WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah – Utah State's gymnastics team will open its 2023 campaign and usher in a new era at the fourth-annual Rio Tinto Best of Utah Meet on Friday, Jan. 13, at the Maverik Center.
 
The podium event, which also features in-state rivals BYU, No. 22 Southern Utah and No. 6 Utah, will be No. 22 Southern Utah and No. 6 Utah, will begin at 7 p.m. The meet will be televised live on BYUtv, but Aggie fans wishing to attend in person can purchase tickets here.
 
Additionally, live scoring will be available online at statbroadcast.com. Utah State fans can also follow the USU gymnastics social media outlets for meet updates.
 
Thursday was a practice day for all four squads. First-year Utah State head coach Kristin White relished every moment spent with her team as the Aggies prepared to open the new season.
 
"Walking out onto the arena floor with our student-athletes and staff today was surreal," said White said. "This journey over the past seven months has been met with a lot of change, growth and unity. We have worked hard and stayed committed to being one percent better every day.
 
"Our staff is so proud of the character of these young women and we are ready to go. The season is here and this team has 'Something 2 Prove.' It's time to ride."
 
Utah State will begin the meet on bars and end on vault. BYU starts on vault, Southern Utah begins on beam and Utah opens on floor. The Utes have won the three previous Best of Utah competitions at the Maverik Center, while the Aggies placed second last season.
 
White, who was a two-time All-American gymnast at Oklahoma, is making her head coaching debut on Friday. She replaced Amy Smith last May and is the fifth head coach in program history.
 
Utah State opened the 2022 campaign by placing second out of four teams at the third-annual Rio Tinto Best of Utah Meet. Utah won the meet with a 197.100, followed by the Aggies with a 195.875. BYU took third with a 195.225, while Southern Utah finished fourth with a 195.00.
 
Utah State's score of 195.875 was the highest season-opening score in the history of the program, easily surpassing the 194.600 it scored at the Pittsburgh quad meet in 2019. The Aggies started the meet off with a solid 48.825 on vault as each gymnast in the lineup hit. Moving to bars in the second rotation, Utah State finished with a 48.850 on the event as Brianna Brooks tied for third with a 9.850.
 
In the third and fourth rotations, the Aggies recorded a 49.100 on both beam and floor. Sofi Sullivan had a 9.850 to tie for sixth on beam. Closing the meet on floor, Ariel Toomey tied for fourth with a 9.850.
 
The Aggies, who were ranked No. 34 in the Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association preseason poll, return 11 gymnasts from last year's squad that enjoyed one of its finest seasons in program history.
 
Utah State capped the 2022 campaign by placing third in Session 1 of the second round of the NCAA Norman Regional on March 31, at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Oklahoma. USU ended the year ranked No. 23 in the nation.
 
The Aggies scored at least a 49.075 on each event en route to finishing with a team score of 196.825, which is the highest score in program history for an NCAA regional meet and also ranks third all-time in school history.
 
Utah State captured its first-ever Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference championship in 2022 as the Aggies recorded a season-high 197.025, which ranks second all-time in school history. It proved to be USU's sixth conference title overall and its first since 2005 (Western Gymnastics Conference).
 
Season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased here.
 
For more information on the Utah State gymnastics program, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUGymnastics, on Facebook at UtahStateGymnastics and on Instagram at USUGymnastics.
 
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