I agree with Linda that it's the difference between a completed cert and a blank cert. I always complete my certs as shown on page 15. And, yes, in the county where the OP is, it very likely could be rejected. It would probably be rejected even if the certificate was personalized without having all three pronoun options shown, with two crossed out and one underlined (or circled). It's been posted about here before, and I've experienced that myself.
[BTW, those of you who are out of state should NOT be offering an opinion based on your personal experience because you're giving out bad info! This type of thing can be very state specific - and even county specific, as in this case. Linda obviously took the time to look it up. This habit has become rampant here IMO, so anyone reading this forum should keep that in mind and take advice with caution.]
As for the OP's question, I agree that the bank notaries are all wet. In fact, this is a pet peeve of mine because it makes life very difficult for seniors (and mobile notaries). People think they're doing the right thing by getting POAs taken care of while their loved ones are still competent, then a bank throws a monkey wrench into the works. Those bank attorneys probably haven't given any thought to the realities of illness, end-of-life, or late-in-life, issues that families have to deal with.
I, too, always ask for the document to be carefully reviewed and completed in advance, as well, because I don't want to be standing there while someone tries to explain to them (or has to shout so they can hear) the details and what choices they need to make, or whatever. (When I get there, I want to make sure this has been done and that the document represents their wishes.) I do, however, normally ask them to wait to have it signed and dated. Having said that, if they DO sign in advance, it's perfectly legal for them to just formally acknowledge their signature at the time of the notarization (unless a jurat is used, as already stated).
I don't know what I would have done, but one possibility might have been a call on the spot to the SOS office. This is one of the few situations where sometimes they're actually helpful... 
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