We are region 8, but my dd is Xcel. I can't speak for compulsories or opttionals but Xcel (at least bronze, silver and gold) are VERY competitive in this region. Last year our girls traveled to other states for meets and scored about the same as they did in state and my dd's score was actually a little higher at regionals than it was all year long. It wasn't uncommon to see high 38's and even some 39's at regionals, as well as many 9.8-9.9's on events. So I would say we are not one of the low scoring regions, but I will say I've noticed that judges score lower at the beginning of the season than at state/regionals (that seems to be common everywhere though.) I don't think Region 8 is a powerhouse as far as producing elites (maybe a couple at the most), but there are several gyms in this region that have girls getting D1 scholarships regularly, so I do think it is a competitive region based on that and based on regional scores/competitions.