Bemidji Aerials Gymnasts Shine at Minnesota State Championship with Strong Scores

Briar Haman delivered a 36.025 all-around score to lead the Bemidji Aerials at the Minnesota State Silver Gymnastics Championship, held December 12-14, 2024, at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Six more Aerials gymnasts followed close behind, capping a state season that produced multiple program records and 11 regional qualifiers.

Harper Conger posted a 35.9 all-around at the Silver championship, with Emma Mulkey close behind at 35.675. Brooke Winkler scored 35.375, Adalee Colley 35.125, Violet Furuseth 34.975, and Avery Iverson 34.950, giving the Aerials a full lineup of competitive scores against teams from across Minnesota.

At a prior Silver Level state meet in St. Paul, the Aerials had already made a statement with a season-best team score of 110.875, a 1.525-point jump over their previous best. Morgan Jacobson led the all-around that day with a 36.675, followed by Kylie Washburn at 36.35 and Mulkey at 36.225. Piper Crawford delivered the meet's most memorable individual performance, scoring a 9.65 on beam to break the Aerials' all-time beam record at any level.

The Aerials sent 26 gymnasts to compete at the Gold, Platinum, and Diamond state meet in the Twin Cities. Lexi Jacobson topped the Gold Level field with a 36.95 all-around and earned first place on bars with a 9.625. Her state performance came months after she rewrote the record book at the Winter Challenge in Fargo, North Dakota, posting a 37.775 all-around, a new Aerials all-time mark. At that same meet, Jacobson also set individual records on bars (9.725) and floor (9.6), sweeping all four events. At the Diamond Level, Lucy Karpinski scored a 35.775 all-around at state.

Eleven Aerials gymnasts earned qualifying scores for Regional Gymnastics in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Gold qualifiers included Jasmine Phonethep, Aydah Fultz, Letica Josefson, Elizabeth Relay, Avri Bensen, and Lydia Dauksavage. Karpinski and Aaliyah Wellcome qualified from the Platinum Level, while Diamond Level gymnasts Lauren Bruley, Samara Osborn, and Elliana Ekre also punched their tickets to Iowa. Osborn went further than qualifying, finishing second in the all-around and first on bars in her age division at state.

The depth behind those results reflects three years of deliberate program-building by head coach Brittney Gimberline. When she began, the Gold Level team had just four athletes; it now has 22. The Silver Level grew from 10 to 22 over the same stretch. Gimberline called it intentional: "The past three years, I've really focused on building up the numbers and getting us to have an actual team that can compete against these bigger teams."

That roster growth has also changed how athletes are prepared. "I would probably say about 95% of the athletes are fully ready to be in the level that they're in," Gimberline said. Diamond Level gymnast Samara Osborn described what that looks like inside the gym at the Gym Bin: "I think that we are very united as a team, we do a very good job at cheering each other on, being there for each other. Having the older girls with the younger girls... really helps push and motivate the younger girls.