Sorry for missing last week. I was super busy applying for jobs, so I never got around to writing an article. Also, I think I’m probably going to make Top Ten Tuesdays an every other Tuesday post, at least during the off season.
This week’s topic is underrated NCAA gymnasts. These could either be gymnasts from top teams who are underrated because of being over shadowed by teammates, or gymnasts who are stars on smaller teams that aren’t in the national spotlight. This list consists of gymnasts who competed in 2018, including graduating seniors.
I knew I was going to forget about people, so I asked Twitter for input. I got a lot of responses, and between my answers and the answers from Twitter, it was extremely hard to narrow down to just ten, so look out for a Part 2 in the future… Also, I didn’t rank them, so they are in no particular order.
Sonya Meraz (UCLA)
While she didn’t end up competing much in 2018, Sonya was an integral part of UCLA’s scores in her first three years. She is good on every event and was able to help her team in a pinch at times when the stars all inevitably got injured. It’s easy for someone to get lost on a team with lots of former elites, but her hard work payed off when she earned a scholarship for her senior year.
Jessica Yamzon (Arkansas)
Jessica is definitely someone who is constantly overshadowed: in 2017 it was because of all the other up and coming freshmen in the SEC and then in 2018 it was because of her own team’s up and coming freshmen. She has competed all around in every meet of her career, and has only had 2 falls! While she’s not talked about very often, she really has been an integral part in Arkansas’ success.
Lexi Funk (Michigan)
Like Sonya Meraz above, Lexi is good on every event and can help out her team wherever she is needed. Since Michigan has a fairly small roster, the lack of depth can really hurt them when a major player gets injured (like Maddy Osman in 2017 and 2018 as well as Olivia Karas in 2018). Lexi has stepped up in a big way the last two seasons and definitely doesn’t get the credit she deserves.
Brehanna Showers (Oklahoma)
On a team like Oklahoma, it’s easy to get lost among the likes of Maggie Nichols and AJ Jackson. A lot of people might forget that Brehanna competed three events most meets in 2018 and competed in the all around three times (and has yet to record a fall!).
Sarah Edwards and Sami Durante (LSU)
Ok, I’m cheating a little by having two here, but I feel like both Sarah and Sami are underrated for the same reasons. In 2018, they were both walk-on freshmen who contributed in a big way to a strong LSU team: Sarah on vault/floor and Sami on bars.
Schyler Jones (Texas Woman’s)
Schyler was a big star in the division 2 world in 2018 but flew under the radar in the national spotlight because of competing for a smaller program. Her scores, however, rivaled many division 1 gymnasts. In her final meet at USAG nationals, she scored a huge school record all around score of 39.600!
Jovannah East (Bowling Green)
Jovannah is another gymnast who is underrated in the national spotlight because she competes for a smaller program. In 2018, she added bars to become an all arounder and ultimately qualified for nationals: Bowling Green’s first national qualifier since 1999.
Katie Stuart (Kentucky)
With the likes of Sidney Dukes, Mollie Korth, and Alex Hyland as teammates, Katie Stuart has been hidden in the shadow of her teammates her entire time at Kentucky. She competed all around in almost every meet in 2016 and 2017, and she competed on every event at some point in 2018. She has served as a solid leadoff in the beam lineup and has a difficult double layout 1/1 dismount on bars.
Denelle Pedrick (Central Michigan)
Denelle has been a solid all around competitor for CMU and is one of the few gymnasts in the NCAA to compete a DTY. She has qualified to nationals in both 2017 and 2018 on vault and floor respectively. Because she doesn’t compete for a big name school, she is often lost in the shuffle.
Haylee Young (Iowa State)
Haylee is another gymnast who is a star for her team but is often overshadowed by other big names in the country. She competed in the all around nearly every meet of her career, was the 2015 Big 12 all around champion, and qualified for nationals as an individual all arounder in 2017.
Ramblings of an NCAA gym nerd 