(Tempe AZ) – The 2024 Sun Devils Gymnastics season starts next week with a group of strong contenders, both returners and newcomers, ready to show their talents in a competitive schedule.
Coach Jay Santos Photo – Sun Devil Athletics
2024 Outlook
Sun Devil Gymnastics will face a strong string of opponents in the 2024 season, with five home meets. Eighth-year head coach Jay Santos and the squad will face nine teams who finished the 2023 season ranked in the top 25, with five finishing in the top 10 on the Road to Nationals rankings: Oklahoma, Utah, UCLA, California, and Denver. The Sun Devils enter the season ranked No. 19 on the WGCA preseason poll with nine of their opponents this season ranked in the top 25 of that poll. In the Pac-12 Preseason Poll, ASU was picked fifth. The Territorial Cup Series matchup will be in Tucson this season on February 15. ASU has not lost to Arizona in a head-to-head meet since Santos began his time in Tempe.
Last Season
The Gym Devils finished with a 7-6 record and wrapped up the season ranked No. 15 on Road to Nationals. This was the sixth year in a row that the Gym Devils finished the season ranked in the top 25. Earning a team NQS of 197.105, this was the third time ever that ASU ended the regular season with an NQS over 197, two of which have been while Santos has been in Tempe. Seeded for the third season in a row for the postseason, the Sun Devils advanced to the NCAA Regional Finals for the second time in three years. To finish Pac-12 conference play against Oregon State, the Gym Devils put up their best score of the season with a 197.725. Representing the team at the NCAA Championships was Hannah Scharf, who qualified as an individual in the all-around.
Preseason Watch List
Two from the Gym Devils are on the 2024 Pac-12 Gymnastics Preseason Watch List. Fifth-year senior Hannah Scharf and senior Jada Mangahas both made the list. This is the second year in a row for Scharf, who has been All-Pac-12 First Team in the all-around for the last three seasons. She also was first team on floor last season. Mangahas has also played a key role on the team, competing on vault, bars and floor. This season, she looks to add beam to become a threat in the all-around.
Returners
The core of the 2023 squad is returning to 2024, only losing two routines from last season (one of vault and one on floor, both from Jordyn Jaslow). The team has six of the seven Gym Devils who won 30 event titles in the 2023 season returning for the 2024 season. The team was led by Hannah Scharf with 11 event titles, four of which were in the all-around. Emily White finished with seven, while Anaya Smith and Sarah Clark had four each.
Scharf continues her standout career as a Sun Devil with a fifth year in 2024. Last year, she competed in the all-around in every meet and ended the season ranked No. 21 in the nation in the all-around. She competed as an individual at the NCAA Championships in the all-around, her highest score coming on bars with a 9.8625. At NCAA Regionals, she finished second in the second session in all-around with a 39.625 to send her to nationals, her fourth all-around total of 39.625-plus last season. Also at regionals, she took home the beam event title with a 9.950, matching her career high and setting a new season high. Her all-around career-high of 39.675 that she earned against Utah is tied for the 10th-best all-around mark in program history. She has 19 scores of 9.9-plus (five are 9.95-plus), eight of those coming from floor. Of 56 routines, she scored below a 9.800 just seven times.
Emily White solidified herself as a cornerstone for the Arizona State program in her junior season. She competed in the all-around in all but one meet last season, scoring a 39.4-plus in five meets. Consistency was key, as on beam and floor, she scored a 9.825 or better in all but one meet. On vault and bars, she scored a 9.8-plus in all but two meets. Overall, she had 16 scores of 9.9-plus, including two 9.95s. She won seven event titles, at least one in each event. At the NCAA Regional Finals, she tied her season high on bars with a 9.925 and finished third in the all-around with a 39.550, a new season high for her. At the Pac-12 Championships, she placed second overall on beam with a career-high 9.950.
Anaya Smith brought some flash to vault for Arizona State in 2023. She competed on vault in every meet, scoring a 9.825 or better in all but four meets. She notched a 9.9-plus six times, including two 9.95s. Her 9.950 against Arizona was the best score on vault by ASU since Ashley Hinkle on March 7, 2008.
Mangahas and Clark competed in three of four events for a majority of the season. Clark competed in every meet on bars and beam, making the floor lineup for all but three meets. Mangahas scored a 9.8 or better in all but one meet on all three events. Clark won four event titles, all on bars. At NCAA Regional Finals, Clark scored a 9.950 on bars, which was tied for second in that event at the regional finals. In the win against No. 4 Utah, Clark hit a 9.975 on bars to set her career high and tied with Scharf for the highest score by any Gym Devil this season.
Gracie Reeves, another fifth-year senior, competed in every meet last year. She saw time on all four events, but primarily made vault, bars and beam lineups. Reeves had a season high of 9.875 on bars. Kayla Lee was the only freshman to see consistent action for the Gym Devils in 2023. She competed in every meet that season, leading off on beam in all but one meet. She also competed on floor in all but three meets. Her season best was a 9.875 in both events.
Skye Harper and Cienna Samiley saw action for ASU. Harper competed in all but one meet as a beam specialist. She scored a 9.8-plus seven times, including a career-high 9.900. At NCAAs on beam, Harper was strong, scoring a 9.875 at regionals and a 9.850 at the regional finals. Samiley was a bars specialist for the squad, scoring a 9.875-plus five times, including two scores of 9.9 or better. Her career high was a 9.925 which she scored at Washington.
Alex Theodorou competed in all but one meet last season, primarily on vault. She also made four bars lineups and was in the floor lineup in the last six meets. The sophomore scored a 9.8-plus on vault in all but one meet, including four scores of 9.9 or better. On floor, she scored a 9.825-plus in five of her six routines.
The team also brings back other contributors in senior Cassi Barbanente and sophomore Kimberly Smith. Both made lineups at some point last season, Barbanente on vault and Smith on beam. Smith competed on beam three times with a season-high score of 9.850. The Gym Devils also have sophomores McClaine Daigle, Isabella Kowan and Caroline Lichtman on the roster with routines to contribute.
Newcomers
There are four newcomers for the Gym Devils this season in Halle Gregoire, Lilia Purler, Chloe Seaga, and Chavala Shepard. Each gymnast brings a flair and strong routine, ready to compete for a spot in the lineup. The freshman class is made up of a geographically diverse group with the four competitors being from Minnesota, Missouri, Florida, and Arkansas.
Up Next
The Gym Devils will begin the season with their home opener on January 8 against Central Michigan at 7 p.m. MST in Desert Financial Arena.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Kimberlie Haner
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