EAU CLAIRE, Wis. - The Winona State University Gymnastics program heads into the 2024 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) season with eyes on a league championship and earning opportunities to compete on the national stage in March. In addition, Winona State enters the current campaign having turned in an impressive fall semester in classroom as a program.
Head coach Stephanie Geislinger, heading into her third season with Winona State, stated, "As a coaching staff, we are very excited to see what this 2024 Warrior Gymnastics team will accomplish. Our team is well represented with decorated upperclassmen, as well as a core group of talented underclassmen with a great deal of experience. We like the mix of power and artistry that we will bring to meets on a weekly basis and hope to start right where we left off at the WIAC championships in 2023."
Among the key gymnasts WSU returns from last season are are Taryn Sellner, Kaylee Bateman, and Kennedy O'Connor. Sellner, Bateman, and O'Connor each earned an opportunity to compete in the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association (NCGA) Championships last year. Sellner stood out on the beam, while Kaylee Bateman and competed on bars, and Kennedy O'Connor represented WSU on the vault.
Joining Sellner and O'Connor in the Winona State senior class are Izzy Kropwiec, and Ashley Roth. Additional individuals in the Warrior lineup likely to contribute early on are Jessica Miley and Camdyn McSweeney. As the season unfolds, Geislinger expects the Warrior depth to be a positive factor, with eight freshmen in the 2024 squad.
In terms of coaching staff, Geislinger has added Lydia Anderson as a student assistant coach to the strong roster of coaches this season. Anderson will join head coach Stephanie Geislinger, assistant coach Elizabeth Kronebusch, and another newcomer to the Warrior staff, Abby Keeling. Also new to the coaching staff is Hailey Bryant, entering her first year as a coach in the program.
In addition to pursuing competitive success in the upcoming season, Winona State gymnastics can point with pride to recent team acheivements in the classroom as well.
Coach Geislinger said "I'm very proud of the effort put forth by our team in terms of balancing the demands of being both a student and an athlete this semester. It's a testament to their work ethic and understanding of what is expected of them as a student athlete in our program." The Warriors had 15 athletes out of 108 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) individuals that earned Scholastic All-American Honors from the Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) for the 2022-23 academic year. The gymnastics program had over half of the squad earn a 4.0 in the most recent fall semester, the best of any team in the Winona State Athletic department.
The Winona State University Warriors look to open their season on the road at UW-Eau Claire on January 11, with the WIAC meet starting at 5pm. The home opener for the Warriors will be January 19 in a dual against UW-Oshkosh in McCown Gymnasium, home of WNB Financial Court. The Warriors and Titans will start at 6pm.
