RallyNorth.net

Bogaczyk, Thompson lead Astros to title

Saturday, February, 20 By Michael Muldoon
Staff writer

SALEM, N.H. — New Hampshire could be looking at its third straight three-peat champion.
Pinkerton, led by Olivia Bogaczyk and Courtney Thompson, who went 1-2 in the all-around, rolled to the New Hampshire State Meet gymnastics title yesterday. Bogaczyk is a freshman and Thompson a sophomore, so the Astros will be tough to beat for at least the next two years.
The top-seeded Astros, who went 25-1 in the regular season, dethroned three-time defending champion Salem, which settled for fourth place. Prior to Salem’s run, the Astros had won three straight.
“It was awesome, so awesome,’’ said Pinkerton’s fourth-year coach Gina Kegler, after winning her first title.
The Astros had the highest score in every event: vault 33.525, bars 34.425, beam 35.55 and floor 35.475 to easily outscore runner-up Manchester Central, 138.975-132.1.
Bogaczyk, 14, has a built-in advantage. Her father, Matt, owns Granite State Gymnastics in Bow.
“I almost didn’t do high school gymnastics,’’ she said. “I saw the girls had so much fun and I wanted to be part of it. I didn’t even know they had individual placers.’’
Now the Derry resident knows. She won the all-around (36.05), bars (9.375) and beam (9.15).
Bogaczyk got off to a slow start with a subpar effort in the vault.
“That put more pressure on,’’ admitted Bogaczyk, who rebounded like a champion.
The sport has been a perfect fit for her since her preschool days.
“When I was 5, I broke me leg,’’ said Bogaczyk. “The doctor said it was good for leg strength.’’
Thompson was especially pleased because she had missed much of the season.
“I’m just back from a bad ankle sprain,’’ she noted.
When asked about a potential dynasty, the Chester resident said, “Definitely. Yeah, I’d say so.’’
Thompson may have set the world record for the earliest start in a sport.
“I started when I was 1,’’ she said. “It was Mommy and Me at Spectrum (Gymnastics in Londonderry)’’
Thompson brings a fearless attitude to gymnastics and another passion of hers, horseback riding.
She has two horses: Violet and Joy.
“I’ve won a lot of state (equestrian) things,’’ she said.
Thompson trains at Brestyans in Burlington, Mass., where Olympian Alicia Sacramone trains. But she’s committed to high school gymnastics, too.
“I’ll always be an Astro,’’ she said.
Same with Kegler. She teaches pyschology at the school and graduated from there in 1999. But she didn’t compete on the gymnastics team. That made yesterday’s title even more special.
“We really hit on bars more than we have all season,’’ she said. “That gave us momentum and typically it’s our weakest event.”
Yesterday they were all strong. That might be the case for the next few years as well.
Other local placers were Londonderry’s Leah Jackson, who was tied for fourth on vault; Pinkerton’s Alex Halle and Salem’s Samantha Cloutier, who placed fifth and sixth, respectively, on the beam; and Salem’s Shireen Kirata, who tied for fourth on floor and finished eighth in the all-around.