El Paso is the next stop on the road to state for the Odessa High and Permian gymnastics teams.
Both schools will be represented at the Region III Championships Friday and Saturday at the Bel Air Athletics Complex.
Competing in that gym will be a new experience as the $32 million facility opened its doors in 2020.
Odessa High boys coach Trey Enriquez feels his gymnasts are ready to match up against other competitors in the region.
“Even though it’s a new environment and different building, it’s still going to be the same routines that we that we have to hit and same stuff that we have to execute,” Enriquez said. “That’s what I’ve told my boys, no matter where we’re at, everybody’s still having to compete at the same place.”
The Bronchos are looking to score more than 285.3 points as a team, which would put them in the top 12 boys teams in the state and help them qualify for the state championships later this month.
Going into regionals, Odessa High and Permian tested their skills at the District 2-6A championship meet March 24 and 25 in Abilene.
The Permian boys finished second in the team standings with a 287.7, while Odessa High claimed fourth with a 266.2.
Enriquez believes his team left 10 points on the table each day of the district championships, something that can be fixed by avoiding mistakes on routines.
Permian girls coach Casey Werner knows her team has some aspects to spruce up on the balance beam and vault events after placing second at district with a 203.65 score.
Girls teams competing at regionals can advance by scoring a 215.
“We came back, worked on the deductions that we were given at districts to improve on vault,” Werner said. “Staying on the beam, it’s half a point for each fall.”
Werner wants to see her gymnasts focus on the small details of their routines to achieve stronger results.
The Odessa High girls are coming off a fourth-place finish in Abilene, where they recorded a 180.55 team score.
Lady Bronchos coach Tony Gonzales said his team’s preparation for regionals includes doing some mental work and staying well-rested for the 4.5-hour drive from Odessa.
“We have to be clean and focus on what we’re doing to stay in the game,” Gonzales said. “We’ve been practicing like that all week, so hopefully going into this meet they can do what we’ve been practicing for and stay in the top 10.”
Sincere Galindo was the top all-around competitor for the Permian boys at district, while Jabezz Chavez led the Bronchos.
Isabella Fanucci led the Lady Panthers and Victoria Alvarez paced Odessa High.
Odessa High and Permian will be joined at regionals by San Angelo Central, Lubbock High, and schools from Abilene ISD and El Paso’s Ysleta ISD.
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