Lily Ticknor

At the most recent U.S. national qualifier held in Louisville, one athlete – junior Lily Ticknor of Flips Gymnastics – earned her elite status along with the chance to compete at this weekend’s Winter Cup just a couple of days ahead of the competition.

Among 17 athletes hoping to get their elite scores here, 14-year-old Ticknor was the only athlete to make it happen, putting up a 49.350 along with the top score of the day on floor, the second-best score on beam, and the third-best scores on vault and bars, an impressive feat considering this was her first elite attempt in her career.

Two other athletes who competed in the junior session are already qualified to compete both in elite and at the Winter Cup. Eva Doherty and Amia Pugh-Banks, both of World Class, competed bars and beam here to get some practice in before Sunday’s competition, with Doherty putting up a 12.500 to earn the top bars score while Pugh-Banks’ 12.400 on bars was the second-best.

In the senior competition, Elaina Sliney of Cincinnati Gymnastics led the all-around with a 50.150, but she fell just a few tenths short of the qualification score for this level. She also put up the top bars score with a 13.000, while Carsyn Coleman of Gymnastics Olympica had the best vault score with a 13.800, and Sydney Strong of Legacy Gymnastics – who only competed three events here – was at the top on beam with a 12.650 and on floor with a 12.600.

An additional 26 athletes attempted to earn their Hopes scores here, and we ultimately saw two in the 13-14 age group along with three in the 11-12 age group reach their goals.

Kyndall Keys of 360 Elite led the charge in the 13-14 age group with a 47.600, also posting the top score of 12.550 on floor, while Lindy Reynolds of Fuzion Gymnastics also qualified with a 46.750. In the 11-12 age group, Harper Usseglio of Coast Elite had the top score with a 47.100, and the others who made it included Kinslee Seifert of Fuzion Gymnastics with a 46.600 and Piper Graves of ETC Gymnastics with a 45.300. Also notable were Chloe McDonough of World Class and Aria Sanchez and Lexi Miller of North Stars surpassing the 11-12 qualification score here, but all three previously qualified in Rochester, so this was simply a nice bonus round for them.

For more information, check out the complete results, and to see a full list of all athletes who have qualified to the elite level and to national championships, check out our U.S. elite tracker.

Athletes now have a little break from the qualification process, with the final two not set to be held until May and June. Locations for both are currently to be determined.

Article by Lauren Hopkins