Park gymnastics: Tulloch bounces back, takes second in floor exercise

Park junior gymnasts Kasondra Tulloch and Rachel Deephouse fought through injuries and earned medals at the 2011-12 Class AA individual state meet.

Tulloch placed second, after a tie-breaker for first place, and Deephouse earned sixth place in the floor exercise at this year's state competition.

Tulloch scored a 9.725 and Deephouse scored a 9.625 in the floor exercise. Eden Prairie senior Mackenzie Dent also scored a 9.725 but won the tie-breaker.

Tulloch finished in 13th place overall in the all-around competition with a 37.4 in her second-consecutive state meet.

Tulloch started the meet strong with a 9.6 on the vault and a 9.6 on the bars, but stumbled in her third event - the beam. Tulloch fell off the beam and scored an 8.475 in the event. However, she bounced back on the very next event - her last of the night - tallying her 9.725 in the floor exercise.

Last year, Tulloch earned second place and Deephouse took third place in the all-around competition, becoming the first Park gymnasts to medal at the state meet since the 2006-07 season.

This year injuries slowed the two powerhouses' progress. Deephouse was out two months with a back injury and Tulloch missed a month with a shoulder injury. Both gymnasts were icing the injuries throughout the state meet, after helping lead Park to a fourth place finish in the team competition the night before.

North St. Paul senior Julia Stedman won the Class AA all-around title this year with a 38.4 score.

See the full story in the Feb. 29 issue of the Bulletin