It was easy to see that Heather Jenkins was proud of her performance at the EAGLES Gymnastics State Championships in Colorado Springs. She had every score memorized down to the thousandth percentile.

“Do you want to know my scores?” she asked, and then she listed the events, the scores and what place she finished.

The three extra months of preparation on the routines she used at the USA Gymnastics state meet helped Jenkins earn the best all-around score in her gymnastics career.

“I was more confident,” she said. “I could do my back handspring on the beam better, and I nailed my dismount on the bars.”

Jenkins earned a combined score of 37.25 in the Optional B division. It was good enough for first, and it was her second state championship in EAGLES.

In individual events, Jenkins won the uneven bars and balance beam with scores of 9.325 and 9.55, respectively. She also finished fourth with a 9.425 on the floor exercise and eighth with a 9.2 on vault.

Overall, the Gymstar Fun ‘n’ Fit gymnasts performed above coach Kelly Davidson’s hopes.

“They all did well,” she said. “For the girls who were there for the first time it was a nice experience.”

Four gymnasts competed in their first major competition at the state meet in Colorado Springs.

Jessica Prather, Megan Prather, Nastassija Voyich and Katie Rice were the first-timers.

“I had a lot of fun,” Rice said.

Rice said her best performance was on the uneven bars. She earned a 9.2 score and finished second in the event. She finished with an all-around score of 35.3, which was good enough for ninth.

“There were a lot of girls to meet there,” Jessica Prather said of her experience. Her highest score was a 9.0 on bars, which earned her fifth place. Her all-around score of 35.4 was good enough for 10th.

Voyich and Megan Prather earned respectable scores of 34.5 and 33.65 at the meet.

“Overall, we finished sixth out of 12 teams,” Davidson said. “That’s pretty good for the size of our gym.”

Optional A performer Jordan Porter earned nines on the floor and vault and was eighth overall with a 34.1.

EAGLES — Elementary Art–ist–ic Gymnastic League and Ed–ucational System — is a league started in Colorado with a focus on helping beginning gymnasts receive more attention. EAGLES hosts several “fun meets” for the beginner levels and offers competition at levels 4 and 5 and optional A and optional B. USA Gymnastics — the governing body for gymnastics — has gymnasts compete from levels 3 to 10.

Now, the girls will revamp their routines and go for the next level.

“The rest of the summer they’ll all learn new routines,” Davidson said. “We have some in a younger group who will move up to fill their spots, and they’ll be competing at 4 and 5 next year.”

Prather and Rice agreed that “Level 4” sounds better than “Level 3.”

“I get to learn a round-off back handspring,” Rice said. “The tumbling is fun.”

For more information about Gymstar Fun ‘n’ Fit Gymnastics, call Davidson at 824-2282.