As the Gophers gymnastics season draws to a close, the 2025 season left many highlights to reflect on.
To start the year, the University of Minnesota officially opened the doors to the new $15.5 million dollar gymnastics performance center in January.
“This is an exciting day for our gymnastics program,” Athletic Director Mark Coyle said.
The new gymnastics performance center was a goal head coach Jenny Hansen had made 11 years ago, so she was beyond excited for the day to finally come.
“We have worked a long time to make this day a reality for our student-athletes and we’re so grateful to everyone who made this a reality,” Hansen said.
The Gophers started strong this season, winning five consecutive meets and securing an early second-place ranking in the Big Ten.
The vault was a shining point for the Gophers early on. Their top five scorers all scored 9.775 or better and scored a collective 49.250 in their second meet of the season against the University of New Hampshire.
Hansen, predicting the future success of the season, felt excited for her team of vaulters.
“We have a lot of really good vaulters,” Hansen said. “I can really see that being one of our best events this year.”
Proving Hansen right, the Gophers recorded a season-high on vault with a score of 49.400.
Midway through the season, the Gophers achieved one of their biggest milestones, capturing the Big Four Meet title.
“We were steadily improving throughout the year, and that hard work paid off when it mattered most,” senior Emily Koch said.
“This really was a team effort,” Koch said. “The upperclassmen are really showing the rest of the team the way.”
At the heart of the team’s success was fifth-year Mya Hooten, earning All-Big Ten honors for the fifth consecutive year. Hooten made nationals for the fourth time in her career, including her second straight year as an individual.
Freshman Ava Stewart, an Olympian for Team Canada this past summer, made an immediate impact on the team.
By the end of the season, Stewart earned a spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team, becoming the first Gophers freshman since 2021 to earn all-freshman honors.
Alongside Stewart, sophomore Jordyn Lyden and junior Sarah Moraw were also named to the Second Team All-Big Ten, showcasing the strength of Minnesota’s lineup from top to bottom.
Collectively the Gophers placed third at the Big Ten championships, where Lyden had her breakout performance tying for the bars title.
With a strong lineup and a close-knit team, the Gophers were bound to succeed this season.
“Our team culture this year was so amazing, we were so close inside and outside of the gym,” Koch said.
Their impressive run continued, and before long, they were one of only two Big Ten teams to make it to the NCAA Regional finals for the fourth time in five years.
“The energy in the arena was incredible, and we were able to feed off that momentum, using it to fuel our performances,” Koch said. “I am so grateful I got to end my career with two hit routines, surrounded by my team, my family and Gopher nation!”
Once again proving her leadership has elevated the Gophers program to new heights, Hansen earned an award at the end of the season as well.
Leading the Gophers to a stellar 17-7 record and an 8-1 conference record this year, Hansen was named the North Central Region Coach of the Year.
