2025 Season Rank: 5th
Who they’re losing: Haleigh Bryant, Aleah Finnegan, KJ Johnson, Sierra Ballard, Livvy Dunne, Alyona Shchennikova, Bryce Wilson
Who they’re gaining: Nina Ballou, Haley Mustari, Elyse Wenner, Molly Brinkman, Emily Innes, Madison Ulrich, Courtney Blackson
The New Faces:
In many ways, the LSU Tigers couldn’t have asked for a better season in 2025. The team won a share of the regular season SEC title, beat their biggest rival (the Oklahoma Sooners) at home in front of a sold out crowd, won the SEC Championship title outright, won Regionals and came into Fort Worth as the favorites to repeat as national champions. However, a subpar performance in the semifinals dashed the Tigers chances of defending their title.
The Tigers are losing half their lineup on nearly every event coming into 2026, but are bringing in three experienced transfers and four talented freshmen who are hungry to help the program return to the top of the podium in Fort Worth.
Madison Ulrich is a transfer from Denver, where she was the program’s top all-arounder and qualified to the NCAA Championships as an individual last season. Courtney Blackson had a successful career at Boise State, graduating as a two-time WCGA All-American, two-time NCAA National Qualifier, and the 2023 national runner-up on vault. After taking a year off from the sport, Blackson is back and ready to make her mark as a Tiger, primarily on vault and bars. Last but not least is Emily Innes, a senior who spent her first three years at Washington. Innes brings experience and a high level of consistency on events like beam and floor, and has elevated her game on vault — now training a Yurchenko 1.5 — to put herself in contention on that event as well.
Among the freshmen, the biggest name in this class is Nina Ballou. Ballou arrives as one of the top all-arounders in the country from her club career, where she was a seven-time national champion and a four-time Nastia Liukin Cup qualifier. She could see time on every event this season, but floor is what she is best known for, thanks to her high energy, performance quality, and big tumbling. Haley Mustari is a stunning bars and beam worker capable of perfection, having scored eight perfect 10s on bars and one on beam during her Level 10 career. Elyse Wenner is also a beautiful gymnast with great lines and clean execution on every event. We may not see her this season due to complications in her recovery from back-to-back concussions, but she is certainly someone to watch in the years to come, particularly on floor. Finally, Molly Brinkman was a late addition to this Tiger squad, switching her commitment from Clemson early in the spring. Brinkman had a breakout senior season and enters college as the 2025 development program national vault champion. She also finished third on floor, where she brings huge tumbling and a high level of consistency.
Vault Breakdown:
Losing from postseason lineup: Haleigh Bryant, Aleah Finnegan, KJ Johnson
New faces to watch for: Courtney Blackson, Madison Ulrich, Emily Innes, Nina Ballou, Molly Brinkman
Outlook: LSU spent a good portion of last season ranked No. 1 on vault, and they have the talent to maintain that position in 2026. They return NCAA vault champion Kailin Chio, who averaged a 9.925 last season, along with Amari Drayton, who performs one of the most dynamic Yurchenko 1.5s in the country (9.844 average). Kaliya Lincoln (9.838) is also back. Head coach Jay Clark shared with us that she is healthy and planning to go for a double-twisting Yurchenko on vault this season instead of a Yurchenko 1.5. Lincoln performed this vault with ease during her elite days, so bringing it to college should be an easy transition.. Lexi Zeiss (9.842) may not have the cleanest form in the lineup, but she was the epitome of consistency last season and had a high stick rate, so she’s hard to overlook for a lineup spot!
Among the newcomers, Madison Ulrich competes a front pike half and will likely see a scoring boost in the SEC (9.794). Whether or not Ulrich will factor into this lineup with the sheer amount of depth LSU has remains to be seen; however, Jay has spoken highly of her all-around potential and we think LSU has to have one front pike half in its lineup, right? Rounding out the group is freshman Nina Ballou, who at times struggled with consistency during her club career, but when she hits, she can score big — her career-high at the club level was a 9.975.
Others in contention who we expect to see lineup time throughout the season include Konnor McClain, who hasn’t vaulted in a while due to injuries but is training a double-twisting Yurchenko. We don’t anticipate this vault becoming a staple in the lineup, but we do think she’ll get several opportunities this season. Courtney Blackson is another option; although we haven’t seen much of her vaulting in preseason, she is capable of perfection, having scored a perfect 10 on the event during her time at Boise State. According to Jay, she appears to be coming along nicely and will absolutely push for a lineup spot. Freshman Molly Brinkman is also in the mix, competing a Yurchenko 1.5 and entering college as a national champion from last year’s DP Nationals. Emily Innes is a late addition to our depth chart, as we’ve recently seen how well her Yurchenko 1.5 upgrade is progressing. If she can compete it consistently, there’s no reason she won’t be part of the conversation for lineups on this event.
Uneven Bar Breakdown:
Losing from postseason lineup: Haleigh Bryant, Aleah Finnegan
New faces to watch for: Madison Ulrich, Courtney Blackson, Nina Ballou, Haley Mustari
Outlook: Bars is the event where the Tigers lose the least, but gain quite a bit. Returning from last season are Konnor McClain (9.892), 2024 SEC bars champion Ashley Cowan (9.877), Kailin Chio (9.835), and Lexi Zeiss (9.850), all of whom were extremely consistent. The Tigers also add Madison Ulrich (9.854), who has one of the most beautiful floaty double layout dismounts we’ve seen, Courtney Blackson (9.811), who excelled on the event at Boise State, and freshman Haley Mustari, who scored perfect 10s on this event in club like it was nothing!
One of these athletes won’t make the lineup consistently, again due to depth of the roster, but we could see Jay experimenting with the lineup early in the season. Also in contention is Nina Ballou, who — despite being best known for her floor work — actually boasts her highest hit-rate percentage on bars, with 92% of her routines from the 2024–2025 seasons scoring above a 9.5. If consistency becomes the deciding factor, don’t be surprised if Ballou gets the call.
Beam Breakdown:
Losing from postseason lineup: Haleigh Bryant, Aleah Finnega, Sierra Ballard
New faces to watch for: Madison Ulrich, Emily Innes, Haley Mustari, Nina Ballou
Outlook: In our opinion, beam is the event with the most wiggle room for someone to step up and crack the lineup. The staples are Kailin Chio, who averaged a 9.904 last season, and Konnor McClain (9.854), who’s one of the best beam workers in the country. Kylie Coen also stepped up last season and proved she can hit under pressure (9.825), so we anticipate seeing her in the lineup again in 2026.
From there, several options emerge. Both Emily Innes (9.754) and Madison Ulrich (9.702) are strong on this event and will likely see a boost in their scoring potential now that they’re competing in the SEC. Amari Drayton hasn’t seen lineup time yet but has looked great in preseason. Haley Mustari is stunning on beam, and her routine should translate well to the college level. There are also athletes like Kaliya Lincoln and Lexi Zeiss, whom Jay has mentioned as being in the mix despite not having competed in lineups previously.
It’s impossible to predict the final lineup at this point with so many unknowns, but one thing is certain: fans are guaranteed to see some new faces on beam in 2026.
Floor Breakdown:
Losing from postseason lineup: Haleigh Bryant, Aleah Finnegan, Sierra Ballard
New faces to watch for: Madison Ulrich, Emily Innes, Nina Ballou, Molly Brinkman
Outlook: The Tigers are losing some heavy hitters on floor from last season, but this has always been a deep event for LSU, and they should easily be able to fill the holes left behind. Konnor McClain only competed in the postseason on floor last year, but her average during the full 2024 season — when she competed regularly — was a 9.921. Having her back in the lineup consistently is huge for LSU. Amari Drayton (9.898) and Kaliya Lincoln (9.892) both bring powerful tumbling and a level of consistency the Tigers will want to rely on in 2026. Kailin Chio is Kailin Chio, and you have to have her in the lineup (9.848). That leaves two spots open.
Freshman Nina Ballou is poised to light up the PMAC; she competes like a veteran on this event, and it’s hard to imagine an LSU floor lineup without her. Madison Ulrich brings a clean double layout and strong dynamics on floor (9.833). Kylie Coen (9.881) did her job last season when called upon, and she boasts an average higher than some teammates currently projected in the lineup. Jay said he reminded his staff not to fall in love with the idea of having a lineup full of double layouts and we can’t help but feel like Coen, who opens with a front double twist, is one of the athletes he has in mind. Emily Innes (9.867) could also see time on floor, as could freshman Molly Brinkman, who competed a solid tucked full-in during her club career. The depth is there if the coaches choose to play around with lineups early on.
Final Outlook:
On paper, the LSU Tigers lose a lot, so there is definitely an opportunity for both familiar and new faces to step up. But between the experience of the transfers, the quality of the incoming freshmen, and the hunger of the returning team members to prove that last season’s ending was a fluke, we have zero doubt that this team is capable of rising to the challenge. In our opinion, this is a team that could be standing atop the podium in Fort Worth come April if they can stay healthy.
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