SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH — The No. 15 Minnesota women’s gymnastics team will begin its 52nd season of competition on Friday night. The Gophers travel to Salt Lake City, Utah, for a tri-meet against No. 5 Utah and No. 22 Iowa. The Gophers’ 2025 season ended in the same arena last spring as they finished fourth in the NCAA Regional Final.

The meet is set for 8 p.m. CT/7 p.m. MT and ESPN+ will stream. Alisa Mowe and Nick Koop will be the commentators for the meet.

The Gophers finished 15th in the final Road to Nationals rankings last year after going 25-7, 8-1 B1G and finished tied for second in the Big Ten regular season standings.

MEET INFORMATION

No. 15 Minnesota at No. 5 Utah, vs. No. 22 Iowa

Friday, Jan. 2

8 p.m. CT/7 p.m. MT

Jon M. Huntsman Center

Salt Lake City, Utah

TV/Stream: ESPN+

Commentators: Alisa Mowe and Nick Koop

Live Stats: GopherSports.com

2025 YEAR IN REVIEW


The No. 15 Minnesota gymnastics team heads into the 2026 season after posting a 25-7 (8-1 B1G) record last season. The Gophers held a season-high score of 197.425, an NQS of 197.210 and an average of 196.825. Of Minnesota’s 25 wins, nine came against teams that were ranked in the Road to Nationals top-25.
Minnesota finished in second place in the Big Ten conference, which is tied for the second-best ever in the 12-year Jenny Hansen era. The Gophers took third place at the Big Ten Championships with a 197.425 score, behind only UCLA and Michigan State. Their score was the third highest ever for the Gophers in their Big Ten Championships history.
They tallied their best beam performance of the season there at 49.525, a figure that ties for the eighth-best beam score in progam history.

The Gophers ranked 12th on vault, 16th on bars, 16th on beam and 11th on floor in 2025. Their vault high score was 49.400, bars 49.425, beam 49.525 and floor 49.550 in 2025.
The ‘U’ held wins over CMU, UNH, Penn State, Iowa, Ohio State, Washington, Nebraska, Illinois, ISU, Maryland, Michigan (2x), LIU, Centenary, Southern Utah and Boise State. Its only losses came to Michigan St. (2x), UCLA (3x), Utah and Denver. Michigan State, UCLA and Utah all made nationals, with UCLA and Utah making the NCAA Championship Finals.
With its second place finish at the NCAA Regional Semifinals last year in Salt Lake City, Utah, the Gophers advanced to their fourth NCAA Regional Finals in the last five seasons. They were one of three Big Ten teams to do so last year, joining MSU and UCLA.
The ‘U’ made nationals three times (2016, 2021, 2022) the past 10 years, finishing second each time in their regional. Their two regional titles in program laurels came in 1980 and 1982. Minnesota is seeking its 7th-ever nationals appearance in 2025.

SCOUTING UTAH


No. 5 Utah is led by Carly Dockendorf, who is entering her third season as the head coach of Utah and her ninth overall as a member of the coaching staff in 2025-26. The Red Rocks completed their 49th-straight NCAA National Championship appearance (finished in 4th place) in 2025 making them the only program to have qualified for every National Championship and every Final Four.
Utah brings back 12 returners from last season’s team, including senior Makenna Smith and sophomore Avery Neff. The Utes return 18-of-24 routines from last year’s team, which finished in fourth place at the NCAA Championships. Neff was first place in the Final Four on vault (9.9750).

SCOUTING IOWA


No. 22 Iowa is led by second-year head coach Jen Llewellyn. She was named the fifth head coach in program history on June 6, 2024. She came to Iowa after spending three years as the head coach at Washington, where she helped them to three straight NCAA regionals.
After being picked to finish 10th in the Preseason Poll, the GymHawks took fifth in the regular season and at Big Ten Championships in 2025. The GymHawks return eight athletes who accounted for 37 event titles in 2025. Sophomore Aurélie Tran hopes to capitalize after a strong freshman season where she earned first team all-Big Ten and all-freshman honors after competing in every meet last season.

COACH HANSEN BACK FOR 12TH SEASON


Head coach Jenny Hansen is entering her 12th season at the helm of the program. Overall, she holds a 234-131-1 record and a 73-31 mark in the Big Ten. Fellow assistant Kiki Parenteau will be entering her fifth year as an assistant coach at Minnesota in 2026.
Five-year Gophers star Mya Hooten (2020-25) was added to the staff as an assistant coach, as was Sam Scherwinski, in the off-season. Scherwinski spent last season as an assistant at Nebraska and will specialize in coaching bars. Hooten will coach the beam team in addition to helping out on floor choreography.
Under the watch of coach Hansen, the Gophers took home the 2021 Big Ten title, their first conference championships crown since 2006 and the program’s sixth ever. They also won the 2016 Big Ten regular season title, the programs third (2013/2014). In 2022, Minnesota set a program-record by finishing sixth (197.1125) at the NCAA Championships. They’ve made 10 NCAA Regionals appearances, including four of the last five regional finals, under her leadership.

GERDES BACK FOR ONE MORE


In July, Minnesota head coach Jenny Hansen has announced that former Gopher Gianna Gerdes (2021-24) would return to the Gophers for her final year of eligibility. Gerdes’ freshman year in 2021 was the COVID-impacted season and it did not count against her eligibility.
“This past year has been full of growth and new experiences within the sport of gymnastics,” Gerdes said. “My understanding has evolved, my perspective has been enhanced, and the desire to be in the gym all the time has been persistent. From my frequent reflection of appreciation for the Gopher gymnastics program and all it has given me, I’ve found it impossible to resist the call back to this family. I am overwhelmed with gratitude, and feel so incredibly blessed with the opportunity to return to Gopher Gymnastics and fulfill my fifth year of eligibility with Team 52.”
From 2021-24, Gerdes was a key part of the program, including as an all-arounder in 2023 and 2024. She was a two-time First Team All-Big Ten and Big Ten All-Championships Team (2023, 2024) selection, an AAI Award Nominee (2024) and a Big Ten Medal of Honor (2024) recipien

WCGA AND ROAD TO NATIONALS RANKINGS


To finish 2025, the Gophers ranked 12th on vault, 16th on bars, 16th on beam and 11th on floor in 2025. Their vault high score was 49.400, bars 49.425, beam 49.525 and floor 49.550 in 2025.
Minnesota begins 2026 ranked No. 15 in the WCGA Preseason poll. They ranked behind only No. 4 UCLA, No. 6 Michigan St. and No. 14 Michigan in the Big Ten.

LYDEN LIGHTS IT UP


Gophers junior Jordyn Lyden has had a stellar first two years in the program. As a rookie in 2024, she was a Big Ten Freshman of the Week three separate times, competing in every meet. She tied the school record at Penn State in the balance beam, going 9.975.
In year two in 2025, she was a staple on the bars and beam teams, leading the team on both and ranking in the top 40 nationally with 9.886 bars and 9.841 beam averages. Lyden went 9.900 seven times on bars in 14 meets, never going below 9.850. On beam, she hit 9.900 five times and has been 9.850-or-better eight times. She ranked second on Minnesota with 12 event titles in 2025 (eight bars, four beam).
As a freshman in 2025, she won just one event title (bars). Lyden earned Second Team All-Big Ten honors, her first career postseason honor.

Named a Big Ten Gymnast to Watch in 2026, Lyden is one of Minnesota’s stars and should compete on three events this season.

HERE COME THE FRESHMEN


Five freshmen arrived on campus for the Gophers this summer. Lilly Gullickson (Oak Ridge, N.C.), Isabella Nguyen (Minnetonka, Minn.), Arianna Ostrum (Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.),  Lacie Saltzmann (Charlotte, N.C.) and Stella Kate Skenteris (Fayetteville, N.C.) are the rookies. 
An all-arounder, Arianna Ostrum was a a three-time Wisconsin All-Around State Champion and a five-time Wisconsin State Beam Champion. A three-time nationals’ qualifier, Ostrum finished first on beam at development nationals. She was named to College Gym News’ Most Anticipated Freshmen list alongside Lacie Saltzmann. Saltzmann arrived early after originally being a class of 2026 signee. She competed in club for Texas Dreams Gymnastics.  At the State Championships, she took first place in all-around (38.950), bars (9.800), beam (9.740) and floor (9.775).

EMMA SLEVIN COMES IN AS HERALDED NEWCOMER


Emma Slevin (Galway, Ireland) will be listed as a junior on Minnesota’s roster this season, despite it being her first season in college. The Gymnastics Ireland Gymnast of the Year in 2025, Slevin was the first Irish female gymnast to qualify for a senior all-around final at the European Championships and at the World Championships, doing both in 2021.
She was also the 2022 and 2024 Northern European all-around champion and a medalist on bars, beam and floor in 2024. She also earned the bars title at the Irish National Championships in 2025.

She will have two years of eligibility in college after competing overseas. She committed to Minnesota in July and signed in August

UP NEXT

The ‘U’ heads home to host Arkansas on Saturday, Jan. 10 at Maturi Pavilion. The meet will be at 4 p.m. CT on B1G.