When the Nittany Lions traveled to Southern Utah last March, Piedrahita contributed to an exceptional road performance by tying a career high in all-around with 39.525, as well as a 9.925 on vault, 9.90 on bars and a 9.825 on beam.Isabella Salcedo is an all-around gymnast from Arlington, Texas, who competes in the floor, beam […]
When the Nittany Lions traveled to Southern Utah last March, Piedrahita contributed to an exceptional road performance by tying a career high in all-around with 39.525, as well as a 9.925 on vault, 9.90 on bars and a 9.825 on beam.Isabella Salcedo is an all-around gymnast from Arlington, Texas, who competes in the floor, beam and vault events.
The Seniors
Herring posted three 9.95 floor scores in 2024, along with a 9.90 vault score and 9.95 beam score. Herring could be a pivotal part of the Nittany Lions team this season.Herring was named to the Big Ten All-Championship team and was an Academic All-Big Ten. In 2024 she qualified for the NCAA championships for the first time in her career for the balance beam event.Since 1982, only eight teams have claimed the NCAA women’s gymnastics championship, with dyn…Piedrahita recorded the most points in a single season by a Nittany Lion since at least 2000 while not scoring below a 9.8 in the vault event all season.Before Penn State’s campaign begins, however, there are several gymnasts to keep an eye on heading into the season.Although the Nittany Lions were unable to secure a victory in the regional final, the now-seniors were crucial to their success late in the 2024 season.Elizabeth Leary is another freshman joining the Nittany Lions. The all-around gymnast from Raleigh, North Carolina, won three state championships while also being a champion in the balance beam event.She posted a 9.85 on both the floor and the beam, which sent Penn State to its first ever regional finals, where Salcedo set the school record in the beam event.Allison Kaempfer was a five-time Florida state champion, winning 2024 titles in the all-around, vault and bars that included a perfect 10.0 on the vault event.
The Juniors
Jessica Johanson is a senior from West Hartford, Connecticut, who competes in vault, bars, beam, floor and all-around events. She competed in every meet for the Nittany Lions last year.In her junior season, Salcedo made the Big Ten All-Championships Team and set a Penn State regional school record on beam in the NCAA Regional Final with a score of 9.925.Similar to Salcedo, Johanson had her best performances of the season in the biggest of moments. Johanson didn’t compete in floor events until the regional final in April, where she scored a 9.8 on vault and 9.75 on bars in the finals.Amani Herring is a junior from Denville, New Jersey, who competes in the vault, beam and floor events.During the 2024 season, Piedrahita had a stretch of three straight meets scoring a 9.90 on the vault and bars — a feat no other player on the team had accomplished.Johanson’s personal best in the vault and floor events is 9.90 and 9.85 in the beam and bars.Salcedo’s performance in The Big Ten Championships last March secured her a spot on the Big Ten All-Championships Team, but perhaps more importantly, secured the Nittany Lions a spot in the Regional second round.Ava Piedrahita set personal bests and Penn State records during her sophomore season.Before the NCAA Championships, Herring participated in the regional second round, where she scored a 9.90 on beam and floor, and a 9.875 on vault to help the Nittany Lions finish second in the meet and advance to the regional final.
The Freshman
The junior from Maryland was the WCGA North East Region Co-Gymnast of the Year, while also being named to the First Team All-Big Ten.The Nittany Lions kick off 2025 with a preseason tri-meet against Penn and New Hampshire.MORE GYMNASTICS CONTENT
