LOGAN, Utah – Utah State head gymnastics coach Amy Smith announced Wednesday that Maya Perez-Lugones has signed an acceptance of her offer of admission, and in doing so, will be a member of the gymnastics team.
 
"We are so excited to add Maya to our roster," Smith said. "She is going to make an immediate impact in our lineups on bars and beam. She is a very dynamic gymnast on both of those events, with one of the biggest release moves I have ever seen on bars. She has a very driven and enthusiastic personality and is so excited to be an Aggie. We can't wait to get her on campus and get her going."
 
Perez-Lugones will join the program in January and be able to compete right away for the Aggies.
 
"To have the opportunity to continue my career at Utah State is unbelievable to the point it still does not feel real," Perez-Lugones said. "My expectation is to give it my all, regardless of the position or circumstance I could be in."
 
Perez-Lugones is a level-10 gymnast from the Georgia Gymnastics Academy in Lawrenceville, Ga. She trained under coaches Judy Prestigiacomo, Mandy Cain and Annette Kaiser. She qualified for the Junior Olympics in both 2016 and 2017 and placed ninth on bars and 11th in the all-around at the 2017 Level 10 Regionals.
 
The daughter of Marty and Ignacio Perez-Lugones finished second on bars at the 2017 Georgia State Championships and at the 2016 Level 10 Regionals, she placed fifth on beam, seventh on bars and seventh in the all-around.
 
Perez-Lugones was the 2016 Level 10 bars state champion, while also placing third on vault, fourth on floor and second in the all-around. She graduated with honors from Peachtree Ridge High School.
 
Perez-Lugones, who plans on majoring in biology at Utah State, has four siblings. Her twin sister, Alyssa, is a freshman on the Georgia gymnastics team.
 
Perez-Lugones is the fourth signee of Smith's 2018-19 recruiting class, joining Glory Yoakum (Manvel, Texas), Grace Rojas (Bolton, Ontario, Canada) and Maddie Straker (Mississauga, Ontario, Canada).
 
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