Gymnastics

The Hand gymnastics team was represented by freshman Paige Dean at State Open Championship at New Milford High School on March 6.

Dean finished with a score of 8.775 on the floor exercise to claim 17th place in the event and earn All-State First Team honors. Unfortunately, Grace Rogers, who was supposed to compete in all four events for the Tigers, injured an ankle in warm-ups and was unable to compete at the meet. However, Rogers still garnered All-State Second Team distinction by virtue of the scores that she averaged during the season.

“We’re really pleased with Paige’s freshman campaign [with] All-SCC, All-State, and, most importantly, a strong showing in the all-around for our team score all season long. She’s focused, she’s consistent, and she’s someone we can count on to compete well,” Head Coach Kelly Smith said. “Grace has incredible potential for increased start values and higher scores and difficulty over the next three years, and we’re excited to see what else she can accomplish.”

Skiing

The Hand skiing program recently saw its boys’ and girls’ teams both complete excellent seasons.

The boys’ squad posted a regular-season record of 19-6 and then finished in eighth place out of nine schools for a second-place finish at the Class S State Championship. The Tigers went on to place ninth out of 14 teams in the State Open Championship.

The Hand girls’ ski team went 15-6 in the regular season and then took third at the Class S State Championship by finishing seventh out of nine squads. Hand also came in fifth place among 12 clubs at the State Open.

Both of Hand’s skiing teams were led by Head Coach John Barrett this winter.

Cheerleading

The Hand cheerleading team competed in the Co-ed State Championship at Floyd Little Athletic Center on March 3. The Tigers earned a third-place finish out of 16 schools by scoring 177 points in the meet. Plainville took the title with a score of 185.80. Hand had previously finished in first place in the All-Girl Division at the Southern Connecticut Conference Championship earlier in the season.