#SDSportsAwards, Gymnastics: Quinci Herll thrived under pressure

Quinci Herll did not necessarily save her best for last in the final competition of her high school gymnastics career.

Her all-around score of 37.550 was just her fifth best of the season, thanks in part to a fall on the balance beam. But she scored a 9.7 to win the floor event, a 9.475 to win the vault and a 9.475 to take second in uneven bars, making her the Class AA all-around champion and elevating the Mitchell Kernels to the team championship.

Herll is the third Kernel to win the all-around title, joining three-time champ Brooke Cersosimo (2006-2008) and Amelia Rew (2009).

“Quinci led her team with determination and just plain hard work,” said Kernels coach Audra Rew. “She taught her teammates how to pull the best out of themselves. Winning the all-around, floor, and vault titles would not have had the same meaning without her team winning its third straight title.”

MORE: See other winners of the S.D. Sports Awards

The team title for Mitchell was the school’s third in a row, but Herll’s individual success was unprecedented during that time. The Kernels had managed to win the last two titles without any individual champions.

Herll placed third in vault, floor and all-around last year while tying for fourth in the balance beam and tying for fifth in the uneven bars. But she clearly took a big step forward as a senior, including a high all-around score of 38.350 in January. She was the all-around champion in 10 of the 11 meets in which her team participated on the season.

“The best quality Quinci carries is that she can handle the pressure of a team three-peat, the pressure of being the number one ranked gymnast, and the pressure of her teammates leaning on her with a huge smile that would melt away any nerves,” Rew said.