St. Charles's 'worst' meet yields 2nd

When a ballplayer has only 2 hits in his last 18 bats they say he's in a slump.

When a boys gymnastics team only hits 2 of 18 routines, things aren't much better.

The St. Charles co-op team only hit 2 routines during Saturday's Fred Dennis Invite at Addison Trail, but was still able to earn second place in the 12-team invite with 148.750 points. Lake Park won the Invite with a 150.825.

St. Charles senior Bryan Beth, who finished second on still rings, admitted that it was the worst performance by the team this spring.

"We were just off tonight," he said. "This is our worst meet by far this season, which is very disappointing. We didn't have a strong showing on rings and I think that was a catalyst for the rest of the meet."

Since the St. Charles team is only comprised of three gymnasts, all three scores in all six events have to count. That's why the team's scores can fluctuate considerably.

On March 18 St. Charles scored the top score in the state with a 160 during a triangular at Fremd, but on Saturday its score was more than 11 points lower.

"There is a positive out of this in that they know they aren't invincible," St. Charles coach Tom Wirth said. "Trying to get a trophy isn't going to be a guarantee now. They're going to have to work harder and be much better in sectionals just to get in."

Ryan Johnston led St. Charles, finishing seventh in the all-around with a 49.650, just ahead of Beth and Sean Johnston who were eighth and ninth respectively. Sean Johnston was the lone winner for St. Charles as he won the high bar with a 9.2.

"My high bar routine was very good," he said. "I was kind of upset about rings and vault a little bit so obviously I knew I had to do better so I focused on high bar and did good."

While it was a disappointing evening for St. Charles, it was noteworthy for Geneva's Kai Kosog who won the all-around with a 52.650.

Kosog was third on pommel horse and vault, but the highlight of the evening was the 9.7 he scored in the floor exercise to capture top honors.

"Tonight was a big boost for him," Wirth said. "He still missed three events and still almost had his high all-around on the season. To miss three routines and still do that, it shows he's on track for what he wants to do."