THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, February 28, 1996 TAG: 9602270122
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY LEE TOLLIVER, BEACON SPORTS EDITOR
DATELINE: RESTON LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
Brooke Sawyer was playing it cool despite an ocean of well-wishers.
She was getting bombarded with congratulations on an apparent state all-around gymnastics championship.
But she wasn't about to count unhatched chickens just yet.
Smart kid!
Fans had been adding up posted scores to determine who was going to win and the numbers had Sawyer finishing five hundreths of a point in the lead.
``But those scores aren't official, are they?'' Sawyer said, her face blank of emotion. ``That's not official yet, is it?''
No it wasn't and her decision to believe it only after it was made official was a good one.
Stranger things have happened.
With the score-posting assignments at South Lakes High left to high school-aged volunteers who often had the wrong names with wrong schools until they learned the system, it would have been easy for the information to be incorrect.
And sometimes, the numbers posted were simply the wrong ones and the announcer kept warning spectators about that.
But the official announcement finally came and Sawyer was indeed the champion. The second in Kellam history and the fifth from the Beach District.
Adding to the excitement was the fact that Sawyer's title came in the closest battle in state history - with only a tenth of a point spread between the winner and third-place finisher.
``I was pretty pleased with my performances,'' Sawyer, a 16-year-old junior, said. ``This is really special.''
Especially considering the fact that she watched last year's state meet at Ocean Lakes from the stands, nursing a slight leg fracture when she was supposed to be competing as one of the favorites.
``I was peaking last year and I got hurt,'' she said. ``So this meant a lot to me.''
It also meant a lot to coach Debi Strausbaugh and the rest of the Knights, who failed in their bid to recapture a state championship won two years ago.
``This was kind of a redemption for that,'' Strausbaugh said. ``And we're all very happy for her.
``She's done a lot of growing up the past two years and she wanted to prove she could come back from the injury and be on top. I think she was very focused and hungry this year.''
Sawyer will undoubtedly be hungry again next year in an attempt to become only the third gymnast in state history to repeat as all-around champion.
No gymnast has done that since Michelle Ritenour of Stonewall Jackson won in 1981 and 1982.
Aside from Sawyer, Beach gymnasts had only a fair state showing after dominating the Eastern region.
Salem's Davinia Roberts finished 10th all-around, while teammate Meria Eisenbruan was 12th.
Kellam's Michelle Alexander - last year's runner-up - had a couple of mishaps and came in at No. 13.
But Alexander's only a junior and will get another shot next year.
Roberts wasn't able to defend her individual titles in floor and vaulting - finishing 10th in vaulting and second on floor.
Eisenbraun took a fourth in vaulting.
First Colonial's Susan Funk capped a good uneven bars season with a seventh-place finish. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos by D. KEVIN ELLIOTT
Kellam High's Brooke Sawyer competes in the balance beam portion of
the all-around competition. After sitting out last year's state meet
with a leg fracture, she came back to win this year's crown by five
hundredths of a point.
Chalk flies as Salem's Meria Eisenbruan dismounts from the uneven
bars. She finished 12th in the all-around competition.
by CNB