Now that world championships have concluded and we can move on to getting too excited too early about NCAA season (74 days to go!!!), I’m updating the NCAA roster release post with the additional teams that had not yet put out their rosters last time I did this.
The two-column charts here compare the 2019 rosters to the 2020 rosters for a quick glance at who’s new and who’s gone.
| OKLAHOMA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Jade Degouveia – JR | Jade Degouveia – SR |
| Vanessa Deniz – FR | |
| Brenna Dowell – SR | |
| Jordan Draper – SO | Jordan Draper – JR |
| Jenna Dunn – FR | |
| Ashley Hiller – SR | |
| Erin Hutchison – FR | |
| Emma LaPinta – FR | Emma LaPinta – SO |
| Nicole Lehrmann – SR | |
| Alex Marks – SR | |
| Maggie Nichols – JR | Maggie Nichols – SR |
| Evy Schoepfer – SO | Evy Schoepfer – JR |
| Bre Showers – JR | Bre Showers – SR |
| Ragan Smith – FR | |
| Allie Stern – FR | Allie Stern – SO |
| Karrie Thomas – SO | Karrie Thomas – JR |
| Olivia Trautman – FR | Olivia Trautman – SO |
| Anastasia Webb – SO | Anastasia Webb – JR |
| Brooke Weins – FR | |
| Carly Woodard – SO | Carly Woodard – JR |
Nothing surprising for Oklahoma, really. Everyone who was supposed to return has returned, in addition to a freshman class of five. This was originally a signing class of three—Smith, Deniz, Weins—to which walk-ons Dunn and Hutchison have been added.
| LSU 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Reagan Campbell – SO | Reagan Campbell – JR |
| Julianna Cannamela – SR | |
| Rebecca D’Antonio – FR | Rebecca D’Antonio – SO |
| Bridget Dean – SO | Bridget Dean – JR |
| Christina Desiderio – SO | Christina Desiderio – JR |
| Sami Durante – SO | Sami Durante – JR |
| Kennedi Edney – JR | Kennedi Edney – SR |
| Sarah Edwards – SO | Sarah Edwards – JR |
| Bailey Ferrer – FR | Bailey Ferrer – SO |
| Sarah Finnegan – SR | |
| Courtney Goodrich – FR | |
| Olivia Gunter – SO | Olivia Gunter – JR |
| Ruby Harrold – JR | Ruby Harrold – SR |
| Kiya Johnson – FR | |
| McKenna Kelley – SR | |
| Ashlyn Kirby – JR | |
| Lexie Nibbs – FR | |
| Lexie Priessman – SR | |
| Kai Rivers – FR | |
| Kamryn Ryan – FR | |
| Alyona Shchennikova – FR | |
| Caitlin Smith – FR |
The one non-senior departure for LSU is Ashlyn Kirby, who missed all of last season with injury and does not appear on the team’s 2020 roster.
LSU’s original verbal class for this year was just Kai Rivers and Caitlin Smith (and Bailey Ferrer before she showed up a year early), so they’ve really gone to work since then. Not only with the recent addition of Shchennikova, either. Kamryn Ryan signed her NLI for Alabama just last fall, and then LSU was like, “MINE PLEASE.” Ryan finished 4th on VT at JO nationals this year.
Since the last update, LSU has also added walk-on Lexie Nibbs to the roster to make a freshman class of seven.
| UCLA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Emma Andres – FR | |
| Nia Dennis – SO | Nia Dennis – JR |
| Norah Flatley – FR | Norah Flatley – SO |
| Marz Frazier – FR | Marz Frazier – SO |
| Anna Glenn – JR | Anna Glenn – SR |
| Grace Glenn – JR | Grace Glenn – SR |
| Felicia Hano – JR | Felicia Hano – SR |
| Paige Hogan – FR | |
| Madison Kocian – JR | Madison Kocian – SR |
| Savannah Kooyman – SO | Savannah Kooyman – JR |
| Gracie Kramer – JR | Gracie Kramer – SR |
| Chloe Lashbrooke – FR | |
| Brielle Nguyen – SR | |
| Katelyn Ohashi – SR | |
| Kendal Poston – SO | Kendal Poston – JR |
| Kyla Ross – JR | Kyla Ross – SR |
| Samantha Sakti – SO | |
| Mercedez Sanchez – JR | Mercedez Sanchez – SR |
| Stella Savvidou – SR | |
| Nicki Shapiro – SR | |
| Kalyany Steele – FR | |
| Sara Taubman – FR | Sara Taubman – SO |
| Macy Toronjo – SR | Macy Toronjo – R-SR |
| Pauline Tratz – SO | Pauline Tratz – JR |
| Sekai Wright – SO | Sekai Wright – JR |
It’s a weird freshman class of mostly walk-ons for UCLA this year because nearly all the signees have elected to defer and pursue the 2020 Olympics. But, the Bruins are also bringing in transfer Samantha Sakti, and I’m sure you’ll note that Nicki Shapiro has made a sudden return to the roster this year, which I think is what this GIF was invented for
| MICHIGAN 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Abby Brenner – FR | Abby Brenner – SO |
| Sierra Brooks – FR | |
| Anna Dayton – SO | Anna Dayton – JR |
| Lauren Farley – SO | Lauren Farley – JR |
| Lexi Funk – JR | Lexi Funk – SR |
| Abbie Gaies – FR | |
| Abby Heiskell – FR | Abby Heiskell – SO |
| Sam Javanbakht – SO | Sam Javanbakht – JR |
| Olivia Karas – SR | |
| Nicoletta Koulos – FR | |
| Maddie Mariani – FR | Maddie Mariani – SO |
| Anne Maxim – SO | Anne Maxim – JR |
| Emma McLean – SR | |
| Maggie O’Hara – JR | Maggie O’Hara – SR |
| Maddy Osman – JR | Maddy Osman – SR |
| Sydney Townsend – SO | |
| Gabby Wilson – FR | |
| Natalie Wojcik – FR | Natalie Wojcik – SO |
Michigan did some late work on its freshman class (the class that was supposed to have Alyona Shchennikova before she departed for LSU), getting Sierra Brooks to come a year early and getting Nicoletta Koulos (originally a UCLA verbal) to bulk up the incoming group. Also, Syd Townsend is officially no longer with the team after appearing on the roster last year but not being with the team.
| ALABAMA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Abby Armbrecht – SR | |
| Wynter Childers – JR | Wynter Childers – SR |
| Emma DeSantis – FR | |
| Maddie Desch – JR | Maddie Desch – SR |
| Asia Dewalt – FR | |
| Kylie Dickson – SO | Kylie Dickson – JR |
| Makarri Doggette – FR | |
| Emily Gaskins – FR | Emily Gaskins – SO |
| Angelina Giancroce – SR | |
| Jensie Givens – FR | Jensie Givens – SO |
| Lexi Graber – SO | Lexi Graber – JR |
| Ari Guerra – SR | |
| Griffin James – FR | Griffin James – SO |
| Bailie Key – SO | |
| Tia Kiaku – SO | Tia Kiaku – JR |
| Alonza Klopfer – SO | Alonza Klopfer – JR |
| Shea Mahoney – JR | Shea Mahoney – SR |
| Sania Mitchell – FR | Sania Mitchell – SO |
| Shallon Olsen – FR | Shallon Olsen – SO |
| Macy Orosco – FR | |
| Mati Waligora – FR |
In addition to those seniors from last season, Alabama has seen the roster departures of Bailie Key, who retired, and Asia Dewalt, who was a scholarship freshman last season but did not see competition time.
Two of Alabama’s freshmen for the 2020 season, Makarri Doggette and Mati Waligora, should both be quite good. And they’ll need to be, since 2020 for Alabama can’t be about keeping pace with 2019 results and simply replacing the lost routines. It must be about improving on 2019.
| CAL 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Maya Bordas – FR | Maya Bordas – SO |
| Milan Clausi – FR | Milan Clausi – SO |
| Nevaeh DeSouza – FR | |
| Kyana George – SO | Kyana George – JR |
| Maya Green – FR | |
| Talitha Jones – FR | Talitha Jones – SO |
| Cassidy Keelen – JR | Cassidy Keelen – SR |
| Alma Kuc – SO | Alma Kuc – JR |
| Rachael Mastrangelo – JR | Rachael Mastrangelo – SR |
| Maleah Pearson – SO | Maleah Pearson – JR |
| Grace Quinn – FR | Grace Quinn – SO |
| Natalie Sadighi – FR | |
| Victoria Salem – SO | Victoria Salem – JR |
| Nina Schank – SO | Nina Schank – JR |
| Sofie Seilnacht – SR | |
| Sylvie Seilnacht – SR | |
| Chelsea Shu – SR | |
| Abi Solari – FR | Abi Solari – SO |
| Emi Watterson – SO | Emi Watterson – JR |
| Toni-Ann Williams – SR | |
| Ashton Woodbury – FR |
To supplement Cal’s original signing class of DeSouza and Sadighi, they’ve brought in Maya Green (daughter of Kristen Smyth) and potential VT/FX diamond in the rough Ashton Woodbury.
| UTAH 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Alexia Burch – SO | Alexia Burch – JR |
| Hunter Dula – FR | Hunter Dula – SO |
| Cammy Hall – FR | Cammy Hall – SO |
| Jillian Hoffman – FR | |
| Cristal Isa – FR | Cristal Isa – SO |
| Emilie LeBlanc – JR | |
| Kari Lee – SR | |
| Shannon McNatt – SR | |
| Makenna Merrell-Giles – SR | |
| Maile O’Keefe – FR | |
| Abby Paulson – FR | |
| Adrienne Randall – FR | Adrienne Randall – SO |
| Missy Reinstadtler – JR | Missy Reinstadtler – SR |
| Macey Roberts – SR | |
| Jaedyn Rucker – FR | |
| MyKayla Skinner – JR | |
| Sydney Soloski – SO | Sydney Soloski – JR |
| Kim Tessen – JR | Kim Tessen – SR |
| Lauren Wong – SO |
Lots and lots of turnover in the Utah roster this year with just 7 returning athletes from last year’s team.
In addition to that senior class leaving, we have Skinner not returning for the 2020 season, as we know, and Lauren Wong also not returning to the roster. Wong competed one UB routine in her first year and exhibitioned here and there on VT and UB over the last two seasons.
The newbies on this roster are crazy talented, but they’re going to have to do a lot with only 10 of 24 final-lineup routines returning for Utah.
| GEORGIA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Alexa Al-Hameed – FR | Alexa Al-Hameed – SO |
| Sterlyn Austin – FR | Sterlyn Austin – SO |
| Rachel Baumann – FR | Rachel Baumann – SO |
| Amanda Cashman – FR | |
| Sami Davis – FR | |
| Haley De Jong – FR | |
| Rachel Dickson – JR | Rachel Dickson – SR |
| Loulie Hattaway – FR | |
| Soraya Hawthorne – FR | |
| Rachael Lukacs – FR | Rachael Lukacs – SO |
| Mikayla Magee – FR | Mikayla Magee – SO |
| Marissa Oakley – SO | Marissa Oakley – JR |
| Alyssa Perez-Lugones – FR | Alyssa Perez-Lugones – SO |
| Megan Robers – FR | Megan Roberts – SO |
| Emily Schild – SO | Emily Schild – JR |
| Sydney Snead – SR | |
| Sabrina Vega – JR | Sabrina Vega – SR |
| Abbey Ward – FR | Abbey Ward – SO |
Sami Davis is the one unexpected departure on Georgia’s team from last year’s roster. She competed 8 floor routines for Georgia in 2019 but recently took a medical retirement.
Amanda Cashman—who verbally committed to Utah ages ago, then switched to Georgia—was the later addition for Georgia, joining the original signing class of De Jong and Hawthorne.
| KENTUCKY 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Raina Albores – FR | |
| Josie Angeny – FR | Josie Angeny – SO |
| Madison Averett – SO | Madison Averett – JR |
| Katrina Coca – SR | |
| Danaea Davis – SR | |
| Kaitlin DeGuzman – FR | |
| Sidney Dukes – SR | |
| Anna Haigis – FR | Anna Haigis – SO |
| Mackenzie Harman – SO | Mackenzie Harman – JR |
| Kassidy Howell – FR | |
| Alex Hyland – SR | |
| Mollie Korth – JR | Mollie Korth – SR |
| Alaina Kwan – JR | Alaina Kwan – SR |
| Shealyn Luksik – FR | |
| Katherine Marianos – SO | Katherine Marianos – SR |
| Megan Monfredi – SO | Megan Monfredi – JR |
| Cally Nixon – FR | Cally Nixon – SO |
| Arianna Patterson – FR | Arianna Patterson – SO |
| Hailey Poland – JR | Hailey Poland – SR |
| Elyssa Roberts – FR | |
| Aubree Rosa – SR | |
| Allison Snyder – SO | Allison Snyder – JR |
| Katie Stuart – SR | |
| Ella Warren – SO | Ella Warren – JR |
| Raena Worley – FR |
It’s a year of change for Kentucky, returning just 11 of the 24 routines from last season’s final lineups and losing so many essential scores. Only one thing to do—throw 50,000 freshmen at the problem and see what happens.
| DENVER 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Grace Broadhurst – SR | |
| Emma Brown – FR | |
| Lynnzee Brown – SO | Lynnzee Brown – JR |
| Diana Chesnok – SR | |
| Victoria Fitts – FR | |
| Emily Glynn – SO | Emily Glynn – JR |
| Maddie Karr – JR | Maddie Karr – SR |
| Claire Kern – SR | |
| Amoree Lockhart – FR | |
| Courtney Loper – JR | Courtney Loper – SR |
| Natalie Morton – FR | Natalie Morton – SO |
| Maddie Quarles – FR | |
| Alexandra Ruiz – FR | Alexandra Ruiz – SO |
| Callie Schlottman – FR | |
| Kaitlyn Schou – SR | |
| AK Subject – FR | |
| Mia Sundstrom – SO | Mia Sundstrom – JR |
| Alexis Vasquez – FR | Alexis Vasquez – SO |
In addition to the seniors departing, Maddie Quarles transferred to Minnesota after not competing in the 2019 season, though after an initial roster release of just 11 gymnasts, Denver has bolstered its forces by introducing Amoree Lockhart (who has graduated early to join the team) as well as walk-on Victoria Fitts.
| OREGON STATE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Leah Bivrell – FR | |
| Kayla Bird – FR | |
| Halli Briscoe – JR | Halli Briscoe – SR |
| Mariana Colussi-Pelaez – SR | |
| Lacy Dagen – JR | Lacy Dagen – SR |
| Madi Dagen – FR | Madi Dagen – SO |
| Destinee Davis – JR | Destinee Davis – SR |
| Jenna Domingo – FR | |
| Savanna Force – SO | Savanna Force – JR |
| Sabrina Gill – JR | Sabrina Gill – SR |
| Lexie Gonzales – SO | Lexie Gonzales – JR |
| Lena Greene – JR | Lena Greene – SR |
| Mary Jacobsen – SR | |
| Jaime Law – JR | Jaime Law – SR |
| Maela Lazaro – JR | Maela Lazaro – SR |
| Isis Lowery – JR | Isis Lowery – SR |
| Niya Mack – SO | Niya Mack – JR |
| Alex McClung – FR | Alex McClung – SO |
| Alyssa Minyard – JR | Alyssa Minyard – SR |
| Kristina Peterson – FR | Kristina Peterson – SO |
| Jane Poniewaz – FR | |
| McKenna Singley – SR | |
| Colete Yamaoka – SO | Colette Yamaoka – JR |
| Kaitlyn Yanish – SO | Kaitlyn Yanish – JR |
Leah Bivrell, who was a signed freshman on the team last season but did not compete, is no longer on Oregon State’s roster.
| FLORIDA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Sierra Alexander – JR | Sierra Alexander – SR |
| Alyssa Baumann – SO | Alyssa Baumann – JR |
| Alicia Boren – SR | |
| Maegan Chant – JR | Maegan Chant – SR |
| Amanda Cheney – SR | |
| Leah Clapper – FR | Leah Clapper – SO |
| Jazzy Foberg – SO | Jazzy Foberg – Redshirt SO |
| Rachel Gowey – JR | Rachel Gowey – SR |
| Amelia Hundley – JR | Amelia Hundley – SR |
| Syndey Johnson-Scharpf – FR | Sydney Johnson-Scharpf – SO |
| Nya Reed – FR | Nya Reed – SO |
| Payton Richards – FR | |
| Savannah Schoenherr – FR | Savannah Schoenherr – SO |
| Megan Skaggs – SO | Megan Skaggs – JR |
| Halley Taylor – FR | Halley Taylor – SO |
| Trinity Thomas – FR | Trinity Thomas – SO |
Weep not for Florida’s one-member freshman class this year as they wait for (theoretically) Hurd, McCusker, and Jones all to arrive for the 2021 season. Florida needs to make up for the lack of Boren, but the team will hope that Foberg coming back does much of that work.
| MINNESOTA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Maya Albertin – FR | |
| Casey Betts – JR | Casey Betts – SR |
| Carson Cronin – FR | Carson Cronin – SO |
| Rachel Cutler – SR | |
| Kate Grotenhuis – FR | |
| Kaitlyn Higgins – FR | Kaitlyn Higgins – SO |
| Mary Korlin-Downs – JR | Mary Korlin-Downs – SR |
| Mallory Leneave – FR | |
| Ona Loper – SO | Ona Loper – JR |
| Ivy Lu – JR | Ivy Lu – SR |
| Lexie Montgomery – SO | Lexi Montgomery – JR |
| Abbie Nylin – FR | Abbie Nylin – SO |
| Kristen Quaglia – JR | Kristen Quaglia – SR |
| Maddie Quarles – Redshirt FR | |
| Lexy Ramler – SO | Lexy Ramler – JR |
| Halle Remlinger – FR | |
| Tiarre Sales – FR | Tiarre Sales – SO |
| Ali Sonier – FR | Ali Sonier – SO |
| Andrea Stancik – FR | Andrea Stancik – SO |
| Becca Taylor – JR | |
| Selena Ung – SR | |
| Paige Williams – JR | Paige Williams – SR |
| Hannah Willmarth – SO | Hannah Willmarth – JR |
Transfer Maddie Quarles comes to Minnesota from Denver as a redshirt, but otherwise it’s the normal for Minnesota—other than the early departure of Becca Taylor, who had not competed.
| WASHINGTON 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Morgan Bowles – FR | |
| Brenna Brooks – FR | Brenna Brooks – SO |
| Talia Brovedani – FR | Talia Brovedani – SO |
| Madison Copiak – JR | Madison Copiak – SR |
| Amara Cunningham – FR | Amara Cunningham – SO |
| Kristyn Hoffa – SR | Kristyn Hoffa – R-SR |
| Madeline McLellan – FR | |
| Michaela Nelson – JR | Michaela Nelson – SR |
| Monica Riley – SR | |
| Evanni Roberson – JR | Evanni Roberson – SR |
| Mallory Rose – SR | |
| Meaghan Ruttan – FR | Meaghan Ruttan – SO |
| Allie Smith – SR | |
| Geneva Thompson – SO | Geneva Thompson – JR |
| Hannah Vandenkolk – FR | Hannah Vandenkolk – SO |
| Maya Washington – JR | Maya Washington – SR |
| Isa Weiss – FR |
Not a lot of turnover for Washington here. One of the signed freshmen—Ellie Bagley—is already listed as a student assistant, but Allie Smith has transferred in from EMU to give Washington three newcomers nonetheless.
| IOWA STATE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Loganne Basuel – FR | |
| Kelsey Boychuk – FR | Kelsey Boychuk – SO |
| Laura Burns – JR | Laura Burns – SR |
| Sydney Converse – SR | Sydney Converse – R-SR |
| Maddie Diab – FR | |
| Cassandra Diaz – JR | Cassandra Diaz – SR |
| Maya Ford – FR | |
| Natalie Horowitz – FR | Natalie Horowitz – SO |
| Annie Johnson – SO | |
| Madeline Johnson – SR | |
| Madelyn Langkamp – FR | Madelyn Langkamp – SO |
| Alondra Maldonado – FR | |
| Andrea Maldonado – JR | |
| Kelly Martin – SR | |
| Makayla Maxwell – FR | Makayla Maxwell – R-FR |
| Ariana Orrego – SO | Ariana Orrego – JR |
| Ana Palacios – FR | Ana Palacios – SO |
| Natalia Ros Vaquer – SO | Natalia Ros Vaquer – JR |
| Molly Russ – JR | Molly Russ – SR |
| Meixi Semple – FR | Meixi Semple – SO |
| Meaghan Sievers – SR | |
| Sophia Steinmeyer – SO | Sophia Steinmeyer – JR |
| Samantha Strickler – FR | Samantha Strickler – R-FR |
| Phoebe Turner – FR | Phoebe Turner – SO |
| Laurie Lou Vezina – FR | |
| Grace Woolfolk – FR | Grace Woolfolk – SO |
You’ll note two Maldonados coming in for Iowa State this year. Andrea has competed internationally for PUR and is entering as a junior (the Anne Kuhm gambit), while Alondra who has competed as a L9, is a freshman.
| NEBRASKA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Kelli Chung – Redshirt JR | |
| Clara Colombo – FR | |
| Sienna Crouse – SR | |
| Makayla Curtis – SO | Makayla Curtis – JR |
| Adnerys De Jesus – FR | Adnerys De Jesus – SO |
| Anika Dujakovich – SO | Anika Dujakovich – JR |
| Sarah Hargrove – FR | Sarah Hargrove – SO |
| Sierra Hassel – JR | Sierra Hassel – SR |
| Taylor Houchin – JR | Taylor Houchin – SR |
| Abby Johnston – FR | Abby Johnston – SO |
| Catelyn Orel – Redshirt JR | |
| Kylie Piringer – FR | |
| Kaylee Quinn – FR | Kaylee Quinn – SO |
| Kynsee Roby – SO | Kynsee Roby – Redshirt SO |
| Megan Schweihofer – SR | |
| Kathryn Thaler – FR | |
| Rachel Thompson – Redshirt FR | |
| Megan Thompson – FR | |
| Megan Verceles Carr – SO | Megan Verceles Carr – JR |
We have a few departures in Nebraska’s roster beyond those 2019 seniors. Catelyn Orel theoretically could have taken a 5th year, but she’s now coaching at Arkansas for the upcoming season. Kelli Chung, who finally did get to compete some bars last season, also didn’t hang around for a 5th year. The two Thompsons, neither of whom competed, have not returned to the roster for 2020 either, with Megan Thompson transferring to Arizona State.
| AUBURN 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Katie Becker – JR | Katie Becker – SR |
| Aria Brusch – FR | |
| Samantha Cerio – SR | |
| Sabrina Cheney – FR | Sabrina Cheney – SO |
| Gracie Day – JR | Gracie Day – SR |
| Molly Frack – FR | Molly Frack – Redshirt FR |
| Jada Glenn – SO | Jada Glenn – JR |
| Derrian Gobourne – FR | Derrian Gobourne – SO |
| Taylor Krippner – SR | |
| Abby Milliet – SR | |
| Kendal Moss – JR | Kendal Moss – SR |
| Morgan Leigh Oldham – FR | |
| Elise Panzner – FR | |
| A’Miracal Phillips – SR | |
| Allie Riddle – SO | Allie Riddle – JR |
| Adeline Sabados – FR | |
| Reid Schaefer – FR | |
| Mia Schlarbaum – FR | |
| Skyler Sheppard – Redshirt JR | Skyler Sheppard – SR |
| Emma Slappey – JR | Emma Slappey – SR |
| Ashley Smith – SO | Ashley Smith – JR |
| Piper Smith – FR | |
| Cassie Stevens – FR | |
| Anna Sumner – FR | |
| Meredith Sylvia – SO | Meredith Sylvia – JR |
| Drew Watson – SO | Drew Watson – JR |
| Sydney Wrighte – FR | Sydney Wrighte – Redshirt FR |
Auburn dropped a few of its non-competing walk-on freshmen from last year’s roster with Schaefer and Schlarbaum not coming back, but did add a bunch of new ones with a 7-member freshmen class.
| MISSOURI 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Frances Bidwill – FR | |
| Allison Bower – SR | |
| Chelsey Christensen – SO | Chelsey Christensen – JR |
| Lauren Clevenger – SO | Lauren Clevenger – JR |
| Mya Cotner – FR | |
| Belle Gottula – SO | Belle Gottula – JR |
| Helen Hu – FR | |
| Madeleine Huber – SR | |
| Adalayna Hufendiek – FR | |
| Grace Kaiding – FR | |
| Brooke Kelly – SR | |
| Paige Kovnesky – SO | |
| Xarria Lewis – SR | |
| Hannah McCracy – FR | Hannah McCrary – SO |
| Anna McGee – FR | |
| Mary Nicholson – JR | Mary Nicholson – SR |
| Hollyn Patrick – FR | |
| Morgan Porter – Redshirt JR | Morgan Porter – Redshirt SR |
| Sienna Schreiber – FR | |
| Becca Schugel – Redhsirt SR | |
| Alisa Sheremeta – SO | |
| Aspen Tucker – JR | Aspen Tucker – SR |
| Michaelee Turner – SR | |
| Britney Ward – SR |
The annual Missouri “everyone’s gone suddenly!” announcement featured the disappearance of three underclasswomen from last year’s team, meaning just 7 athletes return to the team from the 2019 roster.
Of significant note, Frances Bidwill has disappeared. She competed a bunch of vaults and several bars routines last year, so it’s not a “this non-competing walk-on disappeared” situation. I expected her to be a contributor in 2020.
Also noteworthy is the transfer of Alisa Sheremeta from UIC (RIP) to Missouri. She scored very well at UIC, and I’m eager to see how that translates to SEC meets.
| ARIZONA STATE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Corinne Belkoff – SR | |
| Juliette Boyer – FR | |
| Justine Callis – SR | |
| Jessica Ginn – JR | Jessica Ginn – SR |
| Jasmine Gutierrez – FR | Jasmine Gutierrez – SO |
| Morgan Hart – JR | Morgan Hart – SR |
| Kaitlyn Harvey – FR | Kaitlyn Harvey – SO |
| Jordyn Jaslow – FR | |
| Mekayla Jones – JR | |
| Anne Kuhm – SR | |
| Katelyn Lentz – SR | |
| Cairo Leonard-Baker – SO | Cairo Leonard-Baker – JR |
| Alina Miller – FR | |
| Isabel Redmond – FR | |
| Gracie Reeves – FR | |
| Hannah Scharf – FR | |
| Ashley Szafranski – JR | Ashley Szafranski – SR |
| Kaitlyn Szafranski – SR | |
| Megan Thompson – SO | |
| Stephanie Tripodi – FR | |
| Heather Udowitch – SR | |
| Maya Williams – SO | Maya Williams – JR |
| Morgan Wilson – SR | Morgan Wilson – Redshirt SR |
| Graycee Zaugg – JR | Graycee Zaugg – SR |
“Throw freshmen at the problem” is also going to be a major theme for Arizona State in 2020 with all the routines lost from last year’s seniors. (Remember that Anne Kuhm was technically a transfer, so even though she was new to NCAA gym in the 2018 season, she was already a junior at that point). Non-seniors Stephanie Tripodi and Mekayla Jones are also gone from last year’s roster.
Helpfully, Morgan Wilson is back. She did compete in four previous seasons, but she only appeared in the first two meets of the 2016 season, so she can be eligible to classify that year as a redshirt and get a fifth year.
Megan Thompson has transferred in from Nebraska, where she did not compete last year.
Oh, and Graycee Zaugg is Graycee Rushton, just in case you saw the name and were like, “Who the eff is Graycee Zaugg and how did she get to be a senior despite never existing before?” (autobiographical)
| MARYLAND 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Shynelle Agaran – SR | |
| Leksana Andrews – FR | |
| Audrey Barber – SO | Audrey Barber – JR |
| Collea Burgess – SO | Collea Burgess – JR |
| Alecia Farina – JR | Alecia Farina – SR |
| Sanya Glauber – FR | Sanya Glauber – SO |
| Emma Johnson – JR | Emma Johnson – SR |
| Austynn Lacasse – FR | |
| Emilie LeBlanc – SO | |
| Sophia LeBlanc – FR | |
| Deanna Magro – SR | |
| Megan McClelland – SR | |
| Reese McClure – FR | |
| Randi Morris – JR | |
| Kirsten Peterman – JR | Kirsten Peterman – SR |
| Alex Robinson – SR | |
| Sabriyya Rouse – SO | Sabriyya Rouse – JR |
| Alexsis Rubio – FR | Alexsis Rubio – SO |
| Emma Silverman – FR | |
| Aleka Tsiknias – FR | |
| Julianna Weil – FR | |
| Tiara Wright – JR | Tiara Wright – SR |
All sorts of newness for Maryland with 7 freshmen in this year’s class, the now-traditional star gymnast transferring away (this time Emilie LeBlanc to Utah), and the now-traditional replacement gymnast transferring in, this time Randi Morris. That’s a fascinating case. You might remember Morris—she was a Texas Dreams gymnast who was one of the top JOs at nationals in 2016 and originally went to Bowling Green, where she competed in the 2017 and 2018 seasons, then disappeared for 2019. She has now surfaced as a junior at Maryland for the 2020 season.
| ARIZONA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Mackenzie Barile – FR | |
| Payton Bellows – SO | Payton Bellows – JR |
| Christina Berg – JR | Christina Berg – SR |
| Zaza Brovedani – FR | |
| Courtney Cowles – JR | Courtney Cowles – SR |
| Kennedi Davis – FR | Kennedi Davis – SO |
| Asia Rose Duvernay – FR | Asia Rose Duvernay – SO |
| Sydney Freidin – SO | Sydney Freidin – JR |
| Malia Hargrove – FR | |
| Haylie Hendrickson – SR | Haylie Hendrickson – Redshirt SR |
| Laure Leigh Horton – SO | Laura Leigh Horton – JR |
| Mackinzie Kane – FR | Mackinzie Kane – SO |
| Alivia Kendrick – FR | |
| Jenny Leung – JR | Jenny Leung – SR |
| Maddi Leydin – JR | Maddi Leydin – SR |
| Sirena Linton – FR | |
| Danielle Nosek – FR | |
| Libby Orman – FR | |
| Adra Parks – SO | |
| Danielle Spencer – SR | |
| Avery Stauffacher – FR | |
| Heather Swanson – JR | Heather Swanson – SR |
A couple notable non-senior departures on the Arizona roster as Adra Parks is no longer on the team after competing vault in every meet last season, and Alivia Kendrick is also no longer on the roster, though she did not compete a routine last year.
Arizona also got a 5th year for Haylie Hendrickson, who did not compete in her first year there during the 2016 season.
| STANFORD 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Madison Brunette – FR | Madison Brunette – SO |
| Kyla Bryant – SO | Kyla Bryant – JR |
| Jade Chrobok – FR | |
| Kaylee Cole – JR | Kaylee Cole – SR |
| Taryn Fitzgerald – SR | |
| Rachael Flam – SO | Rachael Flam – JR |
| Grace Garcia – SO | Grace Garcia – JR |
| Morgan Hoang – FR | Morgan Hoang – SO |
| Hailee Hoffman – SR | |
| Nicole Hoffman – SR | |
| Taylor Lawson – SO | Taylor Lawson – JR |
| Eve Micco – FR | Even Micco – SO |
| Lauren Navarro – SO | Lauren Navarro – JR |
| Kelly Ramm – FR | |
| Catherine Rogers – SO | Catherine Rogers – JR |
| Wesley Stephenson – FR | Wesley Stephenson – SO |
| Adela Stonecipher – FR | |
| Ashley Tai – JR | Ashley Tai – SR |
| Grace Waguespack – FR | Grace Waguespack – SO |
| Chloe Widner – FR | |
| Aleeza Yu – JR | Aleeza Yu – SR |
| ILLINOIS 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Rae Balthazor – JR | Rae Balthazor – SR |
| Nicole Biondi – SO | Nicole Biondi – JR |
| Morgan Bixler – JR | Morgan Bixler – SR |
| Rachel Borden – SO | Rachel Borden – JR |
| Rachel Donovan – SR | |
| Lindsay Dwyer – JR | |
| McKenzie Eddy – FR | |
| Grace Hester – FR | |
| Karen Howell – JR | Karen Howell – SR |
| Julia Hutcherson – SR | |
| Brittany Jones – JR | Brittany Jones – SR |
| Maggie Lampsa – FR | |
| Kasey Meeks – SO | Kasey Meeks – JR |
| Mallory Mizuki – FR | Mallory Mizuki – SO |
| Kylie Noonan – FR | Kylie Noonan – JR |
| Mary Jane Otto – SR | |
| Olivia O’Donnell – FR | |
| Tessa Phillips – SO | Tessa Phillips – JR |
| Lexi Powe – FR | |
| Haylee Roe – SR | |
| Shaylah Scott – FR | Shaylah Scott – SO |
| Arayah Simons – FR | |
| Jaylen Spence – SO | Jaylen Spence – JR |
| Torie Stotz – FR | |
| Mia Takekawa – FR | |
| Mia Townes – FR | |
| Julia Waight – FR | |
| Erin Weisel – FR | Erin Weisel SO |
| PENN STATE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Erynne Allen – JR | Erynne Allen – SR |
| Melissa Astarita – FR | Melissa Astarita – SO |
| Amber Autry – SR | |
| Jessie Basterdi – Redshirt FR | Jessie Bastardi – Redshirt SO |
| Amy Bladon – FR | |
| Alissa Bonsall – SO | Alissa Bonsall – JR |
| Lauren Bridgens – SO | Lauren Bridgens – JR |
| Kourtney Chinnery – SO | Kourtney Chinnery – JR |
| Dymiana Cox – FR | Dymiana Cox – SO |
| Sabrina Garcia – SR | |
| Mason Hosek – SR | |
| Donna Howell – FR | Donna Howell – SO |
| Jessica Jones – SR | |
| Gianna Laguardia – SR | |
| Tess McCracken – JR | Tess McCracken – SR |
| Kristen Politz – JR | Kristen Politz – SR |
| Bella Romagnano – FR | |
| Cassidy Rushlow – FR | |
| Ava Verdeflor – SO | Ava Verdeflor – JR |
| SOUTHERN UTAH 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Morgan Alfaro – SO | Morgan Alfaro – JR |
| Celine Barney – FR | |
| Kamryn Bayer – SR | |
| Mayson Bentley – FR | Mayson Bentley – SO |
| Jiang Braley – SO | |
| Mikaela Defilippo – SO | Mikaela Defilippo – JR |
| Karen Gonzalez – Redshirt SR | |
| Ruby Hernandez – FR | |
| Kayla Horton – FR | |
| Autumn Jorgensen – JR | Autumn Jorgensen – SR |
| Molly Jozwiakowski – SO | Molly Jozwiakowski – JR |
| Caitlin Kho – FR | Caitlin Kho – SO |
| Kaylee Kho – FR | |
| Alyssa Ladieu – SO | Alyssa Ladieu – JR |
| Madison Loomis – JR | Madison Loomis – SR |
| Madison McBride – JR | Madison McBride – SR |
| Megan McBride – JR | Megan McBride – SR |
| Karley McClain – FR | Karley McClain – SO |
| Shylen Murakami – FR | Shylen Murakami – SO |
| Hannah Nipp – SO | Hannah Nipp – JR |
| Mary Packham – SO | |
| Becky Rozsa-Thompson – JR | Becky Rozsa-Thompson – SR |
| Rachel Smith – FR | Rachel Smith – SO |
| Tiffani Stufflebeam – FR | |
| Stephanie Tervort – FR | Stephanie Tervort – SO |
| Nikki Thomas – FR | |
| Emma Wissman – FR | Emma Wissman – SO |
| BOISE STATE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Isabella Amado – JR | Isabella Amado – SR |
| Gabriela Bouza – SO | Gabriela Bouza – JR |
| Tatum Bruden – SO | Tatum Bruden – JR |
| Tessa DePasquale – FR | |
| Erin Elkabchi – FR | |
| Alex Esmerian – Redshirt SR | |
| Hope Masiado – FR | Hope Masiado – SO |
| Courtney McGregor – JR | Courtney McGregor – SR |
| Sarah Means – SR | |
| Erin Morden – FR | |
| Emily Muhlenhaupt – SO | Emily Muhlenhaupt – JR |
| Maddi Nilson – JR | Maddi Nilson – SR |
| Rachel Obman – SO | Rachel Obmann – Redshirt SO |
| Tessa Otuafi – SO | Tesssa Otuafi – Redshirt SO |
| Adriana Popp – FR | |
| Shani Remme – SR | |
| Dani Shafer – FR | Dani Shafer – Redshirt FR |
| Samantha Smith – FR | Samantha Smith – SO |
| Alexis Stokes – FR | Alexis Stokes – SO |
| WEST VIRGINIA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Esperanza Abarca – FR | Esperanza Abarca – SO |
| Chloe Cluchey – JR | Chloe Cluchey – SR |
| Kendra Combs – FR | Kendra Combs – SO |
| Erica Fontaine – JR | Erica Fontaine – SR |
| Carly Galpin – SR | |
| Emily Holmes-Hackerd – FR | |
| Rachel Hornung – FR | Rachel Hornung – SO |
| Abby Kaufman – JR | Abby Kaufman – SR |
| Kirah Koshinski – SR | |
| Maya Kraus – FR | |
| Kristin Lang – FR | |
| McKenna Linnen – SO | McKenna Linnen – JR |
| Sydney Marler – SO | Sydney Marler – JR |
| Julia Merwin – JR | Julia Merwin – SR |
| Abbie Pierson – FR | |
| Taylor Sell – FR | Taylor Sell – SO |
| Jacquie Tun – SR | |
| Michelle Waldron – SO | Michelle Waldron – JR |
| Kayla Yancey – FR | |
| Kianna Yancey – FR |
| NC STATE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Alexis Beucler – JR | Alexis Beucler – SR |
| Melissa Brooker – JR | Melissa Brooker – SR |
| Katie Cox – SO | Katie Cox – JR |
| Caitlyn Fillard – SR | |
| Kailin Foland – FR | Kailin Foland – SO |
| Drew Grantham – JR | Drew Grantham – SR |
| Alliah Harrison – FR | Alliah Harrison – SO |
| Olivia Hunter – SO | Olivia Hunter – JR |
| Lauren Kent – SO | Lauren Kent – JR |
| Hailey Mesmer – JR | Hailey Mesmer – SR |
| Chloe Negrette – FR | |
| Kasey Nelson – SO | Kasey Nelson – JR |
| Alexis Ortega – FR | |
| Alexa Phillips – SR | |
| Paris Phillips – SR | |
| Victoria Prati – SO | Victoria Prati – JR |
| Meredith Robinson – FR | Meredith Robinson – SO |
| Emily Shepard – FR | |
| Alexis Sheppard – FR | Alexis Sheppard – SO |
| Maggie Tamburrro – SR | |
| Sara Watson – SO | Sara Watson – JR |
| Nicole Webb – SO | Nicole Webb – JR |
| Haley Zarett – FR | Haley Zarett – SO |
| OHIO STATE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Danica Abanto – SO | Danica Abanto – JR |
| Nevin Adamski – JR | Nevin Adamski – SR |
| Olivia Aepli – JR | Olivia Aepli – SR |
| Brooke Chesney – SO | Brooke Chesney – JR |
| Elexis Edwards – FR | |
| Claire Gagliardi – FR | Claire Gagliardi – SO |
| Kaitlyn Gilson – FR | Kaitlyn Gilson – SO |
| Alexis Hankins – FR | |
| Peyton Hinterberger – JR | Peyton Hinterberger – SR |
| Ella Hodges – FR | |
| Amanda Huang – JR | |
| Sydney Jennings – FR | Sydney Jennings – SO |
| Morgan Lowe – SO | Morgan Lowe – JR |
| Raina Malas – FR | |
| Janelle McClelland – SR | |
| Colby Miller – FR | Colby Miller – SO |
| Miriam Perez – FR | Miriam Perez – SO |
| Sarah Rowland – FR | |
| Kali Schierl – SO | Kali Schierl – JR |
| Zoe Schweitzer – FR | |
| Jamie Stome – SR | |
| Jenna Swartzentruber – SO | Jenna Swartzentruber – JR |
| IOWA 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Ariana Agrapides – FR | |
| Misty-Jade Carlson – SR | |
| Erin Castle – SO | Erin Castle – JR |
| Nicole Chow – SR | |
| Allie Gilchrist – FR | Allie Gilchrist – SO |
| Alex Greenwald – FR | Alex Greenwald – SO |
| Lauren Guerin – FR | Lauren Guerin – SO |
| Jerquavia Henderson – FR | |
| Sydney Hogan – SR | |
| Clair Kaji – JR | Clair Kaji – SR |
| Maddie Kampschroeder – SO | Maddie Kampschroeder – JR |
| Bridget Killian – FR | Bridget Killian – SO |
| Jax Kranitz – FR | Jax Kranitz – SO |
| Gina Leal – JR | Gina Leal – SR |
| Maria Ortiz – SR | |
| Rose Piorkowski – SR | |
| Ellie Rogers – FR | |
| Ashley Smith – SO | Ashley Smith – JR |
| Madelyn Solomon – FR | |
| Allyson Steffensmeier – FR | |
| Charlotte Sullivan – JR | Charlotte Sullivan – SR |
| Carina Tolan – FR | Carina Tolan – SO |
| Mackenzie Vance – FR | Mackenzie Vance – SO |
| GEORGE WASHINGTON 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Paige Apperson – FR | Paige Apperson – SO |
| Simone Banen – FR | Simone Banen – SO |
| Brooke Bray – SR | |
| Deja Chambliss – FR | Deja Chambliss – SO |
| Hannah Cohen – SO | Hannah Cohen – JR |
| Cydney Crasa – JR | Cydney Crasa – SR |
| Gemma Guttenberg – SO | |
| Yurina Harada – SR | |
| Nora Houseman – FR | |
| Rachel Kaplan – SO | Rachel Kaplan – JR |
| Katya Karpova – SO | Katya Karpova – JR |
| Kenzington Martin – FR | |
| Julia McLaughlin – SR | |
| Hannah Munnelly – FR | |
| Olivia Norman – SO | Olivia Norman – JR |
| Olivia Raymond – FR | Olivia Raymond – SO |
| Nicole Rogalski – JR | Nicole Rogalski – SR |
| Katherine Shek – FR | |
| Chloe Vitoff – SO | Chloe Vitoff – JR |
| Anna Warhol – SO | Anna Warhol – JR |
| Alex Zois – SR | |
| Olivia Zona – FR | Olivia Zona – SO |
| CENTRAL MICHIGAN 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Sierra Demarinis – FR | Sierra Demarinis – SO |
| Hannah Demers – FR | |
| Nora Fettinger – SO | Nora Fettinger – JR |
| Audriana Hammond – FR | |
| Brenna Hauser – FR | |
| Macey Hilliker – SR | |
| Kennedy Johnson – SO | Kennedy Johnson – JR |
| Alaina Kosto – FR | |
| Savana Kotas – FR | |
| Skyler Memmel – SR | |
| Kailey Miller – SR | |
| Mackenzie Parker – JR | Mackenzie Parker – SR |
| Denelle Pedrick – JR | Denelle Pedrick – SR |
| Taylor Pitchell – FR | |
| Gianna Plaksa – SR | |
| Hayley Porter – JR | Hayley Porter – SR |
| Christie Tini – FR | |
| Morgan Tong – FR | Morgan Tong – SO |
| Mayleigh Vanderbeek – FR | |
| Ashley Veglucci – FR | |
| Sydney Williams – JR | Sydney Williams – SR |
| Charlie Wright – JR | Charlie Wright – SR |
| Abbie Zoeller – SR |
| NEW HAMPSHIRE 2020 |
|
| 2019 Roster | 2020 Roster |
| Colleen Addario – FR | |
| Hannah Baddick – FR | Hannah Baddick – SO |
| Larisa Biette – FR | |
| Courtney Bondanza – SR | |
| Lexi Calandra – JR | Lexi Calandra – SR |
| Erin Carroll – SR | |
| Ally Cucich – FR | Ally Cucick – SO |
| Lauren Diggan – SO | Lauren Diggan – JR |
| Danielle Doolin – SR | |
| Riley Freehling – JR | Riley Freehling – SR |
| Kylie Gorgenyi – FR | |
| Clare Hampford – SO | Clare Hampford – JR |
| Robyn Kelley – FR | |
| Kylie Kratchwell – SO | Kylie Kratchwell – JR |
| Hailey Lui – FR | Hailey Lui – SO |
| Mariella Miele – FR | Mariella Miele – SO |
| Danielle Mulligan – SR | |
| Nicole O’Leary – SR | |
| Hannah Roderick – SO | Hannah Roderick – JR |
| Mimi Traore – SR | |
| Ava Watkins – JR | Ava Watkins – SR |
| Jacy Whitehead – FR | |
| Emma Winer – JR | Emma Winer – SR |
| Alyssa Worthington – FR |
WHERE IS JORDYN QUEEN LEGEND WIEBER’S ARKANSAS TEAM
That is 100% what I was looking for also
I expect Tiffani Stufflebeam to be the new Catarina Broccoli of Fantasy Gym.
Graycee Rushton got married, now a Zaugg.
I thought the Nicki Shapiro gif would be her legendary beam split where she posed after it (and Wieber and Peng were royally cracking up in the background).
On the other hand, Shapiro did later score a career-high 9.925 on balance beam to help UCLA win Pac12s, so there’s that.
Couldn’t help myself…confirmed that Graycee Zaugg is indeed a Mormon following the tradition of marrying ASAP a la MMG and soon to be Skinner.
So where do this year’s UCLA walk-ons fall on the Maria Caire scale of WTF?
Hopefully Chris doesn’t follow in Val’s footsteps and they’re all legit.
I’m really disappointed there wasn’t more outrage about that. Of course Val isn’t the celebrity outside of gym that she is inside of it, but that kind of corruption should’ve been enough to tarnish her reputation forever and yet she seems completely unscathed. Sure she was well-intentioned, wanted to help a buddy out, but it’s still lying and cheating.
Kalyany Steele is a former elite who I believe competed at elite nationals.
they are all former level 10s this year I believe (as were most besides maria caire lol) so like real walk ons not fake ones. i think one of them has competed a 10.0 vault before as well but i cant remember which one so at least one has legit chances at a lineup
ive seen videos of paige hogan training a front double pike half on vault, so yeah they seem legit. Also they all have routines on the freshman playlist.
I mean, they have had some great walk-ons who made substantial contributions as well, and it seems like they will support girls to work towards that. Examples: Gracie’s vault wasn’t working out, but she became an amazing floor worker. Posten worked to add a twist to her vault and also competed been eventually.
Not everyone is a Janay or Sonya, but they are given the opportunity.
Why would good gymnasts want to go to UCLA as the perennial “pep club “ never to compete when they could go to another school, possibly on scholarship, and be a contributor. Sort of a waste of all those years of work and sacrifice. Maybe they give a special award for the best mat puller. What is it this year. 22 team members. What a waste. They have 11 regular competitors for 24 spots. Their chances slim to non existent of getting into the lineup. The chances don’t improve with time with the recruitment rosters. Sort of sad
Probably because UCLA is a much more famous and competitive university than every other NCAA gym school except Stanford and Cal.
“UCLA” is on your resume forever. College gymnastics is only four years. If my kid had those options, I’d wayyy rather they choose to be a noncompeting walk-on at UCLA than a lineup contributor at Alabama or LSU (assuming that I could afford that tuition.)
Depends on what their post-college plans are, but for the average student, graduating from Alabama or LSU or really any of the first/second tier gymnastics schools would be just as good as UCLA. If the gymnast were a California resident and eligible for in-state tuition it might make sense to give up competing, but out of state less so.
There’s always high academic division 2 or 3 schools with scholarships waiting to be grabbed. Some private schools look great on resumes and they have wonderful academic success with a high rate of grad school placement.
Yale says hello, but I know what you’re getting at. UCLA gymnastics has a unique combination of academic prestige, gymnastics prestige, and, at least until recently, willingness to take on a bunch of walk-ons with no expectation that they contribute.
There are a lot of factors that go into college selection beyond just how many competition routines they’ll likely compete as a gymnast. School location (let’s face it, recruiting teens to LA is going to be easier than Norman, OK, Tuscaloosa, AL, or most other places, and some teens will want to stay in the same region as home or be near family), academics (UCLA is top-tier, with strong alumni connections, especially if planning to be on the west coast), in-state tuition depending on where they live, school size (I loved my small private school, but that’s not right for everyone), and so on. And if the draw of college gym is the team atmosphere and excitement, then a given gymnast may very well value training with, traveling with, and living with UCLA teammates over another school, even if they’re not competing. They spend a hell of a lot more time out of competition than in it – a 4 event, 4 year gymnast might get in 300 minutes of actual competition routines in their career.
*Partial* scholarships are plentiful in division II, but full scholarships aren’t necessarily. If it’s a private school or out-of-state public, those partial scholarships may not make up the difference between UCLA and that school. Division III schools don’t give athletic scholarships at all.
TL:DR – College selection is the biggest decision of most young adult lives, and the “so sad” situation would be if they made it solely based on where they might compete most often.
A random question about UCLA that just occurred to me: one thing that I’ve read a lot is that UCLA is perhaps uniquely positioned to take a lot of walk-ons because they have a big budget (Lauren at the gymternet alludes to this a lot, and that’s apparently also why they’re able to have this big entourage of trainers, videographers, etc at road meets).
Where is the money coming from? It feels like every couple years or so there’s a news article about how the California state educational budget is in crisis and university sports programs are at risk of getting cut. I get how the Alabamas and LSUs are awash in cash because those schools/states put a high premium on sports (and I think the SEC has by far the best TV contracts), but how is it that UCLA gymnastics always seems to carry itself like a big budget program when the California government has this tendency to be a fiscal dumpster fire?
Very much agree with all of this, especially the ultimate point that college selection should take into account lots of factors, not just a particular one. Incidentally, it’s also a nice snapshot of how complicated we’ve made higher education here!
@Anonymous wondering about funding: I have no idea, so I’m just guessing here. I know that all universities including public universities are allowed to accept donations to their athletics department from private citizens and entities/organizations (i.e. they’re allowed to have boosters). In addition to donations to the athletics department as a whole, people and organizations can also make donations to a specific sport. I have no idea whether these kinds of donations play much of a role for UCLA, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they were getting large donations to their athletics department.
hawarre – so well said.
Yale, Stanford, Penn, Brown, Cornell, UCLA, Cal, and Michigan are the most academically prestigious schools with varsity gymnastics teams. UCLA has had the most gymnastics success on that list, so it makes sense that gymnasts want to walk on there.
LA and the overall publicity machine that is UCLA is also an attraction for young girls hoping to catch the eye of the entertainment industry. Look at Mercedez Sanchez, who has held on for her entire college career with no real hope of competing. She hangs around with Olympic stars, poses in the center of every team photo, and is always surfacing in some scantily-clad, attention-grabbing pose on social media. I’ve never seen her lauded by the team for any academic success either, so my guess is this is a free ride (I don’t mean tuition free, just an easy opportunity) for her to try to get noticed, and get a degree from a great school that her walk-on status probably helped her get into (whether it was supposed to or not). She’s obviously a fun-loving and supportive kid, so it seems to work out for everyone. I’m sure she’s not the only one – just maybe the only one who held on for this long.
I feel so bad for Syd Townsend. She was the collateral damage of someone else’s shitty choices.
Me too. I was really hoping she’d transfer and get a fresh start somewhere.
Well, even with the power discrepancy, let’s keep it in perspective: she was an adult, Scott didn’t get charged with assault, they both got charged in court and paid fines. She made a choice that probably made it too socially awkward for her to continue with the team. Unfortunate, and he should have stopped things as the one in a position of power, but she’s not totally blameless here either.
“Now that world championships have concluded and we can move on…”
I know the year’s big events must be exhausting, but I really wish we could get one solid wrap up after NCAA Nationals and worlds/olympics each year before moving on to the other season. I feel like there are sometimes 15+ preview, prediction, qualification/selection, etc. posts. And then by the end of event finals we aren’t even getting much commentary, it’s sort of “Here are the winners. I am/am not okay with this podium.” And then on to the other season.
Like…which predictions came true? Which almost came true? Who was the breakout star that we should all now be in love with even though she was never broadcast? What major rule changes should we now be thinking about? How broken is our sport, really? A week after the end of the elite season (or the NCAA season) – how does Spencer feel about all that went down?
It’s just such a strange emotional cliff after so much building and I need help processing ok?
Same! Although I also understand that people are exhausted after covering things non-stop. It’s crazy how long Worlds was this year!
Oh I am totally down for a week off. I can process on my own that long. But after 1-2 weeks some sort of “Elite 2019 season wrap up post” would be SO appreciated. I feel like sometimes there’s a GIF recap but recently just nothing.
Shawn Johnson’s at it again. Go to around the 30 minute mark. I didn’t realize she competed at the 2012 Nationals and was definitely going to make the team…..mmhmm.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwBhJtEwTyU
Shawn has always had a very loose memory of her career. I remember reading that before she announced her retirement in 2012 she hadn’t been in the gym in months.
Like she mentioned several times that during her comeback she “made it to the world championships”. Um, no. Unless she thought the Pan Ams was Worlds…
I remember 2007-2008 Shawn as a thoughtful, level-headed kid, and while it’s very hard to gauge someone’s intelligence from a few interviews she certainly never struck me as stupid.
So…what’s the deal? She gets a lot of really basic facts wrong when she talks about her era of gymnastics, and it’s not always in service of making her career sound more impressive. I say this seriously and without any snark or malice: could she have had some gymnastics-induced head trauma that is causing this?
Where is Alexa Al Hameed from UGA? She is on roster, but not been seen on any of their social media in awhile.
I read in the college gymnastics fb group that she’s left the team – her own choice because of the pressure (?!). Word came from someone who was at the Georgia sneak peek or whatever it’s called this weekend.
Apropos of nothing, I HATE that so much of the college discussion has moved to Facebook. Is there anyplace else besides this blog where there’s good NCAA discussion and you don’t have to have a FB account? Is that group worth joining?
Sierra Ballard has committed to LSU. Her mom is for UGA Gymnast, Lori Strong. So now LSU has Elena Arenas & Sierra Ballard both of their moms were UGA gymnasts. LSU also just flipped Chase Brock, that was originally committed to Alabama and is from a gym in state of Georgia.
Ana Padurariu (2018 World Silver Medalist on Beam and 2019 FIG World Cup AA Silver Medalist) just committed to UCLA joining Jordan Chiles, Brooklyn Moors, Laney Madsen, Frida Esparza, Chae Campbell, and others as freshmen for 2021.
So arguably UCLA will have the strongest 2020 Senior class leaving (incl Ross, Kocian, Hano, Kramer, Glenn Twins, Toronjo), followed immediately by the strongest 2021 Freshman class entering.