Triton sends first gymnast to state

Last Saturday, Cambryn Rubin became the first Kasson-Mantorville/Triton gymnast to compete at state competition.
The merger with Kasson-Mantorville this season marked the first year of gymnastics for Triton high school. Rubin, an eighth-grader, finished third at the section tournament in Austin, giving her a chance to compete at the Sports Pavilion in Minneapolis for the state tournament. 
“It feels really good to be able to accomplish that,” said Rubin at the competition. 
Rubin’s coach, Lauren Strandell, said Rubin’s accomplishments are impressive.
“Being an eighth-grader at this level of competition is very respectable,” said Strandell. “The whole community is very proud of her.”
While excited to be able to perform at the state level, Rubin was disappointed with her performance.
“I tried my best, but I could have done better,” said Rubin. 
Strandell said such is the story of every gymnast. Rubin finished with a score of 8.350. She received an 8.750 at state. 
“She messed up very slightly on her routine,” said Strandell. “She thinks more, but as a coach I know it wasn’t that bad.”
As an eighth-grader, Rubin will potentially have four more years to compete at state. 
“I think her goal would be to come back to state next year and clean up her routine,” said Strandell. 
Rubin added that next year she would like to compete in the floor routine at state, as the uneven bars are not her favorite event. 
Strandell was pleased with Triton’s first year in gymnastics, and is hoping to see improvement from the team as a whole, potentially bringing more than one gymnast to state next year.
“I am looking forward to next year and to building on what we have already accomplished,” said Strandell. “We are a young team that will only continue to improve.  We faced a lot of great competition at sections and I hope to be more competitive within the section and conference next year.”