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List dominated by those who competed for the Arrows over the past 20 years

Roger Merriam, Watertown Public Opinion
·11 min read

Editor's Note: Sports writer Roger Merriam is compiling a "20 Favorites" series highlighting some of his favorite athletes in a variety of high school sports since he started working at the Watertown Public Opinion in December of 1984. The series is about northeastern South Dakota athletes, but some played at colleges all over the state and others have moved to other areas.

This has been fun, the research for this particular "20 Favorites" story. I'd say it's because many of the gymnasts on the list have been in these past 20 years and I've covered them all extensively.

It's just made the names and the memories more vivid than stretching my brain back 40 years. It doesn't hurt the the gymnastics program has been perhaps the most successful one at Watertown High School the past two decades.

In the past 20 state Class AA gymnastics meets, Watertown has won seven titles and finished second seven other times. Mark Bellum got the program going and Melissa Van Gilder and Vicky Fisher have continued it.

Let's get started. Up next in the series, which might not be until late March or early April (winter tournaments are coming) is going to be Great Plains Lutheran athletics.

Watertown's Dawn Koehn leaps from the balance beam during the 1989 South Dakota State High School Gymnastics Meet in the Watertown Civic Arena.
Watertown's Dawn Koehn leaps from the balance beam during the 1989 South Dakota State High School Gymnastics Meet in the Watertown Civic Arena.

20, Others

There have been some changes in South Dakota gymnastics since it started as a one-class sport in 1974. A second class was added in 1976 and were Class A and B for a number of years before becoming Class AA and A. In the early 1990s, there were Division I and Division II in the big class.

Anyway, here's some state place-winning gymnasts (top 10 per events) for Watertown through the years who didn't make the list below: Lisa Berg, Rebecca Ime, Casey Hewitt, Tasha Schmidt and Hillary Meyer in the 1990s; Jackie Trego and Jasmine Jackan in the 2000s; Meredith Lawrence, Jordan Fox, Abby Cerny, Allison Stadheim, McKenzie Buisker and Abbi Cummings in the 2010s; and Jaidyn Dahl, Natalie and Caroline Benson and Londyn Sycks along with current Arrow gymnasts and 2023 state place winners Ashlynn Andrews, Briana McElhany and Shauna Evenson in the 2020s. My apologies if I missed somebody.

Watertown's Brooke Bollinger performs her floor exercise routine during the 2020 Jill McCormick Gymnastics Invitational at Mitchell High School.
Watertown's Brooke Bollinger performs her floor exercise routine during the 2020 Jill McCormick Gymnastics Invitational at Mitchell High School.

19. Katie Briggs

When you do a research project like this, the results you find published in old articles or on the South Dakota High School Activities Association web site make you look like a genius for knowing all this stuff.

So Briggs placed in the state meet each year from 1996-99, highlighted by an eighth-place finish in the all-around competition in 1999.

So, now this is where things get dicey and now I'm guessing a bit, never a good thing for my aging mind. I believe she was the daughter of Rick and Julie Briggs and I've seen results posted as Katie and Kate. Either way, I later did a story on a Katherine Briggs who became a cheerleader for the University of Minnesota football team. I'm putting down money they're all one and the same. I'm sure I'll be corrected if I'm wrong, but Briggs the gymnast makes this list.

18. Peyton and Haven Kulesa

Haven led the way for the sisters from placing eighth in the uneven bars at the 2018 state Class AA meet before younger sister Peyton placed in three events at the 2019 state meet and three more events on the way to a seventh-place finish in the all-around competition as a eighth-grader in 2019.

The family moved prior to Haven's freshman year.

Watertown's Heather Rydell performs in the floor exercise during the 1998 Watertown Invitational gymnastics meet in the Civic Arena.
Watertown's Heather Rydell performs in the floor exercise during the 1998 Watertown Invitational gymnastics meet in the Civic Arena.

17. Heather Rydell

Rydell is listed in the SDHSAA Yearbook as a Class AA balance beam champion in 1997, but results I found showed that she placed second in the Division II balance beam and added a fourth-place finish in the floor exercise.

In 1999, she took ninth in the balance beam.

16. Erica Hageman

One thing you need to know about Watertown High School's gymnastics teams these past 20-25 years is that they often had multiple talented gymnasts, some of whom got overshadowed by some other really, really good gymnastics.

Hageman fits the mold. In 2019, she placed in three events at state and recorded a fourth-place finish in the all-around competition.

20 Favorites: Links to the stories highlighting the best northeastern South Dakota athletes since 1984

15. Abigail Lenssen

Like Hageman, Lenssen also was a talented gymnast who was a member of the Arrow varsity for a number of years.

Lenssen placed in events at the state meet in 2015, 2016 and 2018.

14. Jimi Siegling

Another talented gymnast overshadowed by some teammates, Siegling placed in two events in the 2007 state meet and returned the next year to medal in all four events and record a fourth-place finish in the all-around competition.

13. Brittany Heller

Heller placed in events at the state meet four years, including 2006 when she had top-10 finishes in all four individual events and placed third in the all-around competition.

Heller also took sixth in the all-around in 2004 and placed in events in both the 2005 and 2009 state meets.

12. Vicky (Bull) Fisher

Again, as always, I'm going to remind you to not pay too much attention to the order until we get down to the final 3-4 spots. A case could be made for moving Fisher up the list.

Vicky Bull, now Watertown High School gymnastics coach Vicky Fisher, is shown in the floor exercise during the 2002 Watertown Invitational gymnastics meet in the Civic Arena.
Vicky Bull, now Watertown High School gymnastics coach Vicky Fisher, is shown in the floor exercise during the 2002 Watertown Invitational gymnastics meet in the Civic Arena.

Her gymnastics career with the Arrows included a 10th-place finish in the balance beam in 2003 and a strong 2004 state meet that included a third-place finish in the balance beam, seventh in the floor exercise and eighth in the all-around.

Let me not forget that Fisher and Van Gilder served as co-head coaches on Watertown state-championship teams in 2009, 2010 and 2011. Fisher also coached the Arrows to titles in 2017, 2019 and 2020. She's still the head coach of the program and even has Van Gilder back as an assistant this winter.

11. Anne Peterson

Peterson was another three-year place winner and also a state champion (winning the balance beam in 2011) for the Arrows. She took second in the balance beam in 2010.

Peterson also placed in the floor exercise and finished 10th in the all-around in 2011 and came back in 2012 to take second in the uneven bars, fifth in the floor exercise and sixth in the all-around.

10. Lexy Morris

Morris is a big name in WHS gymnastics but I don't believe Lexy is related to another Morris higher on this list. I was even confused when I saw an Alexa Morris, but Lexy and Alexa I believe are one and the same.

After placing fourth in the floor exercise at the 2010 state meet, Morris placed in three events and took second in the all-around behind an Arrow teammate (name to be released later in this story) in 2011. She placed in three more events and took fifth in the all-around in 2012 and also placed second in the balance beam in 2013.

She is a state champion gymnast for the Arrows, winning the vault in 2011.

9. Leslie Brost

This Watertown High School Athletic Hall of Famer is going to be rated even higher when I put together my "20 Favorites' story for Arrow girls track in the spring, but the talented athlete more than also held her own in gymnastics.

Brost placed in events at the state meet every year from 2004 through 2008 and three times recorded top-10 finishes in the all-around competition (tying for eighth in 2007 and taking sixth in 2006 and fifth in 2008).

If my math is acurrate, she medaled in around 15 events during her career.

8. Krisia Bramer

Bramer was one of the taller Arrow gymnasts I remember, but she was a very capable performer for many years and closed out her career with three consecutive fourth-place finishes in the state all-around competition from 2013-2015.

She also placed seventh in the all-around in 2011. Again, I count about 15 medals she earned for top-10 finishes at state.

More: Best of the Best: Watertown High School gymnast Myah Morris nears end of special career

7. Lynne Hanten

Hanten and Bramer were teammates for a number of years, Hanten medaled at state each year from 2009 to 2013. She took fourth in the all-around in 2010, fifth in 2011, third in 2012 and seventh in 2013.

I keep counting and I come up with more than 20 medals she earned at state during her career. She continues to be active in the sport as an assistant coach in Huron.

6. Jalyn Carrico

Only five gymnasts in WHS history have been an all-around champion and Carrico is one of them. Read on to learn why she's not in the top 5 of this list.

Carrico broke onto the scene in 2010 by placing in three events and taking third in the all-around at state. As an eighth-grader in 2011, she won the floor exercise and placed in all three other events on the way to capturing the all-around championship.

She moved away after that eighth-grade year and didn't compete again for the Arrows.

Watertown's Kristin Dunn finished second in the Class AA all-around competition at the 2003 South Dakota State High School Gymnastics Meet at Huron.
Watertown's Kristin Dunn finished second in the Class AA all-around competition at the 2003 South Dakota State High School Gymnastics Meet at Huron.

5. Kristin Dunn

Pay atention, this is a Dandy Top 5 or even Dandy Top 6. Dunn could really be listed as "my favorite" Arrow gymnast for a handful of reasons.

In 2002, she placed in all four events and became the school's first-ever state all-around champion. In 2003, troubles on the balance beam may have prevented a repeat. She placed in all three other events and finished second in the all-around. She also placed in the floor exercise and took eighth in the all-around in 2001.

Her father Jeff also started and ran the Dakota Gold Gymnastics Club for many years. The club certainly fueled the Arrows' run of team succces since 2004.

4. Dawn Koehn

Another WHS Athletic Hall of Famer, Koehn competed in gymnastics in the winter as part of her all-around athletic skills that included basketball in the fall and a career as a standout sprinter in track and field in the spring.

Despite having to compete against gymnasts who trained year-around in clubs (yes, that was the case even back in the 1980s), Koehn nearly reached her goal of becoming Watertown's first-ever state all-around champion when she fnished second in the 1989 state meet.

She placed in three events and placed fourth in the all-around in 1986, placed in two events and took ninth in the all-around in 1987 and won the vault and placed in two other events in 1989.

Caitlin Mack was a standout gymnast for Watertown High School from 2005-2010 and later coached Deuel High School to four-straight Class A titles from 2018-21.
Caitlin Mack was a standout gymnast for Watertown High School from 2005-2010 and later coached Deuel High School to four-straight Class A titles from 2018-21.

3. Caitlin Mack

Mack is third in school history with four state titles and they all came as a senior in 2012 when she won the balance beam, uneven bars and vault titles along with the all-around competition.

It wasn't as if she was a one-year wonder. In 2005, she placed in three events and took fifth in the all-around and came back in 2006 to medal in all four events on the way to a runner-up finish in the all-around.

She had to be injured in 2007 when he placed in only event (second in the bars). She placed in three events and took third in the all-around in 2008 and placed in all four events and took second in the all-around in 2009. Again, that's well over 20 top-10 finishes at state.

As a bonus, Caitlin Steffensen (her married name) led Deuel to four-straight state Class A titles from 2018-2021.

2. Brooke Bollinger

Bollinger is listed here because she is second all-time in program history with five state titles, winning the uneven bars as a junior in 2000 and capping her stellar career by winnign the vault, balance beam, floor exercise and all-around titles as a senior in 2021.

She also took fifth in the all-around in 2018, eighth in 2019 and third in 2020. Bollinger medaled in 17 state events.

Bollinger's numbers would have been even greater if not for the fact that ...

Watertown eighth-grader Myah Morris, shown competing on the balance beam, won three individual events and captured the Class AA all-around championship in the 2018 State High School Gymnastics Meet in the Civic Arena.
Watertown eighth-grader Myah Morris, shown competing on the balance beam, won three individual events and captured the Class AA all-around championship in the 2018 State High School Gymnastics Meet in the Civic Arena.

1. Myah Morris

... she was teammates with Morris. who won a program-record 11 state titles from 2017-2022. Morris missed a year of high school gymnastics when she took 2021 off to focus on club gymnastics.

Morris is also the only gymnast in program history to win two state all-around titles, winning as an eighth-grader in 2018 and again as a freshman in 2019. She also had state runner-up finishes in the all-around in 2017, 2020 and 2022.

She won the vault five times and balance beam and uneven bars twice each at state. Morris competed in five state tournaments and medaled in every event (25).

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Series continues with look at some of the best Watertown gymnasts