What an amazing division! In my opinion this could have swung a couple of ways that day and I believe the reality is placement had a big place in how everything played out considering the top 3 teams were competing at such a high level. Cartersville had a great routine, Carrollton looked amazing, Whitewater executed very well. It's hard to say what it all boiled down to but can't necessarily say the placements were wrong either. I just think on a different Saturday, any 3 of those teams could have switched spots. I thought Cartersville really carried some excitement on the back end of their routine which could have helped out with the timing issues that took place at a couple of spots in the routine (jumps, pyramid, and tumbling). Carrollton was extremely precise. Hard to pick apart their routine up until the pyramid mishit on the right side. Whitewater looked like a team that was on a mission and was hitting very hard on the skills as well. I believe their tumbling hurt them a bit on a day like yesterday.
Nobody should be surprised when a team is called to a mat. GHSA judging is so unpredictable nobody should be surprised with anything. The teams worked hard and the day worked in their favor.
No sure what to really comment on regarding the "laughing" situation. I didn't hear much about it honestly and I moved around the civic center a lot and sat in many different areas. It sounds like you all were personally effected by the incident so I can see where it can be upsetting. I would think with so many people in the arena it could be hard to tell what all people are doing and what type of conversation are happening. I know when I stand or sit around the coliseum in many different areas, some people are randomly talking and not even paying attention to what is happening on the mat that it could have been totally unrelated. I like to believe that no athlete would ever laugh at another injured athlete especially in the manner the athlete was injured. That would be cruel and I believe the athletes of this sport know better. I would personally let the coaches handle it if there was that big of an issue. As far as we know, it could already be handled. Either way, I think the timing of it is bad. I don't know. I can't take a side on that issue but I do know with the way that division is so competitive, I wouldn't be surprised to see any of those teams think that something was directed at their team. At the end of the day, I saw good sportsmanship from all teams ins in the top 6 from AAAA. I am sorry to hear the injury occurred and in the manner it did as well but I was thankful to see that everything appeared to be ok with her coming back on the mat. Congrats to Cartersville on their win and all the other teams on their placements!
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