Twists and Turns: Surprising and Exciting NCAA Gymnastics Offseason Moves Pt. 2
- Alyssa Klauminzer
- Aug 1
- 4 min read
More changes have come to NCAA gymnastics as the new school year is just around the corner. This includes bringing in game changing freshmen, welcoming transfers, and experiencing coaching changes. With these changes comes excitement as to how rosters will look next season, which changes will make the biggest impacts, and shakeups as to which teams will be top contenders.
Here are more transfer twists, amazing additions, and coaching turns in NCAA gymnastics.
Ella Cesario Transfers to Clemson
Ella Cesario is transferring from Cal to Clemson, where she will be competing under her Cal coaches Justin Howell and Elisabeth Crandall-Howell. Cesario’s career highs are 9.900 on vault, 9.925 on bars, and 9.950 on beam and floor. The fifth-year senior will be a key all-arounder for the Tigers. She is capable of hitting and putting up big scores in every event, and competed all-around on the biggest stage when Cal took second in the 2024 NCAA championships finals.
Paige Anastasi Transfers to Clemson
Paige Anastasi is transferring from UCLA to Clemson. This change will give Anastasi, a rising junior, more opportunities to make lineups, where she can shine on vault, an event she has competition experience on, and floor, an event she performed in exhibition for UCLA. Anastasi has a career high of 9.925 on vault, which she ironically scored against Clemson; she competes a Yurchenko 1.5 which has a 10.0 start value, and will be a crucial addition to Clemson’s lineup.
Emma Malewski Commits to Clemson
I have one more piece of exciting news for Clemson gymnastics: the Tigers signed Emma Malewski, a member of the German national team. At the 2022 European Championships, Malewski won gold on the balance beam and bronze in the team event, a first for Germany. Malewski is the first international signing for Clemson, and will bring difficulty and artistry with her routines. The Tigers are rebuilding under new coaches, are ready to go to new heights in a healthier environment, and are capable of becoming contenders even in this upcoming season.
Natalie Martin Transfers to Ohio State
Natalie Martin is transferring from Maryland to Ohio State. The rising junior, and central Ohio native, is an incredible vaulter and has a career high of 9.925 on the event with her Yurchenko 1.5. The 10.0 start value vault will be a great addition for the Buckeyes who will look to build upon their top 15 finish on the event. She also competes and is a regular contributor on beam and floor where she has career highs of 9.950 and 9.900 respectively, and will fill the gap left by Jojo Warga and Sidney Washington on the events. O-H!
Courtney Blackson Transfers to LSU
Courtney Blackson, a graduate of Boise State, has come out of retirement to compete for LSU. After spending the year coaching younger gymnasts, Blackson felt she wasn’t ready to hang up her leo for good just yet. Blackson was one of the most successful gymnasts in Boise State’s program history. She’s scored a perfect 10 on vault and was the 2023 NCAA silver medalist on the event, and has a career high of 9.950 on bars and floor. One of the most surprising transfers of the offseason, Blackson is going to be a perfect lineup addition for the Tigers. She joins transfers Emily Innes and Madison Ulrich at LSU, a team entering a new era without Haleigh Bryant or Aleah Finnegan.
Coaching Changes
As I previously noted, one of the most notable head coaching changes happened when Justin Howell and Elisabeth Crandall-Howell from Cal went to Clemson. This meant changes were coming for Cal, and they found their new coach in Geralen Stack-Eaton, who served as Minnesota’s assistant coach for 11 seasons. Minnesota saw success and growth during Stack-Eaton’s career with them, and her move to Cal is an exciting one.
Bev Plocki took over as head coach of Michigan’s gymnastics team when she was just 23-years-old, and has been at the helm of the program for 36 years. During her tenure, the Wolverines won their first national championship in 2021, and won 26 Big Ten Championship titles, which is the most by any coach in any sport in Big Ten history. Plocki is passing the reigns to Maile'ana Kanewa-Hermelyn, Michigan’s assistant coach for the past six seasons (including the historic 2021 season), and competed as a gymnast on Oklahoma’s first two championship winning teams. With her experience with both Oklahoma and Michigan, the Wolverines will be in great hands with Kanewa-Hermelyn.
Illinois named Josh Nilson as their new head coach. Nilson, who served as the associate head coach of the Illini the past two seasons, has two decades of experience coaching NCAA gymnastics. Temple flourished and broke records when Nilson served as their head coach, and now Illinois will look to climb the Big Ten ranks with Nilson at the helm.
Florida promoted Owen Field to associate head coach and general manager. Field makes history as the first general manager in NCAA gymnastics.
Several former NCAA stars are bringing their talents to assistant coaching positions. Haleigh Bryant, a three-time NCAA champion, will be staying with LSU as she steps into Ashleigh Gnat’s position. Mya Hooten, who has the most perfect 10s in Minnesota’s program history, will be taking over the assistant coach position for the Gophers. Adeline Kenlin, the 2022 NCAA runner-up on beam, school record holder for beam score at Iowa, and just one of the best beam workers the NCAA has seen, is joining the coaching staff at Illinois State. Kenlin will coach under new head coach Cassandra Ringer. Sooners stars Ragan Smith and Olivia Trautman will make an impact for their new teams, as Smith joins the staff for Iowa State and Trautman for Utah State.
While the collegiate gymnastics season is still just under six months away, I already cannot wait to see how these changes shake up the NCAA!
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