Gropper sisters share special bond in Kernels' title success
Feb. 15—MITCHELL — There are times where Mitchell gymnastics coach Audra Rew forgets that two of her star gymnasts are sisters.
But no meet this season — especially the state championship this past weekend in Aberdeen — passed without Kyra and Kyanna Gropper putting an imprint on the final outcome.
The sisters — Kyra as a senior and Kyanna as a freshman — were a major reason why Mitchell earned its second title in three seasons and eighth overall under Rew. They both were competitors in the Class AA all-around scoring, with Kyanna finishing in fourth place and Kyra taking sixth. Along with Emily Moody (third) and Olivia Prunty (fifth), the Gropper sisters helped the Kernels place four of the top-six finishers in Class AA
"I love having my sister on the team," Kyanna said. "She's great for emotional support. Sometimes we do get a little mad at each other but we try to make sure that's a rare thing. She's a great person for me to talk to and share in this experience."
Over the course of the last three seasons, the sisters have combined to place 14 times at the state meet, including seven times combined in 2023. They both had top-10 finishes in the all-around, vault and uneven bars.
"It is something that I'm going to cherish," Kyra said. "It's a special thing to be able to share with your sister."
Given that Rew has coached the girls since they were young — when they would replicate each other in their routines — she's in tune to how they act and behave in the gym.
"In some ways, they don't really act like sisters. Sometimes I forget that," Rew said. "Now that they're older, they're a little different. When they were younger and both learning something, I'd have to cut them off because I knew Kyanna was making the same mistakes that Kyra used to make."
The 2023 season will end as a special one for the sisters, in that they helped Mitchell win another title, their second together on the same team, joining the 2021 edition of the Kernels. Kyra also was on the Kernels' title team in 2018. She said she had a lot of pride in being able to start and finish her high school careers with classmate Emily Moody.
"For myself and Emily, we ended how we started and I thought that was so cool," Kyra said. "It's been a special season."
Kyanna said she's picked up one primary attribute from her older sister to take into competition.
"Just to have confidence and to be fierce," she recalled. "Have a strong attitude when you're out there competing."
Rew said she enjoys that the sisterhood of gymnastics spans across the team, not just in a single set of sisters.
"I think when they're in the gym, they're just teammates," Rew said. "They don't really put any extra pressure on themselves to help each other out and because they're grown up with the other girls in the gym since they were three years old, they're all very good at working with each other. ... At the same time, they're sisters and they know each other better than anyone."
