MCDONALD'S SWNEWS4U.COM GAME OF THE WEEK (March 4–11)
WIAA DIVISION 2 GYMNASTICS: Team State Championships
By Jason Nihles, The Platteville Journal / Fennimore Times / Boscobel Dial
STATE CHAMPIONS: Dodgeville co-op holds off Mount Horeb to win Division 2 Team State title
WISCONSIN RAPIDS — The Dodgeville/Mineral Point/Iowa–Grant/Highland gymnastic team has been ranked near the top of the Division 2 standings all season.
Friday night at the WIAA Team State Championships at Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln High School, coach Jessica Oellerich’s co-op team cemented its legacy as THE best team in Division 2 for 2025–26 by winning the program’s first state title with a combined team score of 139.6834.
The Dodgers edged out runner-up Mount Horeb (138.2001) and Marshfield (137.25) to win the championship.
“Gymnastics is often thought of as an individual sport, but this team proves otherwise every single day,” said coach Oellerich. “These girls celebrate every hit routine like it’s their own, pick each other up after mistakes, and are always the loudest voices cheering from the sidelines.”
The Dodgeville co-op opened Friday night’s 10-team D2 Team State Meet on the vault in Rotation 3 with Iowa–Grant junior Madelyn Klein leading the way with a score of 9.10, while Highland senior Faith Hoffman posted an 8.80. Sophomore Ezmae Sandberg (8.7667), junior Myra Barr (8.350) and IG junior Abigail Droessler (8.30) rounded out the vault performances.
The Dodgers moved on to uneven bars in Rotation 5 with Klein, the defending D2 individual state champion on bars, posting a team-best 9.2833 to carry the team. Senior Alaina Nelson (7.950), Droessler (7.8667), Hoffman (7.850) and Sandberg (7.60) each posted solid routines in the High 7s to keep the team in title contentions.
Two rotations later, the Dodgers were on the balance beam. Barr led the team with a score of 9.2667, while Hoffman (9.1667) and Klein (8.7833) also shine in the event. Senior Keira Haser posted 8.250 in her first event of this year’s state meet, while Nelson scored an 8.00.
Dodgeville, then waited until the 10th and final rotation before closing out the team competition on the floor exercise. With Mount Horeb already finished with a score of 138.2001, the Dodgers knew exactly the scores they needed to win the team title.
Heiser led off with a solid 8.0667 score, while Nelson followed with a 8.9167 and Barr added a 8.9167 routine going third for the Dodgers. Klein went next and posted a stellar 9.250 score, and Hoffman brought it home with a 9.400 to clinch the state title.
“What makes this team special isn’t just their talent — it’s their bond,” added Oellerich. “They believe in each other. They support each other. And they compete for each other. That kind of connection can’t be measured on a scoreflipper, but (Friday) it helped carry them all the way to the top.
“I couldn’t be more proud of these seven athletes and the way they represent our school and our community. To our fans, families, and supporters — thank you for cheering loudly, believing in these girls, and standing behind this program.”
Team State Championships
(from Friday, March 6 @ Wisconsin Rapids)
Team scores — 1.Dodgeville co-op 139.6834, 2.Mount Horeb 138.2001, 3.Marshfield 137.25, 4.River Falls 136.8498, 5.Homestead 136.7334, 6.G–E–T co-op 132.70, 7.Sparta 129.9834, 8.Whitefish Bay 129.90, 9.Waupun 125.4501, 10.Rhinelander 123.0334.
Dodgeville Team State Results
Vault — 1.Maddy Klein 9.10, Faith Hoffman 8.80 Ezmae Sandberg 8.7668, Myra Barr 8.35, Abigail Droessler 8.30.
Uneven bars — Klein 9.2833, Nelson 7.95, Droessler 7.8667, Hoffman 7.85, Sandberg 7.60.
Balance Beam — Barr 9.2667, Hoffman 9.1667, Klein 8.7833, Keira Haser 8.25, Nelson 8.00.
Floor Exercise — Hoffman 9.40, Klein 9.25, Barr 8.9167, Nelson 8.6833, Haser 8.0667.
INDIVIDUAL STATE
A day after winning the D2 Team State title, Dodgeville/MP/IG/Highland’s Klein and Hoffman returned to competition for Saturday’s WIAA D2 Individual State Championships.
Klein won the individual state title on the vault with a scored of 9.450, just nipping Monona Grove’s Kennedy Sefcik (9.4333) to win her second individual state title.
Klein, who won the D2 individual state title on the uneven bars a year ago as a sophomore, finished second on the bars this year with a score of 9.1167, just behind Sparta’s Gabrielle Bjorkman (9.1667).
Klein also finished tied for sixth on the floor (9.1333) and placed third in the all-around at 37.0333.
Hoffman medaled with a fourth-place finish on the floor (9.2333), and placed seventh in the all-around (35.5333), eighth on the beam (8.80) and tied for eighth on the vault (8.90).
WIAA Division 2 Individual State Championships
(from Saturday, March 7 @ Wis. Rapids)
Dodgeville co-op individual state qualifiers
All-Around — 2.Madelyn Klein 37.033, 7.Faith Hoffman 34.5333.
Vault — 1.Klein 9.45, 8(tie).Hoffman 8.90.
Uneven bars — 2.Klein 9.1167.
Balance Beam — 8.Hoffman 8.80.
Floor Exercise — 4.Hoffman 9.2333, 7.Klein 9.1333.
