Missouri Kicks Off 2025 Gymnastics Season with Exciting Friday Showdown

» THIS WEEK IN BALL STATE GYMNASTICS: The Ball State gymnastics team officially commences the 2025 season on Friday as it heads to Missouri for Beauty and the Beast night at Mizzou Arena, showcasing concurrent gymnastics and wrestling events … Joining the Cardinals alongside the host Tigers for the gymnastics segment will be Illinois State and SEMO.

 

» 2024 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS:

– Ball State achieved its second successive team qualification in the NCAA Regionals by concluding the regular season ranked 34th nationally with an NQS of 196.600.

– The Cardinals fell just .050 short of progressing to the second round of the NCAA Ann Arbor Regional, experiencing a 195.825 to 195.775 defeat against Illinois in the first round.

– Five competitors participated in the NCAA second round, headlined by Zoe Middleton, who secured 15th place in the all-around with a score of 39.025 … Ashley Szymanski earned Ball State’s highest individual score of the day, placing seventh among the two sessions on bars with a tally of 9.900 … Suki Pfister registered 9.825s on both vault and floor, while Megan Teter capped her college career with a 9.825 on bars, and Victoria Henry concluded hers with a 9.725 on vault. 

– Ball State’s program record score of 198.025 at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) matched as the 40th-highest team score in the nation … The Cardinals were the first team in the nation to surpass the 198 mark last season.

– Overall, Ball State recorded five of the top eight team scores in program history last season, including the top two figures … BSU’s athletes also established team records on vault (49.375), bars (49.775), and floor (49.625) last season.

– The Cardinals ranked among the nation’s elite bars teams last season, holding the 24th position nationally with an NQS of 49.255 … In fact, Ball State’s program record score of 49.775 on bars at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) represented the eighth-best team score on any apparatus in the nation for that season.

» BALL STATE IN THE MAC IN 2024:

– Ball State secured a share of its second consecutive Mid-American Conference regular season championship with a 5-1 league dual record … The Cardinals shared the title with Western Michigan for the second straight season.

– Ball State finished second at the MAC Championships with a score of 196.475, narrowly trailing WMU’s score of 196.525 … Despite the team loss, three Cardinals claimed individual MAC titles … Zoe Middleton was a co-champion on floor (9.900) and beam (9.900) and was the all-around champion with a score of 39.525, which was .275 ahead of the next closest competitor … Ashley Szymanski was co-champion on bars (9.925), and Suki Pfister was co-champion on floor (9.900).

– A program record six Ball State gymnasts received All-Mid-American Conference accolades for the 2024 season … Representing the Cardinals on the All-MAC First Team were Suki Pfister on vault and Ashley Szymanski on bars … Honored on the All-MAC Second Team were Victoria Henry on vault, Hannah Ruthberg on beam, Zoe Middleton on floor, and Megan Teter in the all-around.

– In the specialty awards, Suki Pfister was recognized as the MAC Specialist of the Year for the third consecutive time … Ashley Szymanski became the first gymnast in the program’s history to be honored as MAC Freshman of the Year … Head coach Joanna Saleem was celebrated as the MAC Coach of the Year for the third time in the past four years.

 

» WELCOME BACK FOR ONE MORE SEASON: Two members of last season’s team chose to utilize their COVID years of eligibility for another season with the squad … Returning for their fifth seasons of eligibility are Suki Pfister and Hannah Ruthberg.

 

» MORE ON PFISTER: The inaugural All-American in the program’s history, achieving WCGA First Team All-America in 2024 and WCGA Second Team All-America in 2023; Pfister possesses program records on both vault (10.0) and floor (9.950) … Pfister, who concluded the 2024 regular season tied for fifth nationally with a vault NQS of 9.935, has recorded a score of 9.900 or higher on 18 of her 46 collegiate vaults … This tally includes one 10.0, one 9.975, four 9.950s, three 9.925s, and nine 9.900s.

 

» PFISTER EXCELS ON THE FLOOR AS WELL: In addition to being among the country’s top vault competitors, Suki Pfister was crowned a 2024 MAC Floor Champion after securing a 9.900 at the MAC Championships … It marks the first MAC title of Pfister’s distinctive career … Along with her league championship, Pfister tied the program record for a second occasion in her career with a 9.950 at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) … Out of her 16 collegiate floor performances, six have resulted in scores of 9.900 or higher.

 

» MORE ON RUTHBERG: Hannah Ruthberg has been a key component in the Ball State lineup throughout her career, including competing all-around in each of the last 26 meets … In fact, Ruthberg has taken part all-around in 37 of her 48 collegiate competitions and boasts four of the top 20 all-around scores in program history … Her peak performance was a 39.425 last season at George Washington (Feb. 23), which remains the sixth-best score in program history … Additionally, Ruthberg delivered career-best scores on all four apparatuses last season, including a 9.925 on floor, two 9.925s on bars, a 9.900 on beam, and a 9.875 on vault.

 

» A REMARKABLE SOPHOMORE SEASON: Zoe Middleton exhibited a commanding performance at the 2024 MAC Championships, clinching titles in the all-around (39.525), beam (9.900), and floor (9.900) … As only the second all-around champion in the program’s history, she is also the first Ball State gymnast to win three MAC individual titles in a single season.

 

» MORE ON MIDDLETON: In addition to obtaining three MAC individual championships, Zoe Middleton achieved Second Team All-MAC honors for the first time in her career after ranking second in the league on floor with an NQS of 9.920 … She recorded five scores of 9.925 on floor, along with two 9.900s … A three-time MAC Gymnast of the Week, Middleton was also BSU’s leading all-around gymnast with an NQS of 39.390 … She led Ball State with 41 scores of 9.800 or better, which includes the first perfect 10.0 in program history on bars and a program record 39.750 in the all-around…. She also delivered her personal-best marks on vault (9.950) and beam (9.900) last year, while securing 11 individual event victories and six all-around championships.



» YOU CAN RELY ON HER: During her initial two years, Zoe Middleton has contributed to 86 of her 91 total routines impacting the final team score… This accomplishment includes 49 of 52 routines from last year, in addition to 37 of 39 routines from her debut season… Throughout this duration, Ball State has achieved the top 10 team scores in its program’s history, along with 18 of the top 20.



» EXCELLING ON BARS: Ashley Szymanski earned the title of MAC Bars Champion with a score of 9.925 in her league championships debut… This was preceded by a regular season in which she garnered First Team All-MAC honors on bars after finishing first in the league and 24th nationally with a National Qualifying Score (NQS) of 9.920… Including her MAC championship, Szymanski triumphed in the bars competition in six meets last season and recorded seven routines scoring 9.900 or higher… Her all-time best score was 9.975 during her MAC debut against Bowling Green (Jan. 22).



» OTHER IMPORTANT RETURNERS:

– Grace Sumner is back for her senior season as one of the leading beam specialists in program history, highlighted by a program record score of 9.925 at the Ball State Quad (Jan. 29, 2023)… Sumner has achieved 9.800 or above in 21 of her 40 collegiate beam routines, including her record-setting 9.925 and three 9.900 scores.

– Sumner has also participated on bars in 34 of her 40 collegiate competitions, attaining a personal-best score of 9.875 on two occasions last season… Overall, she has posted 12 career bars scores of 9.800 or higher, with seven occurring last season.

– Carissa Martinez also returns for her senior year after a commendable debut season with the Cardinals in 2024… After spending her first two seasons at Centenary College, Martinez found her place in the Ball State vault and floor lineup last year… She achieved career-high scores of 9.925 on floor and 9.825 on vault, concluding the season with a total of five marks of 9.800 or above.

– Ava Molina secured a position in the bars lineup for the final four meets of the 2024 season, culminating in a personal-best score of 9.900 during the dual win over Eastern Michigan (March 17).



» SCORING HIGH IN 2024: Ball State recorded 187 marks of 9.800 or more during the 2024 season, led by the team’s 22 at the Tennessee Collegiate Classic (Jan. 19) and 19 at George Washington (Feb. 23)… Out of the 187 routines, 54 were on the floor, 53 on bars, 44 on vault, and 36 on beam… This total comprises 55 scores of 9.900 or better.



» RECORDS UNDER SALEEM:

– In the program’s initial 11 seasons under head coach Joanna Saleem, Ball State has accumulated the 37 finest team scores in its history… Indeed, out of Ball State’s 41 scores of 195.450 or above, 39 have been established by Saleem’s teams.

– Saleem’s squads hold the event records across all four apparatuses: vault (49.375), bars (49.775), beam (49.350), and floor (49.625).

– All 46 team entries in the vault record registry are held by Saleem’s teams, as are 28 of 35 scores on bars, 27 of 33 scores on floor, and 27 of 32 scores on beam.



» ONE MORE RECORD TO WATCH FOR FRIDAY: Ball State commenced the 2024 season with the highest opening meet score in program history at 194.925 at the UNC Quad (Jan. 5, 2024)… The former record was 194.475 established at Kentucky to launch the 2018 season.