After successful showing in Perrysburg, FHS gymnastics readies for Beauty and the Beast

PERRYSBURG – Following top five placings in two of the biggest meets of the season, Findlay High's gymnastics team now prepares to host a major meet of its own, teaming with the FHS boys wrestling team to stage the annual Beauty and the Beast event on Jan. 26. The Trojans are coming off a road-weary but successful weekend that saw them place fourth out of 21 schools in the Worthington Kilbourne Invitational on Saturday, then trek north and finish third on Monday in the 16-team Noah's Ninja's All-Around Meet held in Perrysburg. "I'm really proud of how these girls pulled through such a tough weekend," FHS coach Traci Dunn commented this week. Split into three-girl teams and competing in two separate sessions at Monday's meet in Perrysburg, Findlay got a first-place all-around performance in Session 1 from Olivia Zechman. Zechman won individual titles on vault (8.20) and floor (9.1), added a third on beam (7.8) and a fourth on uneven bars (7.35) and topped her session with 32.25 all-around points. Renee Metzger (3rd floor, 8.65; 6th vault 7.95; 6th bars 7.2; 8th beam 7.1) was fifth in the Session 1 all-around scoring (30.90), while Lily Huff was eighth on vault (7.8), ninth on beam (7.0) and tenth on bars (6.75). Emmy Omlor and Josey Weihrauch competed in Session 2. Omlor was third on bars (8.70, eighth on floor (8.85) and eighth all-around (33.7). Weihrauch was fifth on bars (8.35) and ninth on floor (8.8). Scores from both sessions were combined for the final results, which saw Perrysburg dominate the standings with 141.15 points. Anthony Wayne was second (133.20), and Findlay (130.85) edged Sylvania Northview (130.50) and Maumee (129.1) for third. In the Worthington Kilbourne meet, Omlor, a returning state qualifier for Findlay, was third on bars (9.1), eighth on vault (8.725) and seventh (34.875) in the all-around standings. Hudson (139.85) nipped Dublin Jerome (139.90) to win the invitational, which included many of the top teams in the Central District. Dublin Coffman was third (136.975), Findlay fourth (129.075) and host school Worthington Kilbourne (128.4) fifth. The Beauty and the Beast event, which has become a mainstay on the Trojans schedule, features wrestling teams and gymnasts competing at the same time in the same venue. It will also serve as a prelude to the Northern Lakes League gymnastics meet on Feb. 10 and the district competition on Feb. 23. KEY MATCHUPS Findlay's hockey team will be looking to regain a share of first place and the girls basketball team will be out to knock an opponent out of first place in some key matchups this week. Thanks to a 2-1 overtime win over Toledo St. Francis, Findlay's hockey team moved into a first-place tie with the Knights in the Red Division of the Northwest Hockey Conference. St. Francis (6-1-1 NHC) used a 9-2 win over Perrysburg to up its Red Division point total to 14, but Findlay, 17-9-3 overall and ranked No. 6 in the prep poll, can match that total with a win over Anthony Wayne Friday at The Cube. Following Friday's game, Findlay has league games against Sylvania Northview, Perrysburg, Bowling Green and Toledo St. John's before beginning post-season play in the Northwest District tournament. Findlay's girls basketball team, meanwhile, will be trying to keep Anthony Wayne from running away with the Northern Lakes League Buckeye Division title when the Trojans host the Generals Thursday. Now 12-2 overall and ranked ninth in the Division I state poll, Anthony Wayne beat Sylvania Northview to complete a 4-0 run through the first round of Buckeye Division play. Northview (10-4) and Perrysburg (10-5) are both 2-2 in the Buckeye Division standings and Findlay (10-4) and Toledo Whitmer (9-5) are 1-3. Also on tap this weekend is the Van Buren Wrestling Invitational. Thirty-one teams are expected to take part in the annual event, with wrestlers from Arcadia, Bluffton, Carey, Columbus Grove, Cory-Rawson, Elmwood, Fostoria, Hopewell-Loudon, Liberty-Benton, McComb, Ottawa-Glandorf, Pandora-Gilboa Riverdale and Upper Sandusky joining Van Buren in the field. On the hardwood this weekend, Ottawa-Glandorf will host Lima Senor in the annual matchup between those two schools and Bluffton will visit Liberty-Benton in what may be a prelude to a stacked and loaded array of schools that will be bracketed in the Division III district tournament at Lima Senior. The 12-school field for that district includes not only Bluffton (10-1) and Liberty-Benton (8-5), but also O-G (10-2), Carey (9-3), Coldwater (9-2), Wayne Trace (11-1) and Spencerville (8-3). Schedule Wednesday's Events BOYS BASKETBALL Hardin Northern at Ridgedale Arcadia at Van Buren (BVC) PREP BOYS WRESTLING Carey at Otsego PREP BOWLING Springfield at Findlay