ISU Shows Promising Signs in Season Opener

AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State gymnastics team (0-1, 0-1 Big 12) started its season Friday afternoon at Hilton Coliseum with a strong performance, posting a 195.500 their third highest season opening score in school history. The visitors, Denver, left victorious with a 196.600.

The Cyclones were dominant on vault, with four scores at or above 9.825. Kelsey Boychuk set a career high on the event. Iowa State saw strong performances by newcomers Addy De Jesus and Kaia Parker, with De Jesus winning the vault event.

"I was pretty pleased with how the team did today," head coach Jay Ronayne said. "Overall, we started the meet with some great vaults, I'm super excited about the performance there. Beam was a little shakier than I thought it was going to be but aside from a couple minor things I'm happy with the way we're coming out of the gates. It's been ten months of crazy emotional, mental, and physical challenges so I can't be upset about anything. We finally get a chance to do this again."

Vault
Iowa State started off strong on the vault, posting a total score of 49.175, their highest season opening vault score since 2005. Addy De Jesus led the scoring and picked up the event win with a 9.900, closely followed by Sophia Steinmeyer who tallied a 9.850. Makayla Maxwell and Kelsey Boychuk both posted an 9.825, with Boychuk setting a career high. Kaia Parker began her Cyclone career by scoring a 9.775.

Junior Addy De Jesus
"Vault is one of those events where I get super pumped. I was really happy, and to have this be my first performance as a Cyclone was super special."

Uneven Bars
The Cyclones totaled a 48.975 on bars, with Jade Vella-Wright scoring a 9.875. De Jesus continued to put up as strong performance, posting a 9.850. Natalie Horowitz followed, notching a score of 9.800. Maxwell and Madelyn Langkamp rounded out the bars, each scoring a 9.725.

Sophomore Jade Vella-Wright
"With all of the challenges the team has had, it's been a while since we've been back here. It was really nice to go out there and just do a great routine."

Floor Exercise
Iowa State rounded out the meet with a score of 48.750. Maddie Diab and Andrea Maldonado led the Cyclones with matching scores of 9.825. Parker tallied the next highest score with 9.775. Steinmeyer notched a 9.675 with Laura Cooke following closely behind with a 9.650.

Senior Andrea Maldonado
"I've been struggling to get it done lately. I've been falling on my last pass and it's been a road of adjustments. It feels amazing to finally stick it. It all goes so fast, it's the most exhilarating feeling I could ever ask for."

Balance Beam
The Cyclones notched a total score 48.600 on the beam. Iowa State was led by Meixi Semple with a score of 9.825. Steinmeyer closely followed with a 9.800, and Parker and De Jesus put up matching tallies of 9.750. Ana Palacios rounded out the scoring with a 9.475.

Up Next
The Cyclones head to Denver to take on the Pioneers on their home turf. The meet is set for 1:00pm CST on Sunday, Jan. 31.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Kelsey Boychuk

Laura Cooke

Addy De Jesus

Maddie Diab

Natalie Horowitz

Madelyn Langkamp

Andrea Maldonado

Makayla Maxwell

Ana Palacios

Kaia Parker

Meixi Semple

Sophia Steinmeyer

Jade Vella-Wright

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Iowa State University Athletics