News
November 19, 2007
Heavy medals for SCOB novices
The Skating Club of Boston's novice team made its presence felt at the Eastern Sectional Championships, being held this week at the Factory Ice House in Wake Forest, North Carolina. A talented team of young men and women helped showcase the depth of SCOB's skating programs by clinching medals in each of the four skating disciplines: men's, women's, pairs, and ice dancing.
The Novice Men's event was dominated by 2nd year novice Ross Miner. In his "Surfer Dude" short program, set to excerpts from Hawaii 5-0 and Wipeout, Miner landed a triple Lutz-double toe, triple flip and a spread eagle into a double Axel. He received level 4 on his sit spin and level 3 on his combination spin, resulting in a 42.56 for the performance.
In his Gershwin-inspired long program, Miner displayed his innate musicality and audience appeal. In addition to completing four triple jumps he received level 4s for his combination spin and his sit spin, a level 3 for his death drop, and a rare level 3 for his serpentine step sequence. A score of 90.13 in the freeskate put Miner out of reach with a total score of 132.69-good enough for a gold medal and a trip to nationals as the Eastern Novice Men's Champion.
In the Novice Ladies' event, 13-year old Gretchan Donlan proved that quality and GOE are powerful weapons under new scoring system. Her energetic Cirque du Soleil short program featured a double axel, double Lutz-double toe and a double flip. She received level 4s and positive GOEs for her gorgeous layback spin, her combination spin and her spiral sequence to earn a score of 35.80.
In the long program, Donlan's landed seven doubles but distinguished herself on spins, spirals and beautiful carriage. Her score of 62.04 was second highest in the long program, earning her the bronze medal overall with a total score of 97.84.
Also appearing at in the novice ladies event was 12-year old Hanako Gutterman, whose strong fifth place finishes in both the short program and the free skate landed her in sixth place overall with a total score of 92.71.
In Novice Pairs, SCOB member Simon Shnapir and his partner Marissa Castelli (Smithfield FSC) demonstrated the experience they gained from their recent appearance at the JGP in Estonia. In their Kill Bill short program they executed a high quality throw double Salchow, a level 4 lasso lift, flying combination spins, straight-line steps, side-by-side double loops, a level 2 pairs spin, and a level 3 double twist. Many of their elements were rewarded with positive GOE, racking up 34.22 points. The pair continued to dominate in the long program, where a huge score of 110.58 left them more than eighteen points ahead of the pack to clinch the gold medal spot.
In Novice Ice Dance, veteran team Chloe Wolf and Rhys Ainsworth were happy to lead at the end of the compulsories. Turning their attention to the free dance, their Les Miserables program was packed with difficulty. They earned level 4s for their twizzles, all their lifts and their circular step sequences and saw mostly positive GOEs. With a total score of 110.39 they captured the gold medal with more than a nine point lead.
Una Donegan and Andrew Korda showed that every round counts under the new scoring system. Starting smoothly in third place in the American Waltz, a costly stumble by Korda placed them fifth in the Killian, leaving the couple in fourth place at the end of the compulsory round. Pulling out all the stops, Donegan and Korda rebounded to a second place finish in the free dance, capturing the bronze medal and a reservation in St. Paul.
In the Midwest Sectionals, Kate McDermott and Colin McManus also carried the SCOB beacon. Despite a rocky seventh place in the first compulsory dance, their strong third place performances in both the second compulsory and the free dance landed them in the bronze medal position.
We're proud of the excellence and sportsmanship demonstrated by these young skaters and wish them the very best as they set their sites on Nationals.
