This year’s NCAA season is filled with freshman gymnasts who redefine collegiate gymnastics, where talented girls such as Kailin Chio and Skye Blakely exceed prior expectations and draw in more fans with every routine. The skilled freshmen vary across many different teams across the country. Recruitment coaches are becoming more and more selective as the talent level increases and many gymnasts have been deferring their freshman year to train for the Olympics.
The 2025 freshman class consists of gymnasts who have excelled in level 10 and competed at the elite level before. They have experience in more competitive environments and are used to the high level of skill needed, making them great contenders for collegiate gymnastics teams. The new freshman gymnasts can give their teams a huge advantage and will be able to impress people all over the world with their impressive skills.
Kailin Chio, a student at LSU, is ranked as one of the top gymnastics recruits in the country and is sure to assist the team in a win. The freshman scored a 9.90 on bars and beam, gaining points for cleanly executing difficult skills. Chio is an all-around gymnast, competing for all four events in both the national and international levels. She has many accomplishments, such as helping the U.S. National Team win gold in 2021 and a first-place all-around score in the 2023 Nastia Liukin Cup. She has become the National Champion seven times and won the 2021 American Classic champion on bars, vault, and all around.
Skye Blakely, a Florida student, is a two-time world champion and can bring great numbers to the team. Only this year, Blakely has already had great success in her athletic career. She scored a 9.95 on the uneven bars at Southeastern Conference Championships, has scored a 9.90 on bars three times this year, and scored a 9.725 on the bars only 99 days after tearing her achilles tendon at the US Olympic trials. Blakely explained “I just really want to have fun in my freshman year, coming off such a big injury.” Fans can’t wait to see what she will do next year after being fully recovered.
Avery Neff, a student in Utah, ranks as the number one recruit in the country. Neff received many offers and was extremely torn between colleges. “I would get off a 30-minute call and then five minutes later I’d be on the next 30-minute call and then 5 minutes later I’d be on the next 30-minute call” said Neff.
As a freshman, Neff has become a four-time All-American, became an all-around champion at the Regional Semifinal, became a part of the 2025 All-Big 12 Freshman Team selection, hit 41 out of 44 routines, won Utah’s Newcomer of the Year recipient, and many more things. Before coming to Utah, Neff was a seven-time national champion, 19-time Utah state champion, and 12-time regional champion. Neff is important to watch out for and will continue to shock audiences with her performance.
Lexi Zeiss, another LSU student, is a world champion and can also greatly impact her team. Zeiss is an all-around athlete scoring big numbers of points on meet days. Prior to college, Zeiss was a two-time national team member and a 2022 world champion gymnast and became the reigning all-around champion at the 2023 Winter Cup. She was a member of the second-place team at the 2022 Pan American Championships, finishing second all-around and third on beam and earning the Sportsmanship Award for Excellence, Respect, and Friendship by the Pan American Gymnastics Union.
Arkansas gymnast Joscelyn Roberson was an Olympic alternate and world champion, making her a big name in the gymnastics world. This year, Roberson has become an NCAA Championships All-Around Individual Qualifier, scored a 9.900 or higher on floor ten times, scored 9.850 or higher on vault seven times, became tied for the best gymnast on the team and top five in the SEC, and has had many other shocking accomplishments.
Many other freshmen also make an impressive impact on their teams, some including Ava Stewart, Ondine Achampong, Kaliya Lincoln, Addison Fatta, Olivia Kelly, and Kaia Tanskanen. All these girls are sure to make the NCAA a very competitive organization and leave a mark on the world of collegiate gymnastics. This year’s freshman recruits are among the strongest yet and the competitive levels will only continue to grow and get stronger.