Jan. 7 -- MITCHELL -- With every time the Mitchell High School gymnastics team gets on the competition floor, Kyanna Gropper's confidence only grows.
Gropper, who returned to the Kernel gymnastics roster off a knee injury in time to compete for MHS' state championship effort in February in the uneven bars, is back competing in all four events this season. The Kernel junior's full-time addition to the lineup has only made the MHS more competitive in pursuit of a third-straight Class AA team championship.
"Being on this team, it helps me stay motivated a lot to try and push myself to do harder skills," Gropper said. "We are pushing to be as good as we can be."
Gropper made her return to all-around competition in December, with a fourth-place finish in the Kernels' home meet on Dec. 12 with a score of 36.350 and then bumped that up to second place at the Jill McCormick Invitational at the Corn Palace for a score of 37.425, finishing only behind teammate Bentley Bates. That score included a season-best 9.550 score on the balance beam.
"We try new things a lot and then work on just little details that get us deductions and keeping everything just clean," Gropper said. "When you're out there and working on getting better and still experiencing success, it feels really good."
Most recently, on Saturday at the Kernels' Flip for a Cure event, Gropper had a season-best vault of 9.500, winning that event on the way to a 35.800 all-around score, which was good for third at the meet.
That vault has been the event that is standing out for Gropper this season. She's had her current vault routine that she has been practicing and training on for two years, but only recently was able to use it in competition because she started working on it in 2023 before she got hurt and then missed a full season in the event.
"It's just a very strange feeling when it's a vault you've worked on for two years but you haven't used it in competition," Rew said. "So she's been fine-tuning it for a long time and for her to finally use it and have success, that's a great experience for her."
She's been Mitchell's second-best vault scorer on average this season behind Olivia Prunty, who has won two events this season and a season-best score of 9.600.
"These vaults, this is the best I've ever done this vault before, even after being hurt. So I'm just trying to stay calm and execute," Gropper said.
"It's a routine that just keeps getting better and better and I'm excited about that," Rew added.
Last season, Gropper returned for uneven bars only, 5 1/2 months after suffering her knee injury, giving her just enough time to qualify for the state meet and take fourth place in the uneven bars. In 2023, Gropper was fourth at the state individual meet in the all-around, which included a second-place finish on balance beam, fourth on uneven bars and seventh on vault.
Add in Gropper to a talented roster that includes Bates, Prunty and Keyana Kelley as regular all-around performers, plus Aubrey Gelderman and Lainee Forst who excel on multiple events and it's easy to see the Kernels' depth once again.
"We are very much a family," Gropper said. "We all have grown up with each other in the gym and just bond together like sisters, pretty much."
Mitchell's home finale is scheduled for Jan. 21 with Brookings and Madison. Before then, the Kernels will be competing at the Brookings Invitational at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 11 and at the Huron Invitational on Jan. 17.