Glenbrook South’s Jenna Hartley receives hugs from Bebe Haramaras and Katie Wahl. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER
Jenna Hartley was 18 months old when she executed her first gymnastics move.
Forgive the Glenbrook South freshman gymnast for not being able to recall any of the specifics from that day in a gym. Her vocabulary was about as expansive as a parrot’s, and the pressing questions of her days then were, in no particular order: Should I eat now? Should I sleep now? Should I play now?
“I was told I jumped off a trampoline and landed in a foam pit,” Hartley said at the Stevenson Sectional on Feb. 6.
What she and her Titans teammates landed at the sectional in Lincolnshire: a state team berth — the fifth in program history and the second in three seasons.
Coach Steve Gale’s girls topped the highly competitive sectional with a score of 145.45 points. New Trier (145.275) and Carmel Catholic (144.8) finished second and third, respectively.
“I thought New Trier would score 149, and Carmel would be right there, too,” Gale said afterward. “I figured we’d come in third, with around 145 or 146 points, and then hope for an at-large state berth.
“Our mindset tonight was to go out and hit, not think about beating any of the teams. ‘Do what you can do and do it with confidence’ — that’s what I told our girls. I’m giving our team an A-minus tonight.”
Hartley — the younger sister of Glenbrook South senior star Hannah Hartley — went 4-for-4 atop the mats, finishing third in the all-around (37.075) and in the top five in each of the four events. (A top-five performance results in an automatic state berth). Jenna bronzed on the uneven bars (9.25) and on floor exercise (9.2), while Hannah captured gold on the vault (9.725) and bars (9.5) and emerged as the silver medalist in the all-around (37.4).
“Hannah motivates me,” said Jenna, who performs her floor show to “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” a song by The Charlie Daniels Band.
“We motivate each other,” Hannah said.
Titans senior captain Katie Wahl inspired every Titan and every Titans fan in the building with her lead-off score of 8.6 on the balance beam. The fourth-year varsity gymnast had been inactive all season with an injury when she approached Gale before Senior Night last month and asked to be a part of the lineup against Maine South.
Gale okayed the plea.
“Katie went up on beam that night and earned a spot,” the coach recalled.
Wahl made the state series squad, helping South achieve a school-record mark of 146.4 points as the victorious team in a regional meet on the home mats on Jan. 30. On Feb. 4, in a practice session, she hit her flip-flop series on the beam for the first time this winter.
Wahl then nailed the series again at the sectional two days later. Pure joy radiated from Wahl as she ran to embrace her thrilled teammates following her beam dismount.
Next up on the beam was Glenbrook South junior Kylie Kruger, whose 8.775 would be solid enough for 13th place. Classmate Bebe Haramaras received an 8.85 (10th place), five spots behind Jenna Hartley’s 9.275. Hannah Hartley’s runner-up effort of 9.4 then capped the Titans’ meet-best beam aggregate of 36.3.
“You never want to second-guess yourself or hold back in gymnastics,” said Gale, who espouses the same tenets in golf — the other sport he coaches at the school. “As soon as you do either of those, you’re going to find yourself in trouble.”
Haramaras finished seventh in the all-around with a sturdy 35.975. The at-large state cut in the all-around last winter was 35.825.
At-large berths in the all-around and in each of the four events will be determined following the final sectional, which was scheduled to be held at Oswego on Feb. 9.
Kruger placed 13th in the all-around with a 34.3 at the state’s first sectional. Haramaras also contributed a 9.325 on vault (eighth place) and a 9.0 on bars (ninth).
Gale’s sectional lineup also included sophomore Sarah Healy, who competed on vault, bars and floor. She provided an 8.925 score as the team’s second competitor on vault.
The state meet will be held at Palatine High School on Feb. 17-18.
Notable: Hannah Hartley’s all-around regional score of 38.25 — achieved at Glenbrook South on Jan. 30 — was the top mark among all Stevenson Sectional all-around qualifiers. The Titans senior also took first on vault (9.725), bars (9.5), beam (9.475) and floor (9.55) at the home regional. Behold gymnastics’ grand slam. … Glenbrook South finished in eighth place (140.625) at the state gymnastics meet in 2015. The best state finish in program history was its third-place showing in the 1978-79 season.
Glenbrook North: Compete hard, then wait.
And wait some more.
That was what the Spartans had to accept at the Stevenson Sectional on Feb. 6, since none of the Glenbrook North entrants qualified automatically (top five in the all-around or in any of the four events) to the state gymnastics meet later this month.
At-large qualifiers would not be determined until the conclusion of the final sectional, scheduled to be held on Feb. 9.
“I … love … my … girls,” said Spartans coach Julie Holmbeck, who has worked at the school for 25 years, including 11 as the head girls gymnastics coach. “My two seniors [Alexandra Michalak and Katie Brownlee] are great role models, and it’s the most cohesive group I’ve ever been around at Glenbrook North.”
Junior Kelly Lazar finished as the team’s top all-arounder (34.2, 14th place) and placed in the top 10 in two events: vault (ninth place, 9.3) and beam (10th, 8.85). Classmate Brittany Ullrich swung to an eighth-place 9.025 on the uneven bars.
GBS’s Jenna Hartley performs her uneven bars routine. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER
Hannah Hartley executes an aerial move during her balance beam routine. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER
Kylie Kruger (back to the camera) receives congratulations from teammates following her beam routine. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER
Jenna Hartley works through her aerial series on beam. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER
Alexandra Michalak chalks up during the sectional meet. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER
Glenbrook North’s Brittany Ullrich reacts following her bars routine. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER
Alexandra Michalak of the Spartans eyes a landing spot during beam routine. PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOEL LERNER