Preview: Power Pair Returning for Finals Rematch, New Individual Champs Set to Soar
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
March 5, 2026
Hartland breaking past perennial power Rockford to win last season’s MHSAA Finals team gymnastics championship seemed to put those two on a collision course to meet again with this season’s title on the line.
Seven teams scored at least 140 points at their Regionals last weekend. But Hartland and Rockford put up the top scores by solid margins and should again be favorites at Friday’s Team Final at Milford High School.
The individual competitions Saturday are guaranteed new champions, as both 2025 winners graduated. Hartland’s Alexis Fundich was a close second in Division 1 last season but will have to hold off a group that includes other past placers and a few top challengers competing at the Finals for the first time. In Division 2, nearly half of last season’s top 10 could make a run at climbing to the podium’s highest step.
Team competition begins at 4 p.m. Friday, with individual competition in both Divisions 1 and 2 beginning at noon Saturday. For information on purchasing tickets, Finals rotations for both days and Regional results, go to the Gymnastics page – and see below for several contenders to watch:
Team
Farmington United: The program with the third-most Finals team titles in MHSAA history finished second in 2024 and third last winter and will be in pursuit of a first championship since 2019. Farmington won its Regional last week at Birmingham Groves by less than a point ahead of Huron Valley United, 143.500-142.675, but finishing first on vault (36.850) and bars (35.325) and also topping 36 points on beam.
Hartland: The Eagles won last season’s team title by 2.05 points ahead of Rockford, and the title was the program’s first since 1999. They posted the highest Regional score in the state last week, 147.750, to win at East Lansing by nearly seven points and with scores of 36.150 on bars, 36.825 on vault, 37.200 on beam and 37.575 on floor – the beam and floor scores exceeding what they posted at last year’s Final.
Rockford: The Rams own the record for most Finals championships – seven – and saw their three-year championship streak end with a runner-up finish last winter. But they certainly could make it four titles in five years this week after winning their Regional week with a 146.275 at their home gym. A 36.900 on beam and 37.450 scores on vault and floor were especially notable.
Division 1
Mikayla Dicks, Farmington United senior: She will compete at her first MHSAA Finals after finishing second all-around at her Regional with a 36.900 and first places on vault (9.55) and bars (9.625).
Olivia Flatt, Hartland junior: She competed on three apparatuses at last season’s Final with high places of fifth on beam and vault, and will compete all-around this time after finishing third at her Regional with a 36.375 while tying for first on beam (9.5).
Alexis Fundich, Hartland senior: The reigning all-around runner-up missed the championship last season by only a few tenths of a point and won floor. She returns after winning her Regional all-around with a 37.950 and first places on bars (9.675), beam (9.5, tied) and floor (9.825).
Kate Gostlin, Hartland senior: She will graduate having competed at Finals all four years of high school, and improved all-around from 23rd as a sophomore to 12th last season with a championship on vault. She should make another big jump all-around after finishing second to Fundich at their Regional with a 36.600 – which included a win on vault (9.8).
Isabella Janiga, Tecumseh sophomore: The Brooklyn Columbia Central student competes for Tecumseh as part of a cooperative program and finished 14th all-around last season. She’ll return after winning her Regional all-around last week at 36.300 with a first place on beam (9.425).
Grace LaFlure, Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills senior: She will also compete at the Finals for the first time after finishing second all-around at her Regional with a 36.225 that included a first place on bars (8.85).
Stella Musialowski, Huron Valley United senior: She could make a run at the all-around championship after improving from tied for 15th as a sophomore to sixth last season and winning her Regional all-around last week with a 37.225 that included a first place on floor (9.55).
Elise Watkins, Rockford senior: She’s made an impressive progression from competing on two apparatuses in Division 2 as a freshman, to finishing 18th in Division 1 all-around as a sophomore and competing on three apparatuses in Division 1 as a junior. She will enter her last Finals coming off a Regional-winning 36.425 all-around that included first places on beam (9.425) and floor (9.625).
Division 2
Taliya Andrews, East Lansing Catholic DeWitt junior: She competed on Division 1 floor as a freshman and returns to the Finals after finishing a close second at her Regional in all-around at 36.150 with a first place on floor (9.45).
Baylee Bartlett, Grand Ledge senior: She could make a run at the all-around title after finishing sixth a year ago and third last week at her Regional with a 35.200 that included a tie for first place on beam (9.3).
Rae DeFrang, Rockford junior: She won her Regional all-around at 36.900 with a first place on bars (9.15) and second places on the other three apparatuses. She finished 12th all-around at last year’s Final.
Reese DeFrang, Rockford junior: She’s the reigning Division 2 vault champion and will compete all-around at the Finals for the first time after finishing third at her Regional with a 36.025 and winning vault (9.6).
Phoebe Elder, Haslett United senior: She went from competing on three apparatuses as a sophomore to finishing 11th all-around in Division 1 last season, and could make another jump into contention after winning last week’s Regional all-around with a 36.325 and a first place on bars (9.375).
Isabel Galindo, Plymouth senior: After tying for eighth all-around last season, she enters this weekend as a contender coming off a Regional championship score of 35.200 with a first place on vault (9.175).
Lillian Green, Rockford junior: She finished third all-around at last season’s Final and heads into this weekend after scoring a 36.275 Regional all-around to finish second with first places on floor (9.3) and beam (9.3).
Olivia Lothian, Lowell junior: She went from competing on two apparatuses as a freshman to finishing fifth all-around last season. She placed fourth behind the Rockford trio at their Regional with a 35.350 and top-11 places on every apparatus.
Aubrey Woodman, Farmington United junior: She’s won bars at the Finals both of her first two seasons and could contend for the all-around title this weekend after winning her Regional with a 35.700 and another bars title (9.0).
PHOTOS (Top) A gymnast performs her bars routine during last season’s MHSAA Team Final at Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills. (Middle) Haslett United’s Phoebe Elder competes on floor exercise during the Division 1 individual meet. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)
Rockford/Sparta Turns to Seniors, Large Contributing Cast to Complete 3-Peat
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
March 8, 2024
GRAND RAPIDS – Maybe the simplest explanation for Rockford/Sparta's third straight MHSAA gymnastics team state championship is that the Rams survived a rollercoaster season.
Rockford/Sparta overcame everything from injuries, to extra-motivated opponents after winning back-to-back Finals titles, a less-than-favorable showing at a key time during the season's mid-February Canton Invitational and several other lesser bouts of adversity to narrowly capture Friday's championship at Grand Rapids Kenowa Hills. The Rams finished with 144 points to inch past runner-up Farmington United's 143.8 score.
Bluntly put, seventh-year coach Michelle Ankney admits there were fair questions whether her team would wind its way to a third-straight Finals title and sixth since 2015. But in the end, the adversity was shoved aside.
"Honestly, we have nine seniors so I thought maybe we could do it," she said. "But then I began having some doubts in the middle of the season."
But after a top-shelf showing at the Feb. 14 conference meet, Ankney began to reverse her thinking.
"We hit (scored) in all our events," she said. "We were successful enough that I kind of thought, 'Oh, okay, it's going to be all right for us.'"
Salem finished third Friday with a score of 143.35 while Hartland was fourth at 143.35 and Northville fifth at 140.9.
Rockford/Sparta is one of only five programs to win team gymnastics titles since 2008, and the three-peat was the Rams’ second over the last decade.
In the end, experience proved crucial. Of the nine seniors, seven have been on all three champions. Rockford/Sparta will have 11 gymnasts compete in Saturday's individual meet.
Still, Ankney's careful attitude was echoed by her team. Senior captain Addi Pitzer, who rallied from a torn ACL in January to become a Finals qualifier, said much had to come together for the Rams to complete another title run.
"We thought definitely we had a good shot. On the first day of practice, you could see the fire and drive," she said. "We wanted to be the best we can be. People pushed through the pain; that shows the dedication we have."
Pitzer, who has been a part of these last three champions, said the current club has talent, but it's worked as hard or harder than the other champs.
"We definitely have a lot of talent, but the great thing is how hard we work," she said. "You don't win three straight state championships without working hard. This team has a lot of drive."
Senior Anjaleah Barraza said much of the adversity was learning to deal with being chased by the rest of the state. Considering the program's success over the last three seasons, teams are definitely lining up to give the Rams their best shot, she said.
"I think we're a better team when we're faced with adversity," she said. "It brought us closer together. One of us can have a bad event, but we all come together. That's chemistry. We're aware of being a target, but we use that to motivate us to do better."
Ankney said much of the success had to do with depth. Sparked by an outstanding senior class, Ankney said determining a lineup was often a challenge – in a good way. For instance, the Rams went up to nine deep on the balance beam and easily had seven gymnasts for each of the other three events.
Rockford/Sparta posted the day's highest team scores on floor exercise (36.975) and vault (36.6). Senior Hailey Hill competed all-around and led with a 36.325.
"We had 11 girls compete today, which is the most I've ever had as coach. We've had to step up this year because I don't think we were heavy favorites," she said of early season predictions. "We had a couple injuries, including one that shook us up a little. But we came back together."
PHOTOS (Top) Sophomore Elise Watkins competes on balance beam for Rockford/Sparta on Friday. (Middle) Farmington United cheers on a teammate during floor exercise. (Click for more photos from High School Sports Scene.)