Gymnastics: Quast chosen Most Valuable Athlete for Ponies

After landing on the state podium for the second year in a row, junior Liberty Quast has been honored as the Most Valuable Athlete for the Stillwater gymnastics team.

One of five state qualifiers for the Ponies, Quast helped anchor a team that finished with a 6-2 dual meet record to tie East Ridge (6-2) for third place in the Suburban East Conference standings behind co-champions Cretin-Derham Hall (7-1) and Forest Lake (7-1).

Three SEC teams qualified for the state meet, including East Ridge, Forest Lake and state runner-up Cretin-Derham Hall. The conference also produced five of the top nine finishers in the individual state all-around.

The Ponies also placed second behind Cretin-Derham Hall in Section 4AA, ending a run of three straight state tournament appearances.

Quast placed fourth in the vault at state and also competed in the bars. She was joined in qualifying for state by senior teammates Ava Biederman (vault and floor), Zoe Chase (beam), Abbey Savelkoul (floor) and Chloe Stanton (floor).

Quast, Savelkoul and Biederman also earned all-conference honors while Chase and Stanton received honorable mention all-conference recognition. The five gymnasts also garnered All-Section honors.

Savelkoul, who set a school record in the beam, joined Biederman and Quast in earning all-state honors. Savelkoul, Biederman, Quast, Stanton and Chase also achieved all-state honorable mention in one or more events.

Competing in the beam, Savelkoul set the school beam record at 9.85 while competing in the Lakeville Invitational on Jan. 13. She eclipsed the previous standard of 9.725 set by Kristina Krenz in 2008.

Chase was named the Most Improved gymnast for the Ponies and Quast was selected to serve as captain for next year’s team.

Gymnastics

All-Conference: Abbey Savelkoul (beam), Ava Biederman (vault) and Liberty Quast (all-around); All-Conference Honorable Mention: Zoe Chase and Chloe Stanton; All-Section: Abbey Savelkoul, Ava Biederman, Liberty Quast, Chloe Stanton and Zoe Chase; All-State: Abbey Savelkoul (beam), Ava Biederman (vault) and Liberty Quast (vault, bars and all-around); All-State Honorable Mention: Abbey Savelkoul (vault, bars, floor and all-around), Ava Biederman (floor, beam and all-around), Liberty Quast (floor and beam), Chloe Stanton (floor) and Zoe Chase (beam); Individual state qualifiers: Liberty Quast (vault and bars), Ava Biederman (vault and floor), Zoe Chase (beam), Abbey Savelkoul (floor) and Chloe Stanton (floor); State placewinner: Liberty Quast (vault); Most Improved: Zoe Chase; Most Valuable Athlete: Liberty Quast; Captain elect: Liberty Quast.