Gymnastics Season In Review

AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State gymnastics team found a lot of success during the shortened 2020 season. The team finished No. 20 in the final RoadToNationals rankings, the highest ranking by a Cyclone team to end the year since 2009.

The Cyclones were ranked in the top-25 on all four apparatuses at the end of the regular season for the first time since 2010. The year was highlighted with a 14th-place finish on bars, the Cyclones’ highest finish in the event since 2011. Iowa State also concluded the year at No. 16 on floor, No. 21 on vault and No. 24 on beam to earn the No. 20 overall ranking.

They are the hardest-working group. They were on a winning path. This team is going to prepare for what is next and continue to help those around them.

Head Coach Jay Ronayne

Despite the shortened season, 2020 provided a lot of success for Cyclone gymnastics. The team broke several records for head coach Jay Ronayne’s tenure at Iowa State, had one All-American and saw a school record be matched. The team had three different rookies earn Big 12 Newcomer of the Week throughout the season, a mark that had not been matched in the conference since 2015.

“They are the hardest working group,” Ronayne said. “They cared the most of any group I have worked with. They were not necessarily the most successful, but one of my all-time favorites. The season had a lot of highs, and I know we would have had even more with the path everyone was on. It was a winning path. A couple gymnasts stood up at the end of the year and said that they would not be where they are without their teammates, and that was a pretty touching moment in a strange situation. This team is going to prepare for what is next and continue to help those around them.”

RONAYNE RECORDS

Numerous top marks were set for Ronayne in 2020. The Cyclones began the season with the highest season-opening score in his tenure with a 195.750 at Arizona. The third meet of the year featured the highest January score in Ronayne’s time as the Cyclone head coach, collecting a 196.625 at Georgia. That January score included the first two of six 9.950s on the year, the most that he has had on a single team. The success continued into the next few meets, as two meets later the Cyclones started a stretch of six-straight meets with scores above 196, which is the longest stretch in the Ronayne Era. The streak continued through the end of the season, with the team having seven scores above 196, which is the most during Ronayne’s time at Iowa State.

Jay Ronayne smiles at the 2020 GymQuarters Invitational. The Cyclones finished second overall with a 196.625.

We would have never had any success without the hard work, dedication and passion that our staff brought every day. Everybody was all in every day of the season.

Jay Ronayne

In the middle of the 196 streak, the Cyclones traveled to Florida, and held their own against two top-five teams (Denver was also competing at the meet) by earning a 196.800, which is the best for Ronayne’s time at ISU. The score included matching his best bars score with a 49.375. In the final meet of 2020, the Cyclones did not disappoint, matching Ronayne’s floor record with a 49.450 by virtue of all six gymnasts scoring 9.850 or better.

“The bottom line was the work ethic and belief that they could be the very best that they could be,” Ronayne commented. “They worked without limits and really that’s what it came down to. Everybody pushed themselves to do things they haven’t done. When just about everyone is doing that, special things will happen. I also want to thank the entire staff. We never would have had any success without the hard work, dedication and passion that our staff brought every day. Everybody was all in every day of the season. There’s no way that these achievements could happen without that being in place.”

Iowa State Cyclones Women’s Gymnastics compete at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center at the University of Florida on Friday, Feb. 7, 2020 in Gainesville, Fla. (Photo by Matt Stamey)

APPARATUS ACHIEVEMENTS

Vault

Iowa State got its best team vault performance of 2020 at Southern Utah with a 49.275. After Andrea Maldonado had joined the vault lineup two meets prior, she finally found her footing to lead the Cyclones with a 9.925 vault score. Phoebe Turner set her career high with a 9.875, while Sophia Steinmeyer and Makayla Maxwell each collected solid 9.850s to help supplement the score. Iowa State’s best individual performance on the event came from Maxwell, who earned a 9.950 at Georgia, while Steinmeyer led the way with a 9.870 NQS that ranked T-34 in the country.

Sophia Steinmeyer competes on vault at the 2020 GymQuarters Invitational. She was the Cyclones' top vaulter this season, earning a 9.870 NQS.

Uneven Bars

The Cyclone bars squad was consistent all year, earning a 49.000 or better in nine-of-10 meets this season. Four of the final five meets in 2020 featured scores above 49.300, and they really found their groove with back-to-back 49.400s to end the year. The top score of 2020 came at Florida with a 49.375. In the meet, Natalia Ros Vaquer became the sixth Cyclone to match the school bars record with a 9.950, the best score of the year by any Cyclone. Jade Vella-Wright earned a second-straight 9.900, while senior Laura Burns stepped up with a 9.875. Madelyn Langkamp had a career-high 9.850, with Casandra Diaz also chipping in a 9.800.

Natalia Ros Vaquer celebrates after dismounting her school-record bars routine at Florida.

Ros Vaquer finished top-25 nationally in the event, leading Iowa State with a 9.890 NQS. Jade Vella-Wright proved to be an essential piece of the team, just behind Ros Vaquer with a 9.880 NQS that ranked T-32 in the nation and T-4 among freshmen. Vella-Wright’s season included a stretch of four-straight scores above 9.900, which is the longest by a Cyclone freshman. She also became the second Cyclone freshman to tally a 9.925 on bars, doing so at Southern Utah.

Balance Beam

Iowa State had to work through adversity in the event throughout 2020. Their season-best mark came at Florida with a 49.200. Sydney Converse and Meixi Semple led the charge for the Cyclones, each posting a 9.875, their season-bests at the time. The team also got career-high 9.850s from Sophia Steinmeyer and Ana Palacios in meet to contribute to the top score of the year. Converse would walk away with the team’s best score of the year, capturing a 9.900 on beam for the second time in her career at Southern Utah. She also claimed the team’s best NQS on the apparatus with a 9.870 that ranked T-49 nationally.

Sydney Converse competes on beam against West Virginia. She led the Cyclones in 2020 with a 9.870 NQS.

Floor Exercise

After a tough start to the year, the Cyclones never dropped below a 49.000 again, eventually climbing as high as 49.450 in the last meet of the year against Iowa. Andrea Maldonado led the charge in the anchor spot, as the All-American secured her status with a 9.950. Sydney Converse, in her final floor outing of the year after taking nearly four years off of the apparatus, matched her career-high set earlier in the season with a 9.900. Casandra Diaz and Ana Palacios both matched career-highs, while Maddie Diab and Madelyn Langkamp both added 9.850s to earn the score.

Andrea Maldonado competes on floor at Florida. She tallied four 9.950s to earn First Team All-American status in 2020.

Maldonado earned All-American status with a 9.935 NQS that ranked T-7 nationally. Her four 9.950s were not matched by another Cyclone. Diab had a solid freshman campaign, ranking T-9 among freshmen with a 9.870 NQS, including a 9.925 performance in the event at the GymQuarters Invitational.

The bottom line was the work ethic and belief that they could be the very best they could be. They worked without limits and when just about everyone is doing that, special things will happen.

Jay Ronayne

The Cyclone gymnastics team celebrates after a vault run.

RONAYNE RECORDS