Elkhart Central’s Kiara Stabler will lead the team to the IHSAA Gymnastics State Finals this Saturday. (Photo by Mike Deak)

MUNCIE – With the success Elkhart Central’s gymnastics team has had in recent years, it would be hard to fathom something new would be coming this weekend at the IHSAA Gymnastics State Finals. The Blue Blazers will be entering team state for the first time in the history of the program when action begins Saturday at Worthen Arena on the campus of Ball State University.

Elkhart Central qualified for the state finals with its second-place finish at the Huntington North Regional, keeping relative pace with powerhouse Fort Wayne Dwenger and getting the nod over Homestead by a tenth-of-a-point in the final standings. All three teams will enter the finals, along with defending champion Valparaiso, Crown Point and Chesterton from the region regional, and Columbus North, Columbus East and Owen Valley from the southern regional.

In the past 10 years, Elkhart had only been to the regional round as a team five times, finishing a heart-breaking fourth on four occasions, one spot shy of the automatic state qualifying place. The Blue Blazers have won six sectional titles, making the regional in five of those seasons. For all of the glory in the past 10 years, however, Central has only placed three times in the top-12 of the state finals in its history, and all by one athlete.

Caitlin Sullivan is the lone gymnast from Central to place in the top 12 at the state finals, taking 11th in all-around and fourth on floor at the 2006 state finals, and was the beam runner-up in 2007, capping her spectacular career. Since then, however, it’s been a famine of sorts for the program, and head coach Kathy Krauter is hoping the regional momentum can break the dry spell.

“When we got back to the gym after the sectional, I sat them all down and said the fact that you walked out of the gym with a sectional trophy despite five falls on beam and one on bars is remarkable,” Krauter said. “That proves you have talent. I don’t have to tell you what you need to work on. They knew what they needed to do.

“All we’re going to work on this week is beam. Five falls on beam again! We’re fine everywhere else. But these kids are killing me on beam.”

Junior Kiara Stabler, sophomore Skiler Reveal and freshman Abi Downs make up the core for Central. Stabler and Reveal are the lone two Blazers that came into the regional with any previous regional-level experience, both working at Huntington in 2015. Downs, however, wound up having the best day of the three at Huntington, scoring a 36.00 in all-around for fifth overall, helped by a third-place 9.35 on vault and 9.025 on bars. Stabler wasn’t far off, scoring a 35.35 all-around figure with a consistent set of high-eights, her best score an 8.95 on vault. Reveal wowed on floor, scoring 9.25 for the second-best score of the meet, only behind Dwenger’s ace Maria Trahin’s 9.3.

Freshman Rylee Damewood just missed out on top-six on the floor at 9.1, half a point from the cutline. Damewood competed in vault as well, giving Central another talented freshman a chance in the spotlight.

“Kiara is like a stealth fighter, she flies under the radar and she likes it that way,” Krauter said. “She is a low-key young lady who is humble and a hard worker. But she is our captain and she will take kids aside and explain things. It works for us, with such a young team like we have.”

Valpo, Columbus North and Dwenger look to be the three teams deep enough to battle for the title, but Crown Point and Chesterton likely will be heard from in the final standings for the team title. The individual talent coming to battle should make for an extremely lively show. Returning as defending state champions are Anna Watkin of Owen Valley in all-around and beam, Ashley Holliday of Columbus North on bars and Kylee Maxwell of Morgan Township on vault.

Claire Thompson of Columbus North and Addison Minor of Columbus East, Sydney Intagliata of Valpo and Lainey Kowalczyk of Crown Point, and E’Lycia Early of Fort Wayne Concordia all should have a say in matters Saturday, which begins at 1 p.m.