Niwot gymnastics claims 2021 regional title

Behind a much-improved performance on the uneven bars, the resurgent Niwot gymnastics team turned in its top score of the season to claim first place at the Class 4A Region 2 championships, held Oct. 29 at Mountain Range High School. Now the Cougars are heading into the state championships on Nov. 5 with a renewed sense of optimism, according to head coach Marisa Purcell.

"We worked really hard on bars, and really tried to get the routines into place," she said afterwards. "You can see the potential, and sometimes it's getting them to see the potential that's hard. So you just keep working through that, and showing them progress, and then all of a sudden it gets put together. Overall, I couldn't be happier. They showed up, they did what they needed to do, and they did it as a team."

Leading that team was Mia Curry, who posted a score of 36.525 to capture her third straight regional all-around title. The senior had the day's top scores on the floor (9.525) and uneven bars (9.175), but an uncharacteristic fall from the balance beam kept her from a season-high total score.

"There's that saying, 'you win some, you lose some,' and I think that's totally true," Curry said. "We all have our off days, and it's okay not to be perfect all the time, and that's something that I'm still working through. Of course, I was a little bit upset about falling, but now I know that it's something I have to work on, and something that I can do even better at state."

Curry will be vying for a third straight Class 4A all-around title at the upcoming state meet, but she also has her eyes on another prize as her high school career comes to a close.

"High school gymnastics has been just such a beautiful and happy part of my life, and I'm sad that I have to move on from it," she said. "But I'm also super excited because I think that this year, our team is really, really great. And we've gotten really, really good and improved a lot over the season."

Joining Curry on the all-around podium at regionals was sophomore Grayce Gutierrez, who battled injuries during her freshman season, and was unable to compete at state. Gutierrez had the day's top score on the beam, and also posted one of the high scores on the bars. She ended with 35.875 points to finish runner-up to Curry.

Also competing for Niwot was junior Ava Silverstein, another veteran, who took fifth in the all-around with a score of 34.800. She finished second to Curry on the uneven bars (8.825), and was fourth overall on the beam. Senior Olivia Sroka took second on beam (9.2), and third on floor (9.275), while Arabella Chen (8.7) was fifth overall on beam.

(See more photos from Niwot's win at regional gymnastics here.)

The Cougars are heading into the Class 4A championships as one of the team favorites, along with Elizabeth and Palmer Ridge. If the Cougars win, it will be their third state title since 2016. Purcell declined to offer a prediction, but after her team's solid performance at regionals, she wouldn't rule anything out.

"Obviously, we want to make fewer mistakes at state, and we still see those few last-minute things we need to critique or do a little bit better," she said. "One thing we talked about is just worrying about ourselves, and just doing what we know how to do. We just go in there and do our best, and if we end up on the top, great, and if not, we still walk away with our heads held high."

To see full results, visit CSAAnow.com.