Illinois State opened the season on uneven footing, counting falls on both bars and beam en route to a 191.900 and a fourth-place finish in a quad with Iowa, Illinois, and Iowa State. Head coach Cassandra Ringer acknowledged that parts of the performance “were not up to our standards,” adding that “it’s only a bad thing when you don’t learn from mistakes.” The Redbirds appear to have taken that message to heart. They improved their score by four-tenths the following week at the Windy City Open, then capitalized on home scoring to post a 193.700 against Centenary. While that total remains well below last season’s 195.235 average that put Illinois State on the regionals bubble, the trend line is pointing up.
Bars remains the primary area of concern. At Sunday’s home meet, Illinois State was able to drop a fall but still had to count a 9.450 from Madyson Baucom after a missed kip following her straddle Jaeger. There were bright spots, however: Julia Heiner delivered a 9.700, and Jada Beswick claimed the event title with a 9.750. The Redbirds will be looking to stack more routines in that mid-to-high 9.7 range as the season progresses.
On the other side, host Central Michigan enters with a clear strength. The Chippewas are ranked No. 18 nationally on bars—well above their standings on the other events—and it is the only apparatus on which they have eclipsed 49.000 this season. That bars rotation powered CMU to a 195.000 and a win over Western Michigan last week, highlighted by Lia Kmieciak tying her career high with a 9.900 to take the event title.
Consistency has defined CMU’s early season, beginning with a 194.750 opening-meet win over Fisk and SEMO. Much of that stability comes from MAC Gymnast to Watch Luciana Alvarado-Reid, who, through two weeks, ranks first in the conference on bars, floor, and in the all-around. Nationally, she sits No. 6 on bars, No. 17 on floor, and No. 24 in the all-around, anchoring a Chippewa squad that has found its footing early.
The meet is streaming on ESPN+, and scores can be found on Virtius.
Fun fact: each team is the defending conference champion in its respective league, Midwest Independent Conference (MIC) for Illinois State, and Mid-American Conference (MAC) for Central Michigan, and they ended 2025 tied in NQS and a No. 40 national ranking.
Rotation 1: Central Michigan VT, Illinois State UB
Shannon (CMU) Yurchenko full with a really tight body position and a hop back. Off to a good start. 9.775
Reddick (CMU) Yurchenko full with closed shoulder angle. It’s difficult to see from the camera angle if she got good distance. Pike down, small hop in place. 9.600
Alvarado-Reid (CMU) Yurchenko full with a bit of pike down and a scoot backward. 9.700
Bootz (CMU) Handspring front tuck with a half twist. Good body position on the HS. Legs apart on the half twist. 9.700
Wellmeier (CMU) Yurchenko full with legs apart on the preflight. Small amount of pike and a small hop, similar to the previous vaulters. 9.725
Kmieciak (CMU) Yurchenko full with a lot of distance enabling her to flare her arms at the end. Chest forward on the landing.
Germond (CMU) Exhibition Yurchenko full, pikes before she needs to start her landing. Hop back.
Now we’re going to bars. This meet is only doing one event at a time.
Ray (ISU) Good blind half and straddle Jaeger. Hits the HS in bail, arches HS on high bar. Double layout is arched on the first salto and piked on the second, but she gets the stuck landing. 9.700
LeBlanc (ISU) Mia LeBlanc is the freshman who’s gotten the most lineup opportunities so far this season. Slightly short HS on low, legs apart on Maloney and bail, blind full ends the pirouette late. Double tuck dismount with flexed feet and a step back. Two hit routines in a row is great for the Redbirds to get the bars bugaboo of their backs. 9.550
Heiner (ISU) Toe handstand to Ray to overshoot, HS on high is slightly short. Double layout with a hop forward due to slight underrotation. I don’t think it will score as high as her routine last week. 9.725, so I was wrong, as it scores 0.025 higher.
Koliego (ISU) Balances HS on high, Hindorff–rare in college gym, Pak, arches on half pirouette, double layout stuck. An improvement from last week. 9.800, a career high for her.
Baucom (ISU) Blind half ends late, she’s too far away on her straddle Jaeger and falls. Bail done with good form. Double layout dismount gets good height, but leans her torso back and has to take a step backward. The first miss in the rotation. 8.800
Beswick (ISU) To state the obvious, she needs to stay on to avoid the team having to count a fall. High Gienger with good leg form. Bail is right to handstand. Blind full is close to landing in vertical. Double tuck is high slightly underrotated, causing her to hop forward. 9.700
Harris (ISU) Exhibition Great HS on low, legs apart on Maloney backswing, short HS on high, late blind full, double tuck dismount with flexed feet and a hop forward. 9.675
AFTER ONE: Central Michigan 48.750, Illinois State 48.475
A good start for both teams. CMU is slightly below their vault high for the season. Like many teams, they need to work on landing precision to maximize a lineup with lower start value vaults. Illinois State scored a season high on bars on what has been a problematic event for them early on, so that’s one successful takeaway from this meet already.
It appears the meet will continue with one event at time in rotation 2.
Rotation 2: Illinois State VT, Central Michigan UB
Schwab (CMU) Close Gienger, slightly arched HS on high, but good HS on bail, double layout dismount with a stuck landing. Best dismount we’ve seen in this meet. 9.825
Wellmeier (CMU) Blind change to straddle Jaeger, low and piked body position on overshoot, free hip to toe on front pike half with a hop. Legs apart on free hip and dismount. 9.750
Shannon (CMU) Slightly late blind half to piked Jaeger, the release move is well done, another stuck double layout dismount. This rotation is on fire for CMU. 9.875
Johnson (CMU) Nice HS on high, very high and floaty Ray, but she bends her legs as she catches. More good HS positions to double layout with a hop. This won’t score as high as the previous routines, but it can still be considered a hit. 9.550
Alvarado-Reid (CMU) Toe HS and Maloney to Pak are all done with legs glued together. Blind full ends right on top of the bar. Double tuck dismount with pointed toes and slight foot movement on landing, but it was close to a stick. 9.875
Kmieciak (CMU) Toe handstnd, misses her Maloney. Touches the bar with one hand, but wasn’t close to catching. She repeats it so she can get the connection to bail with good HS. Yet another double layout with a stick. A good recovery for her after the fall. 9.300
Wendle (CMU) Exhibition Short HS on high, blind change finishes right on top of the bar. Too far from the bar on her straddle Jaeger and falls. Blind change, legs come apart, and she swings down and hops off the bar. Does a blind full into double tuck dismount with a step back and she looks frustrated as she high fives her teammates. 7.900
There is only one set of judges here which is why only one event is happening at a time.
Oh (ISU) Vault specialist. She messes up her run, stops and goes back to the starting position. Yurchenko full with good distance, a moderate amount of pike, and large lunge back. Good job not letting the error get in her head. She looks really happy with her performance. 9.675
Jones (ISU) Very strong run into her Yurchenko full. Could do better on dynamics. She also pikes down, but has a very secure landing. 9.575
Wolff (ISU) Yurchenko full-on back pike off. This is the only 10.0 vault in the line up. Legs apart on the preflight. Lands off to her right but hops toward the center of the mat. 9.825
LeBlanc (ISU) Yurchenko full with legs apart on the entry. Hips and knees bent during the flight phase. Needs to clean up her form. 9.575
Ray (ISU) Yurchenko layout 1/2. Pretty good body position, because many athletes arch on the forward flying vaults. Good upright chest on her stuck landing. 9.700
Davis (ISU) Yurchenko full with slight leg separation onto the vaulting table, significant pike down and a large lunge back.
Koliego (ISU) Exhibition Handspring front tuck 9.450
AFTER TWO: Central Michigan 97.625 (48.875 bars), Illinois State 96.825 (48.350)
Central Michigan jumps out to a big lead, thanks to a bars rotation that featured three stuck double layout dismounts and good form from gymnasts throughout the lineup.
Rotation 3: Central Michigan BB, Illinois State FX
Richards (CMU) Beat jump is secure, then she wobbles going into her full turn, not out of it. Tries an aerial to BHS but falls. Switch leap looks like back leg is low. RO back 1.5 is stuck. She leans forward but is able to keep her feet from moving. She gets a hug from her coach. 8.925
Bootz (CMU) Full turn goes a little past 360 degreses. BHS LOSO done well. Switch leap, switch leap, pike jump takes enormous leg strength. Front toss to beat jump is also steady. Gainer back pike off end of the beam. Good comeback for this team after the fall. 9.800
Johnson (CMU) Beat jump done in isolation could get more height on that. Front toss to back tuck, her shoulders are off line and connection is slow. Liukin – front toss to scale done perfectly. Switch leap to straddle quarter, again, trailing leg is low. Gainer back pike is close to the beam and a little scary to watch. The Liukin was definitely the highlight of that routine. 9.725
Pelfrey (CMU) Back shoulder roll for her low beam skill. Side aerial to round off. Twist to the side, but pulls her shoulders and hips back over the beam. Switch leap to split 3/4, second skill short of split. Cartwheel to gainer full dismount of the side of the beam. Good hip rise on the dismount. I enjoyed that she did a different acro series than we usually see. 9.800
Shannon (CMU) Another back shoulder roll,but she looks like she’s going to go backward into a headstand first. BHS BHS LOSO is perfectly aligned. Switch leap to switch leap, another combination that takes amazing quad strength. RO back 1.5 and she keeps going into a big lunge.
Alvarado-Reid (CMU) Middle splits mount. She looks confident in her choreography and BHS LOSO. Switch leap to split half to beat jump. Beat jump into side aerial and she falls, then wobbles on her full turn. Gainer back pike. Now CMU will need to count a fall toward the team total. 9.325
Germond (CMU) Exhibition Forward roll mount. Cat leap to switch side 1/4 with low back leg. BHS LOSO, upper body leans off the beam, but she pulls it back and avoid a fall. BHS with two foot landing to back 1.5 dismount with a pace forward.
Woods (ISU) FHS rudi, font leg moves on her lunge backward. Switch half to Popa is well executed. FHS front layout to front full has another moving landing. Her dance is pretty and fluid. Double tuck, again doesn’t secure the landing. I can’t hear any music on the livestream, but the commentators say it’s “Tequila.” 9.725
Wolff (ISU) Back 1.5 to front full, legs crossed in the front twisting move and may have stepped out of bounds. Has full split on her leap pass. Standing wolf 1.5 facing the corner, legs may not have stayed in precise position. Double tuck lands short and runs forward. The landings are eluding ISU today. 9.500
LeBlanc (ISU) She gets the facial expressions int o her routine from the get go. Double tuck and also has movement of the front foot on her lunge. Front full into front layout. Layout is slightly low and her feet move on this landing also. Switch side to Popa, good split. Double pike with a step, not sure I would call that one controlled, but we’ll see if the judges do. 9.675
Harris (ISU) Front layout to Rudi, landing looks good. Her switch side doesn’t land with her feet together. Back 1.5 to front layout. The layout rises, as it should. Tumbling was better than her teammates’ but she had problems on the dance. 9.575
Davis (ISU) She has to wait. The judging was going quickly up until this point. She appears stiff in her dance. Double tuck with nice height, but movement of the front foot on her lunge. Her wolf full ends right where it should, 360 degrees from the starting position. Back 1.5 to front full, good height on the full. 9.825
Jones (ISU) Double pike with an excellent landing. The kind where you don’t have to take a step back, but she chooses to. Punch front Rudi into straddle jump. Switch full to switch half lacking a bit of extension. Back 1.5 to front layout. Good tumbling from Jaly in the anchor spot. 9.800
Oh (ISU) Exhibition Double pike overrotates and step on the line, maybe out of bounds. Switch half to wolf full is nice and bouncy. Front layou to front full gets good amplitude on both skills. Double tuck lands with chest low, but she avoids stepping forward and incurring an overrotation deduction.
AFTER THREE: Central Michigan 146.050 (48.425 beam), Illinois State 145.425 (48.600 floor)
Central Michigan opened the door by counting a beam fall, but Illinois State was unable to capitalize due to inexact floor landings.
Rotation 4: Illinois State BB, Central Michigan FX
Germond (CMU) She’s done some exhibitions tonight, but now she gets to compete for real. Front tuck to high double tuck, which is stuck. She uses her eyes as a big part of her facial expressions. Back 1.5 to front layout, with another one of those moving landings. 9.800, matches her career high on this event.
Shannon (CMU) Punch front to double tuck, her front moves on the lunge backward. Good, precise landing on her Popa. Front layout to front full. She goes really high but bounds out of it. No one has sticky feet today. 9.700
Zimmerman (CMU) Front double full with a crossover step. She is doing her dance with fullest extension and expressiveness. Back layout, Excellent form on her switch ring leap. Front layout to front full and she lands short and stumbles out of it. 9.525
Bootz (CMU) Wolf full to wolf full, getting that dance series out of the way early. Punch front Rudi with a troubled landing onto the 4″ mat. Back 1.5 to front layout with good technique and landing. Her body is really flat, as it should be. 9.725
Wellmeier (CMU) Double pike is very open and she has trouble controlling her power on the landing. Back 1.5 to front pike. Short of split on her Popa. Double tuck. Her front foot lifts up. She might not need to tumble quite so hard. 9.775
Alvarado-Reid (CMU) FHS Rudi to double stag jump. Switch full to sissone. Back 1.5 to front full, no problem there. She looks happy performing her dance. Ends with tour jete half to wolf full. Well done. 9.850
Parker (CMU) Exhibition Front layout to front full, she overcooks the twist a bit, but probably not enough to incur a college gymnastics deduction. Double pike and overrotates into a fall and a backward roll out of bounds. Good thing that was an exhibition routine.
Now to end the meet on beam, with all eyes in the arena on the gymnasts. I’m interested to hear from the athletes about whether the logistics of this meet are a help or a hindrance to their confidence, especially regarding ending on the most nerve-wracking event.
Woods (ISU) Kicks her leg out at horizontal to complete her full turn. Front aerial to back handspring is done without noticeable deduction. Split leap to double stag jump lacks split and she wobbles on the second element. Cat leap to front toss to beat jump is done without error. Front full off the end of the beam and she lands upright and sticks it.
Hiatt (ISU) BHS LOSO has a solid landing. Full turn goes a little past 360 degrees. She does a standing layout to beat jump. Wobbles in between, so I don’t know if she’ll be awarded a connection. RO back 1.5 dismount with a hop forward. This was her college beam debut and she should be pleased with her performance. 9.700
Ray (ISU) BHS LOSO. She lifts a leg and falls. Split jump to split 3/4. The first jump lacks split. Aerial round off with a large wobble. RO back 1.5 with a stuck landing. The team will hope to drop that score. 9.125
Lau (ISU) Beam specialist. Front roll mount. Full turn is done securely. BHS BHS LOSO without much amplitude, but with good alignment. Switch leap to switch half to beat jump. Gainer full of the side of the beam. Solid comeback after the routine with a fall. 9.825
Davis (ISU) BHS LOSO, drops her shoulder for a small balance check. Cat leap to switch side (lacks split) to beat jump. Front toss to beat jump. Cartwheel back 1.5 dismount with a step. 9.750
Jones (ISU) Aerial to layout and she falls. You could see her foot not getting a good push off into the aerial. Cat leap to switch side lacks split. Full turn is very fluid. She’s doing angry beam now. RO back 1.5 is high but she leans forward on the landing. 9.125
Flutman (ISU) Exhibition Looks like she’s strumming a guitar in her choreo. BHS LOSO with a small upper body adjustment. Cat leap to aerial, bends at the waist. Split jump to split 3/4 and her foot doesn’t find the beam causing her to lean backward and fall.
FINAL: Central Michigan 194.400 (48.850 floor), Illinois State 193.575 (48.150 beam)
VT: Kmieciak (CMU) 9.825
UB: Shannon (CMU) 9.875
BB: Lau (ISU) 9.825
FX: Alvarado-Reid (CMU) 9.850
AA: Shannon (CMU) 39.125
Both Central Michigan and Illinois State had to count routines with falls, reversing their upward trajectories in scoring, although CMU keeps its winning streak alive. Despite lower than hoped for scores, I think both teams did a good job under difficult circumstances, with the meet running in an usual format. ISU also had numerous lineup changes, so those gymnasts had to perform without a lot of time to mentally prepare. Both teams will probably want to turn the page with a better showing next week as CMU competes at the Georgia Quad Meet and ISU takes on MIC rival Southeast Missouri State.
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