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Highland Park freshman Kaya Bogot walked away from this year’s Central Suburban League North tournament with three medals hanging around her neck.

One of those medals was a fourth-place on the balance beam among 29 competitors.

The beam’s high difficulty level is undeniable, and Giants coach Anthony Kopp knows exactly how Bogot manages to shine in the event.

“She’s a very clean gymnast,” Kopp said. “On her beam there weren’t really many bobbles and even judges will comment on how her beam and bars are so clean. And in high school gymnastics, that’s what it’s all about. Having skills is nice but points really add up when you’re clean.”

Bogot enjoyed the experience of her first CSL North conference meet Friday, Jan. 25, at Vernon Hills High School.

“I’m happy,” Bogot said. “I did club gymnastics for six years so you learn how to make a clean routine, how to stick things, and how to save things.

“It’s been cool to see the kids that can do those really high-level tricks this year. You watch them and it makes you want to learn new skills.”

In the final week of competition before regionals begin throughout Illinois, Glenbrook North edged second-place Deerfield 135.9-134.7 at this year’s CSL North meet. Host Vernon Hills (129.4) finished third and Highland Park (125.7) placed fourth.

For a second consecutive meet, Highland Park did its coach proud.

The Giants put up a season’s best 128.5 points in a dual meet against Deerfield Jan. 17 before posting 125.7 at the CSL meet.

“Conference is a tougher meet but I think they rose to the occasion,” Kopp said.

Bogot’s fourth-place finish led the group’s performance on beam, which included Rachel Weber, Maddie Szackamer, Ali Rosenberg and Lindsay Weisskopf.

“It’s a tough meet because you’re kind of stuck sitting and waiting between events, but we had a long wait before beam and we had a very strong beam,” Kopp said. “So I give the girls props for staying ready to go. That tells you where they were mentally in terms of staying focused.”

Weber placed ninth on beam and Lauren Margolick was the Giants’ high finisher on vault.

Bogot, Weber and Margolick are all freshmen, but Kopp knew early on that all three would be key varsity contributors this season.

“From the first day seeing them warm up, that was all I really had to see,” Kopp said. “Having freshmen on varsity is common in the sport but I’m not sure how many other teams have three of them. So we’re fortunate, and it bodes well for the future.”

Rosenberg was the Giants high finisher on floor, and Rachel Bringas and Maria Lubell were the Giants’ next two highest placers on uneven bars after Bogot.

“Rachel Weber added a standing back tuck on beam and nailed it, so that was awesome, and Ali and Kaya had great nights again,” Kopp said. “It was nice to see us compete well again.”

The smiles that Highland Park’s gymnasts flashed before its senior night meet against Deerfield returned in a big way after the meet was over.

Deerfield may have beaten Highland Park 136.8-128.4 in the dual meet on Thursday, Jan. 18, but the Giants and coach Anthony Kopp left Deerfield with their heads held high.

“It was our best night in a long time,” Kopp said. “It’s my third year as head coach and sixth year on staff. We scored a [128.45] and that’s the highest we’ve scored since I’ve been here.”

On a night when the Giants honored departing seniors Lindsay Weisskopf, Helen Spellberg and Brielle Meged, one major factor carried Highland Park.

“We had a lot of energy tonight,” junior Ali Rosenberg said. “That just makes it easier to perform, and helps everyone do better.

“Sometimes it’s not always there but we always try to pump up the energy because we know that hearing your teammates cheer for you is really helpful.”

Rosenberg and freshman Kaya Bogot competed in all four events against Deerfield, with Bogot finishing third in the all-around and Rosenberg placing sixth.

Bogot placed second in the uneven bars and balance beam, fourth in the vault, and fifth in the floor exercise to lead the Giants. Lauren Margolick placed sixth in vault, and Maria Lubell was fifth in the uneven bars behind Bogot.

Rosenberg finished fifth in the beam and seventh in the floor exercise as Kopp got a team-wide effort against the Warriors.

“Ali, Kaya, Maria, Rachel [Weber]: A lot of girls stood out tonight,” Kopp said. “They all had so much energy tonight. We had a great week of practice and everyone feeds off of that. We started hot this season, then had a little dip, and these last couple weeks we’ve really picked it up.”

Kopp said that gymnasts generally don’t develop new moves during the course of the short high school season. What he mainly witnesses during the season is the growth of mental toughness among his gymnasts.

Rosenberg has been a case in point. Making mistakes during a routine and recovering from them in real time is a unique aspect of the sport, and Rosenberg has come a long way since her freshman year on the varsity.

“When I was a freshman, I’d get really frustrated,” Rosenberg said. “If you make a mistake you just have to keep moving on and focus on the next upcoming skill. I had to learn that I needed to just keep moving on.

“You need to try to get over your fear and just focus on the skill you’re doing. You can’t worry about what’s going on around you.”

Rosenberg’s evolution has helped her become a team leader, along with senior Lindsay Weisskopf and junior Rachel Bringas.

“You can ask her to do anything and she’ll do it, and she has really turned into a leader,” Kopp said of Rosenberg. “It’s her third year on varsity and it’s nice to have that girl to lean on, as a leader, especially with three freshmen on varsity.”

Giants junior Lubell competed in three events against Deerfield, and her presence on the team is paying dividends beyond her performances.

“[Lubell] is the hardest worker in the gym every day, by far,” Kopp said. “She loves gymnastics. She’s the first one here and the last one to go. It’ll be time to leave and she’ll always ask, ‘Can I do one more of this, or one more of that?’ She’s a quieter kid but she works super hard and she’s great to coach.”

There were several themes at the Niles North IHSA Sectional, but none was more present than youth and talent.

Every competition at the sectional was won by an underclassman, including the all-around honor, which went to Glenbrook South gymnast Sheena Graham, a freshman.

Graham stood out in every event. Her strong performance totaled 37.225 for the night and a first-place medal in the all-around competition Tuesday, Feb. 6.

The Titans as a whole won the sectional with a 146.225, nudging out New Trier (146.15) who took second and Glenbrook North rounded out the top five with a 140.80.

However, for Highland Park’s Emily Aronin making it to sectional was a battle within itself.

“It was super exciting because I qualified freshman year and sophomore year and last year I didn’t make it,” she said. “(After regionals) I was so upset, I cried at the end. I was sad to be done, but then they were like, ‘You qualified,’ so it was a shock.”

Aronin qualified just in the floor category and was one of the at-large athletes that moved onto the Niles North sectional.

“I was even more motivated when coming back,” she said.

Aronin was the first to compete in the third block of competition and it was the best performance she had done all season.

“It was great today, easily the best routine of the year from her,” HP coach Anthony Kopp said. “She had a lot of energy and a lot of passion. She came through with some tough tumbling; she has three very difficult tumbling passes and she really nailed them all. She is very happy with it; I’m very happy with it. It was awesome.”

Since Aronin was the only one of her team to make it to the sectional her practice during the week was done with Deerfield High School as the Giants share the practice space.

“Competing alone isn’t the best, you don’t realize like how much of an impact your team makes until you’re actually alone,” Aronin said.

Aronin made the best of her situation and scored an 8.65 on floor. The score wasn’t enough to advance her to state for her senior year, but it was a good way to end her career as a Giant.

“She did a great job making it here and she put her best routine out there,” Kopp said. “It’s always a great feeling for an athlete when you go into your last event, your last routine and you leave it all out there and perform at your best.”

Aronin was all smiles after she was done with her performance.

“It was exciting to be able to compete one more time,” she said. “I actually hurt my ankle on Saturday, so I was really, really nervous.”

The ankle didn’t seem to bother Aronin during her sectional routine. The top five finishers from each category automatically advance to the state meet, unfortunately Aronin didn’t make the cut.

“It was a great way to end, being a senior,” she said. “It’s really sad. I’ve been doing gymnastics my entire life, but I couldn’t have asked for a better ending meet.”