested in seeing where she goes from here. Also impressive on balance beam was Lauren Caldemeyer of DeVeau's, whose set included flic-flac to layout step out, a front aerial, and a layout 1/1 dismount. Caldemeyer had been improving with each rotation: 26th after the first, 15th after the second, and 7th after the third. Also on the balance beam was Ashley Sledge, who unfortunately suffered a fall on her flic-flac to layout step out, dropping her to 16th and out of contention for this title.

On floor, Nicole Dayton of Geddert's Twistars posted a surprising 9.65. Dayton, who had been in 18th after two rotations, tumbled a double tuck, two front layouts, and dismounted with a difficult 1-1/2 twist to punch front. Amanda Carpenter of Prestige also worked floor in this rotation, with a double tuck, two front layouts, and a double full for 9.325.

Standings after Rotation 3
1t. Platt, 28.075
1t. Jacob, -0.000
1t. Geis, -0.000
4. Dayton, -0.250
5. Beilstein, -0.275
6. Zhou, -0.475
7t. Caldemeyer, -0.500
7t. Carpenter, -0.500

The competition had proven interesting leading to this, the final rotation. Of course, the three-way tie for first was the talk of the meet: which gymnast would take home the title? We were forty-nine routines away from a new Eastern Champion, but in the minds of all spectators, only three gymnasts remained: Kyra Platt of Coast Elite, Kimberly Jacob of Gym Carolina, and Shelby Geis of Will-Moor.

Opening the rotation was the improving Nicole Dayton, whose 9.35 on vault would hold her in good stead (handspring to front tuck). Lauren Caldemeyer, who was also readily improving, nailed floor for 9.5 (double pike; two front layouts; double full). With Caldemeyer on floor was Zhou, whose wobbly beam set put her out of contention for the title but she continued to impress with a 1-1/2 punch front, two front layouts, and a double full. In spite of her beam fall, Sledge's floor was strong (double tuck; whip through to double full; double full to close); as Region 5 champion, she proved that she could have been right up there without the fall.

It was time for Platt to mount the uneven bars. Appearing nervous (who wouldn't?), she breezed through her straddle back but froze when she got to the high bar. Her giant blind turn stopped in handstand, went the wrong way, and resulted in an extra swing, another kip, and tried to finish the routine but the damage had already been done. It certainly didn't help that she bounded out of her tucked double flyaway dismount. The judges gave her a fair score - 8.525 - and Platt lost any shot at an all-around medal.

Which brings us to the balance beam. Beilstein started things off with a slightly sloppy routine (flic-flac to layout step out; standing back tuck), but it was Geis on whom all eyes were watching. Nerves prevailed; she didn't come off the beam, but was a bit wobbly, with a flic-flac to layout step out, front aerial, straddle jump to back tuck, and closing with a simple Arabian front dismount. Her score of 9.425 was somewhat surprising, considering how hard the beam judges had been on previous routines.

Kimberly Jacob was the final competitor on balance beam. With a smile on her face, she pressed up into handstand with ease. She then floated through two exquisite jump combinations: a wolf jump to Popa, and a straddle jump to wolf jump 1/1. These will certainly help her at elite! She then floated through a difficult series of a flic-flac to two layout step outs - and she was dead on. With just the dismount to go, she needed a 9.45 to win the meet - which, based on the score given to Geis, would be quite easy. Having stuck her double-twist. Jacob posted a 9.525 - well deserved - and the title of 2003 Eastern Champion.

As usual, there was a lot of talent on display at this competition. Of course, the beautiful bar set of Shelby Geis was quite the talk, but Jacob's beautiful Gym Carolina routines were impressive as well. Dayton and Caldemeyer each rose out of second-rotation slumps to take third and fourth, respectively; the former incidentally won both vault and floor exercise. Beilstein took fifth, and Zhou rounded out in sixth. Ashley Sledge and Kyra Platt, despite mistakes, were still able to hold on to top-10 positions; they finished ninth and tenth, respectively. Beyond the top ten, there was so much talent, potential, and gymnasts longing to earn spots on that 2008 Olympic team. And based not only on history but the caliber of today's competition, some of these girls will be in Beijing.

UPDATE: One month after this meet occured, some of the Easterns competitors competed at the U.S. Challenge in San Antonio, TX. Shelby Gies won the TOPS competition, with teammate Victoria Kane taking second. Ming-Ya Zhou finished third! In the Junior National competition, Brooke Wheeler, Lisa Reifschneider, and Kelsey Joannides placed sixth, ninth, and fifteenth all-around respectively, with Wheeler finishing second in the Physical Abilities testing. Congratulations girls!