U.S. Ladies [#28]: Achieving 2020 Vision

[Tinami Amori]

Girls i am watching/following are doing well (novice/juniors).
Isabeau Levito is 1st after SP Novice
https://www.usfigureskating.org/leaderboard/results/2020/27740/CAT005SEG008.html

Haley Scott is 4th…
https://www.usfigureskating.org/leaderboard/results/2020/27740/CAT007SEG010.html

Mia Kalin is also 4th..
https://www.usfigureskating.org/leaderboard/results/2020/27744/CAT007SEG011.html

for the last two... there is FS tomorrow, fingers crossed.

 

[mtnskater]

Yay Gracie!!! So happy to see one of my favs on the ice and making good progress on her comeback. She looks beautiful and powerful. Best of luck in the free!

 

[aftershocks]

Yes, Gracie looked happy with a sparkle in her eye and a lovely smile at Eastern Sectionals ladies' sp! That's nice to see. She maintained calm and a sense of ease throughout her performance.

 

[natsulian]

Congratulations to Mariah Bell for earning her second Grand Prix medal of the season and third overall. With the way Rostelecom unraveled, Bradie Tennell has now qualified for the Grand Prix Final and becomes the first US lady to do so since Ashley Wagner in 2015. Furthermore, Mariah Bell might be sent to another Challenger event (might replace Tennell at Golden Spin) before Nationals so I hope to see some noticeable improvements. She fought for every single point (unfortunately did not add a 2Lo to the 3Lz+2T which would've earned her 2-3 more points) and put down yet another clean skate. All in all, VERY proud of our US ladies and what they have managed to put out there. Also, they're now in the top echelon in terms of PCS which bodes well for their scores once they clean up some technical snafus.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

OMG, for France, China and Rostelecom I had planned out a path for Bradie to qualify to GPF (basically for fun).... I had made a plan where the results for the three events had to fall an exact way for the top 4 in these events, and all three events the results happened in that exact order.... I cant believe it...

And Mariah medalling now at both her events... how wonderful...

So now Bradie should be into the Final... I can't believe it.... exciting.

 

[natsulian]

Also, Isabelle Inthisone finished second behind Calista Choi at Eastern Sectionals and debuted a new Free layout consisting of two 3-3 combinations: 3Lz+3T and 3F+3T.

 

[kalle]

Bell and Bradie are doing very well so far!
I am mostly happy about Mariah finding some consistency and fighting for those landing as a cat now .

Bradie has always been a good competitor but I really like her for trying to find original programs (last year LP and this years SP). Sure, not everyones taste but I dont find her zzzzz as others. She has great presence, fantastic speed and spins and never seems nervous.

That said, I do hope Mariah manage to grab the Nationals title this year!

 

[concorde]

Mia is leads the Junior ladies (Eastern) after the short. Congrats to Mia!
Lindsey Thorngreen is in 2nd by less than a point.

Lindsey got 1st in the freeskate so wound up 1st overall. Mia got 2nd in the freeskate and wound up 2nd overall.

Good luck to Mia at Nationals!

 

[Ka3sha]

Watched few excerpts from ladies press conference , Mariah admitted that she had tried triple axel (didn’t specify on the lounge or not) and she thinks that it could be possible for her to land one. But she has only recently become consistent, so it’s too early to tell about adding difficulty.

I personally really liked her today! She just radiates joy

 

[Lacey]

I think we all should be so proud of Mariah Bell for medaling in both of her GPs that resulted in two Bronzes this fall. Her four programs were lovely and were all beautifully skated with such confidence at her two GPs. I think that was enough of a plateau for so far this season. She shouldn't spend one minute worrying about not making the GPF. This has been a season greatly improved over any others for her so far. Mariah should get a good rest before Nats, keep up the great training with Raf and her team and continue the beautifully powerful skating! She is still improving each time she goes out. Her skating is a wondrous thing to see, she was so happy throughout!

 

[natsulian]

With Eastern Sectionals now over, we can all breathe and finally say... GRACIE IS GOING TO NATIONALS. I am beyond elated for our golden girl and cannot wait to see how she will progress. There was SO much fight in her and it bodes well for the rest of her career. Also, Emily Zhang blew the roof with a score of 197. Where was she when international assignments were being given out? If she can skate just as clean, a Pewter medal or top 6 finish might not be out of the question. Also, SO much talent in the lower half of the senior ladies' division that must be harnessed and nourished. Six ladies managed to break the 165 barrier and I wish all six could have gone to Nationals. Best of luck to everyone.

TOP 4 - EASTERN SECTIONALS
1. Emily Zhang, 197.88
2. Sarah Jung, 182.43
3. Gracie Gold, 173.45
4. Rina Ikenishi, 169.38

 

[oleada]

I'm so happy Gracie made it. From the top four, I also enjoyed Ikenishi.

That said - the calling was atrocious. From the last group, Jung had a number of URs that weren't called. I think Zhang had some as well, but not as obvious. I'm not sure why USFS is so lenient on the calling because it never serves their skaters well in the long run.

 

[natsulian]

I'm so happy Gracie made it. From the top four, I also enjoyed Ikenishi.

That said - the calling was atrocious. From the last group, Jung had a number of URs that weren't called. I think Zhang had some as well, but not as obvious. I'm not sure why USFS is so lenient on the calling because it never serves their skaters well in the long run.

The US is just as sloppy with calls as the international judges at this point. I think calls have become luck based because of how inconsistent they are, especially on the Grand Prix stage. Certain competitions have VERY strict callers whilst others have lenient ones, it's really based on place and time which is unfortunate. As for Jung, her 3S and 3Lo were probably under and Zhang's 3Lo was questionable.

 

[ЭPiKUilyam]

With Eastern Sectionals now over, we can all breathe and finally say... GRACIE IS GOING TO NATIONALS. I am beyond elated for our golden girl and cannot wait to see how she will progress. There was SO much fight in her and it bodes well for the rest of her career. Also, Emily Zhang blew the roof with a score of 197. Where was she when international assignments were being given out? If she can skate just as clean, a Pewter medal or top 6 finish might not be out of the question. Also, SO much talent in the lower half of the senior ladies' division that must be harnessed and nourished. Six ladies managed to break the 165 barrier and I wish all six could have gone to Nationals. Best of luck to everyone.

TOP 4 - EASTERN SECTIONALS
1. Emily Zhang, 197.88
2. Sarah Jung, 182.43
3. Gracie Gold, 173.45
4. Rina Ikenishi, 169.38

I am so happy for Gracie! She earned her ticket the hard way. This should inspire her to really go out and do her best at Nationals. Good things happen to good people who work for it. Congrats Gracie!

 

[oleada]

The US is just as sloppy with calls as the international judges at this point. I think calls have become luck based, especially on the Grand Prix stage. Certain competitions have VERY strict callers whilst others have lenient ones, it's really based on place and time which is unfortunate. As for Jung, her 3S and 3Lo were probably under and Zhang's 3Lo was questionable.

Yeah, there are international competitions that are more lenient than others, but they're never, ever this lenient. I think Jung's 3T was also UR in combo and both of Zhang's 3Lo. I don't think a stricter caller would've affected the results but the scores would have been more in line with reality. I think it set ups skaters for situations where they compete internationally and will get much lower scores than they expect. In any case, this isn’t a new problem with USFS.

 

[Frau Muller]

Yes, I’m especially happy that Gracie earned that bronze medal. Nothing was gifted. She’s come a long way since Rostelecom 2018.

 

[Tavi]

I'm so happy Gracie made it. From the top four, I also enjoyed Ikenishi.

That said - the calling was atrocious. From the last group, Jung had a number of URs that weren't called. I think Zhang had some as well, but not as obvious. I'm not sure why USFS is so lenient on the calling because it never serves their skaters well in the long run.

Interestingly, they weren’t at all lenient with Gracie - negative GOE on 3 jumps, PCS mostly in mid 7s, and 3z in combo was called <. I actually think her calling was pretty accurate, and I’m betting it will make her work like crazy over the next two months.

Anyway I am totally thrilled for her and so impressed with how much she has improved in the past month or so - her score was about 40 points higher! One thing that really struck me tonight was that she was really expressing the music. It’s not a great program, but maybe it’s the right one for her, right now.

 

[oleada]

Interestingly, they weren’t at all lenient with Gracie - negative GOE on 3 jumps, PCS mostly in mid 7s, and 3z in combo was called <. I actually think her calling was pretty accurate, and I’m betting it will make her work like crazy over the next two months.

Yeah I think with her they were mostly ok. Fell on her first 3Lz, very obvious two foot and UR on the second 3Lz and the landing on the 2A wasn't great.

 

[Teamgracie]

So happy for Gracie! I got to see her skate that beautiful program and even met her. She is so sweet and kind. A beautiful person inside and out, and an amazing talent. Wish her the best!

 

[Tavi]

Yeah I think with her they were mostly ok. Fell on her first 3Lz, very obvious two foot and UR on the second 3Lz and the landing on the 2A wasn't great.

I think it’s tough love. And I bet we’ll see even more progress in a few months. Almost makes me want to go to Nats.

 

[AngieNikodinovLove (ANL)]

Polina finished in 5th place by a HAIR.

Does that mean her road to Nats is over?

Courtney too?

 

[haribobo]

SENIOR LADIES SECTIONALS QUALIFIERS TO NATIONALS

Emily Zhang 197
Sarah Jung 182
Caitlin Ha 174
Gracie Gold 173
Paige Rydberg 172
Courtney Hicks 171
Rena Ikenishi 169
Sierra Venetta 161
Emilia Murdock 155
Alyssa Rich 153
Maxine Marie Bautista 151
Alex Evans 145

INTL SENIOR LADIES (byes to Nationals) - ISU SB
Bradie Tennell 216
Mariah Bell 212
Alysa Liu 208
Amber Glenn 186
Starr Andrews 181
Ting Cui 177
Karen Chen 173
Gabriella Izzo 169
Hanna Harrell 160
Megan Wessenberg 148

 

[natsulian]

With the 12 ladies who qualified and those with byes, we now have 22 ladies competing at Nationals.

Bradie Tennell, Mariah Bell, Alysa Liu, Hanna Harrell, Ting Cui (?), Amber Glenn, Karen Chen, Megan Wessenberg, Gabriella Izzo (does she have a bye?), and Starr Andrews.

 

[Teamgracie]

In person you could tell how much the program meant to her, it was emotional at the end. The crowd felt it.

 

[haribobo]

JUNIOR LADIES QUALIFIERS
Lindsay Thorngren 170
Calista Choi 163
Isabelle Inthisone 159
Mia Eckels 153
Ellen Slavicek 153
Maryn Pierce 147
Jessica Lin 147
Mia Kalin 143
Noelle Rosa 141
Kate Wang 140
Mauryn Tyack 134
Lara Annunziata 134
----- (adding top 2 novice from each section)----
Isabeau Levito 171
Elsa Cheng 158
Tamnhi Huynh 143
Hazel Collier 141
Michelle Lee 140
Hannah Herrera 138

 

[Edgecase]

Polina finished in 5th place by a HAIR.

Does that mean her road to Nats is over?

Courtney too?

All Polina had to do was not have a time violation and she would have been 4th. That said, her TES total from SP + LP might not have hit the qualifying mark anyway. It’s too bad; I still enjoy her skating and her short program in particular.

 

[Foolhardy Ham Lint]

Polina finished in 5th place by a HAIR.

Does that mean her road to Nats is over?

Courtney too?

Hicks placed second at Midwesterns. She won the free skate with a decent 6 triple / 2 double axel program.

2020 Midwestern Sectional Singles Final

Event Results for 2020 Midwestern Sectional Singles Final

www.usfigureskating.org

 

[Coco]

Polina was about 6 points shy of the minimum score, so missing 4th by less than a point wasn't the only reason she didn't qualify.

Honestly, in some ways she looks more ready than GG. I'm thinking specifically of steps and Spins. I hope Polina sticks with it as she has some gorgeous qualities on the ice.

 

[jlai]

I'm so happy Gracie made it. From the top four, I also enjoyed Ikenishi.

That said - the calling was atrocious. From the last group, Jung had a number of URs that weren't called. I think Zhang had some as well, but not as obvious. I'm not sure why USFS is so lenient on the calling because it never serves their skaters well in the long run.

Because they are trying to get the skaters their minimums?

 

[Debbie S]

Because they are trying to get the skaters their minimums?

Jung and Zhang already had the minimums.