WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah – Utah State's gymnastics team wasted no time delivering a stellar performance as the Aggies finished second at the Les Olson IT Best of Utah Meet held here at the Maverik Center on Monday with a 195.825. That score is its second-highest season-opening score in program history. It is just the second time in the seven-year history of the event that USU has placed second.

No. 5 Utah won the quad meet with 197.300, followed by Utah State (195.825), BYU (195.725) and Southern Utah (195.675).

Utah State began the meet on vault and scored 48.900, followed by 49.000 on bars, 48.925 on beam and 49.000 on floor.

Junior Sydney Jelen was named the Utah State Most Valuable Performer as she scored a career-high 9.850 on bars and 9.800 on beam.

Utah State posted seven career highs during the meet while five freshmen made their Aggie debut.

Head Coach Kristin White
"I am incredibly proud of our team tonight. We had so many new routines out there, either by freshmen or upper classmen, and they did their job. We talked about trusting our training, trusting each other, and putting it all out on the floor.

"We came in here to do exactly what we did. I am proud of our team and we persevered. We weren't perfect tonight, we have a lot of room that we can continue to improve, but overall, it was a fantastic start."

Rotation One – Vault (48.900)
Utah State opened the meet scoring 48.900 on vault. Senior Chelsea Southam and freshman Alianna Valdez led the Aggies with identical scores of 9.825. Southam's score was a career high. Junior Mya Witte led off with a career-high 9.750, followed by a career-high 9.750 from sophomore Olivia Orengo. Freshman Anabelle Dewey followed with another 9.750. Valdez then scored her 9.825 and Southam matched that score. Junior Nyla Morabito finished the rotation with 9.650. 

1. Mya Witte – 9.750
2. Olivia Orengo – 9.750
3. Anabelle Dewey – 9.750
4. Alianna Valdez – 9.825
5. Chelsea Southam – 9.825
6. Nyla Morabito – 9.650
7. Isabella Vater – 9.650 (Ex.)

Rotation Two – Bars (49.000)
Utah State moved to bars for its second rotation and posted 49.000. Jelen opened the rotation with a career-high 9.850. Freshman Charley Laufer followed with 9.725 in her first event as an Aggie. Junior Isabella Vater posted 9.750 in her first-ever bars routine and Orengo notched 9.850. Sophomore Lundyn VanderToolen concluded the rotation with 9.825.

1. Sydney Jelen – 9.850
2. Charley Laufer – 9.725
3. Avery Bibbey – 9.150
4. Isabella Vater – 9.750
5. Olivia Orengo – 9.850
6. Lundyn VanderToolen – 9.825
7. Amari Evans – 9.050 (Ex.)

Rotation Three – Beam (48.925)
The high scores kept coming for Utah State on beam as the team scored 48.925. Valdez led the way for the Aggies with 9.825, while Jelen and Orengo both scored 9.800. Junior Mya Witte posted 9.775 and sophomore Kaylie Medrano notched 9.725.

1. Sydney Jelen – 9.800
2. Alianna Valdez – 9.825
3. Olivia Orengo – 9.800
4. Kaylie Medrano – 9.725
5. Mya Witte – 9.775
6. Nyla Morabito – 8.975
7. Isabella Vater – 9.125 (Ex.)

Rotation Four – Floor (49.000)
Utah State finished the competition with 49.000 on floor. Vater paced the Aggies with a career-high-tying 9.875, while freshman Mara Gruber scored 9.825. Fellow freshman Sienna Yelle followed with 9.800 while Orengo and Southam finished the competition with back-to-back scores of 9.750. For Southam, it was her first-ever floor routine. Senior Marley Peterson added a score of 9.725.

1. Marley Peterson – 9.725
2. Mara Gruber – 9.825
3. Sienna Yelle – 9.800
4. Isabella Vater – 9.875
5. Olivia Orengo – 9.750
6. Chelsea Southam – 9.750
7. Anabelle Dewey – 9.825 (Ex.)

Up Next
Utah State begins its home season by hosting Southern Utah in a dual meet on Saturday, Jan. 17, at noon.

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Fans can purchase tickets for the 2026 Utah State gymnastics season here.

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Best of Utah Meet
West Valley City, Utah | Maverik Center | January 12, 2026

Team Results
1. Utah: 197.300 (VT: 49.375; UB: 49.625; BB: 49.075; FX: 49.225)
2. Utah State: 195.825 (VT: 48.900; UB: 49.000; BB: 48.925; FX: 49.000)
3. BYU: 195.725 (VT: 48.975; UB: 48.750; BB: 49.000; FX: 49.000)
4. Southern Utah: 195.675 (VT: 49.050; UB: 48.900; BB: 48.750; FX: 48.975)