Weekend Recap: WAG City of Jesolo Trophy; RG Friendship Cup, Sofia World Cup

The women’s artistic teams won 13 medals in Italy, and rhythmic athletes excelled at the Friendship Cup over the weekend in European competition.

Women’s Artistic – City of Jesolo Trophy

American women earned 13 medals over the weekend at the City of Jesolo Trophy in Italy.

Led by team gold, floor gold for Reese Esponda, and a pair of medals for Charleigh Bullock, the senior women won six medals over the weekend. The U.S. team of Esponda, Bullock, Simone Rose, Caroline Moreau, and Greta Krob totaled 160.933 in a close team competition that saw France take second (160.798) and host-country Italy finish third (157.365). Esponda topped the field for gold on floor exercise (13.650), and Bullock added silver medals in the all-around (52.966) and uneven bars (14.000). Moreau and Rose each won individual bronze, with Moreau on uneven bars (13.500) and Rose on balance beam (13.150).

The juniors contributed seven medals to the effort, headlined by the team of Kylie Smith, Amia Pugh-Banks, Addalye VanGrinsven, Audrey VanGrinsven, Sydney Williams and Avery Haines stepping up to the gold-medal position with their score of 155.266, followed by France in second (153.434) and Italy (151.201). Smith added three individual silver medals in the all-around (52.266) as well as uneven bars (13.300) and floor (12.700). VanGrinsven scored bronze medals in the all-around (50.934) and on vault (13.125), with Williams adding silver on balance beam (12.850).

Senior Team Medalists

Junior Team Medalists

RG Friendship Cup, Sofia World Cup

U.S. athletes swept the all-around podiums at the Friendship Cup in Alkmaar, The Netherlands. In senior competition, Natalie de la Rosa (105.082), Alexandria Kautzman (100.749) and Alicia Liu (100.732) topped a 19-athlete field representing five countries.

Going 1-2-3 in Friendship Cup junior competition were the trio of Emma Finkelshteyn (71.050), Varvara Poniatovskaya (70.850), and Izabella Oleynik (AA bronze – 69.250). Pre-junior athletes finished off the all-around clean sweep in Alkmaar with Viktoria Bukareva first (45.366), Angelina Tovmasyan second (41.449), and Gloria Li third (41.116).

On individual apparatus, De la Rosa posted the top senior marks on hoop and clubs, was second on ball, and third on ribbon. Kautzman was first on ball and ribbon, while Vitrychenko was third on hoop. Among the juniors, Finkelshteyn was first on ball and clubs and second on hoop; Oleynik tied for first on ball and was second on clubs; Poniatovskaya was first on hoop and third on ball and clubs; and Daniela Shevchenko was second on ribbon.

At the Sofia World Cup in Hungary, Rin Keys placed fourth in the clubs final with a 29.00, fifth in the hoops final with a 28.750, and landed 11th in the all-around with a 108.700. The U.S. senior group of Goda Balsys, Kristina Lee, Greta Pavilonyte, Aurora Sullivan, Kalina Trayanov and Natalia Ye-Granda was eighth in five balls final with a 19.700 and finished 14th in the all-around with a 40.900. Sarah Mariotti also was active, placing 36th in the all-around (97.550).