Two Stevens Point Area Senior High gymnasts will compete in the WIAA State Meet Friday night at Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln.
Seniors Kimberly Jo Barden and Tracy Knippel both finished among the top four in one respective individual event at the WIAA Sectional last Saturday in Neenah. Barden will compete in the balance beam after finishing third (8.9) and Knippel is in the floor exercise following her third-place finish (9.275).
"I'm hoping to add more difficulty in my routine and keep everything clean," Knippel said.
"They're shooting for the top three. They're seniors. They'd like to finish their career on a good note," SPASH coach Mary Olszewski said.
The entire SPASH team had hoped to advance to the team competition Saturday, but finished fourth at sectionals with 135.450 points. Neenah (141.125) and Wisconsin Rapids (136.875) qualified while Sheboygan was third (136.850).
"We were disappointed. We had hoped to go as a team. We knew we could do better," Olszewski said. "That's the way gymnastics goes. If you have an off day, that's the way it goes."