Todd Rose | Daily Press Escanaba’s Caitlyn Davenport leaps during her beam routine Wednesday night at a meet against the Negaunee Miners in Escanaba.

ESCANABA — It was an exciting season-opener for the Escanaba gymnasts here Wednesday night as they posted a 115.65-63.8 triumph over the Negaunee Miners.

Much of the excitement built during floor exercise in which the Eskymos swept all five places.

“I’m very proud of the girls and happy with their performance,” said Esky coach Theresa Pascoe. “The momentum we built on floor was totally awesome. We had a rough start on (balance) beam. We had eight falls, which is four points for the team. This is the first time I’ve seen the girls fall on cartwheels. They normally do well on those. Although, it was great to see them bounce back on floor. We had only 10 practices leading into this meet. I’m okay with where we were tonight. Only, we need to be more focused on beam.”

Freshman Bridget Bichler won floor with 8.3 points, followed by junior Caitlyn Davenport (7.9) and freshman Alyiah Mylander (7.8).

“I was very proud of my performance,” said Bichler. “I thought I did very good for the first meet. Floor set the tone for us. Having my teammates cheer for me made my energy a lot higher. The crowd was amazing tonight. I was actually surprised by the size of the crowd (despite COVID-19).”

The Eskymos, led by junior Lizzy Sliva, scored 30.5 points in all-around. She was followed by Davenport (29.85) and Bichler (28.3).

Sliva added firsts on vault (8.8) and uneven bars (7.7).

“I was shocked by that one,” Sliva said about her score on vault. “That was definitely one of my highest scores. Everybody having a positive attitude and cheering each other on really helped. Everybody had her best routines.

“I feel bad for those in contact sports, working so hard in practice and having to wait so long to start their seasons. I’m just grateful for having the opportunity to compete. I’ve been a competitive gymnast since age 3, then I hurt my foot toward the end of club gymnastics and took a year off.”

Davenport was runner-up on vault (8.3) and bars (7.7). Mylander was third on floor (7.8), and Bichler took third on bars (5.8).

“Vault has always been a strong event for us, and tonight we scored 33 points,” said Pascoe. “Bridget has technique on floor and is so tight and precise with her routines, but we’ve got to get stronger on bars. Some of the younger girls need to connect on their skills. Now, the girls know they can’t be sloppy with their routines. They have to be clean and tight.

“I’m happy for Negaunee that they have a team. They also have a young team.”

Senior Skye Clinton provided the Miners with a first on beam (7.1).

“I thought we did a nice job on beam,” said Negaunee coach Eyre Becker. “We had only one fall, which is a confidence boost for the girls. We had been working real hard on vault. It’s disappointing we lost a few girls to nerves. When you don’t have a lot of confidence and speed, it can equal disaster. We’ve had only nine practices and don’t have a good feeder program right now. We need time to do the routines and more space to work with. Hopefully, we’ll find some clubs up there.”

Esky also swept vault and nearly swept bars.

“It’s always intimidating to come down here for our first competition because they’re just so strong,” said Becker. “The best part of competing with Escanaba is we always have each other’s best interests at heart. Both teams always show great sportsmanship. They clap for our girls, and we clap for theirs.”

The teams meet again Feb. 10 at Negaunee.

All-around — 1, Sliva, E, 30.5; 2, Davenport, E, 29.85; 3, Bichler, E, 28.3; 4, Mylander, E, 26.55; 5, Martin, E, 25.5.

Balance beam — 1, Clinton, N, 7.1; 2, Davenport, E, 6.65; 3, Sliva, E, 6.4; 4, Bichler, E, 6.35; 5, Mylander, E, 5.95.

Floor exercise — 1, Bichler, E, 8.3; 2, Davenport, E, 7.9; 3, Mylander, E, 7.8; 4, Sliva, E, 7.6; 5, Martin, E, 6.9.

Uneven bars — 1, Sliva, E, 7.7; 2, Davenport, E, 7.0; 3, Bichler, E, 5.8; 4, Martin, E, 5.2; 5, Mylander, E and Clinton, N, 4.8 (tie).

Vault — 1, Sliva, E, 8.8; 2, Davenport, E, 8.3; 3, Mylander, E, 8.0; 4, Martin, E, 7.9; 5, Bichler, E, 7.85.