Several individual performers finished in the Top 15 in the recent Lucia Norwood State Gymnastics Tournament and just out of qualifying for the state finals.

The recent state competition first round competition also included the Chamblee Lady Bulldogs who came up just short of the team finals by 5.400 points after entering the tournament as the No. 8 ranked squad in the Class A-5A Division.

Chamblee put together a score of 97.150 to finish fifth in the prelims, just one spot shy of qualifying for the finals with a team made up of four freshmen, two sophomores and only one senior. They finished just the 5.400 points behind Westminster (102.550) and eventual state champion North Oconee (114.450), eventual state runner-up Pace Academy (104.250) and third place finisher Oconee County (104.925).

The team’s run was fueled by freshman Sarah Wolf’s 10th place finish in the All-Around (34.300). She fell just .835 points short of qualifying for the All-Around finals. The Top 8 qualified for the state finals in each event.

Wolf finished ninth in the uneven parallel bars (9.00) just .800 from reaching the finals in the event and ties for 11th in the balance beam (8.375), just .575 out of a state finals slot.

Fellow freshman Chamblee teammate Rachel McGuiness finished tied for 13th on the balance beam (8.300).

Druid Hills had a pair of participants finish in the Top 15 of events they competed in during the preliminaries. Junior Ila Tschirhart was 12th in the bars (8.500), .600 out of a qualifying spot. Sophomore Esther Bryant finished tied for 15th in the vault (8.500).

The young Chamblee squad took home the 2021 DeKalb County Gymnastics Championship becoming the first Lady Bulldogs’ team to accomplish the feat.