Mizzou Gymnastics Takes First Place in Quad Meet to Open 2025 Season

The Missouri Tigers competed in the Beauty and the Beast quad meet, racking up a first-place finish. The team scored a 196.700.

Mar 30, 2023; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Amari Celestine of Missouri competes in the floor exercise during the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Los Angeles Regional at Pauley Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images / Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

Missouri gymnastics took the floor for the first time in 2025, ready to compete against Southeast Missouri State, Illinois State and Ball State. The quad meet resulted in a first-place finish for the Tigers, with the team earning a score of 196.700.

As fans watched, the Tigers competed and excelled in multiple events. Senior Amari Celestine took first place in the all-around, earning a score of 39.350.

"I was really pleased with our team tonight," head coach Shannon Welker said. "For the opening competition of the year, I thought we did a really nice job."

Fans were entertained not just by the show the gymnasts were putting on, but also by the wrestling match that was occurring just feet away. In this meet, dubbed Beauty and the Beast, Missouri's gymnastics and wrestling teams competed simultaneously. Therefore, something was going on everywhere you looked, making for a thrilling atmosphere.

Missouri started the night on vault. That was a fitting event for the Tigers to compete on first, as it helped them spring into an early lead. Senior Jocelyn Moore posted the highest vault score for Missouri, earning a 9.850. Two other Tigers cracked 9.800s, as Abby Mueller and Hannah Horton hit it square on.

After the first rotation, Missouri was in the lead with a score of 48.975. The Illinois State Redbirds were not far behind, holding a score of 48.775.  Just behind them was Ball State, while SEMO sat in last.

Missouri then moved to the bars for the second rotation. There, the Tigers embodied their role as the “beauties” of the meet by putting up multiple stunning routines. Mizzou Arena started blaring the song “Sticky” by Tyler, The Creator, emblematic of the multiple stuck landings the Tigers accomplished. 

Horton earned a 9.925 on the apparatus, the highest score by any gymnast on any event.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Missouri Gymnastics (@mizzougym)

Celestine also impressed, grabbing a 9.900. These high scores contributed to Missouri's overall bar score of 49.425. This allowed the Tigers to pull away from their opponents, now holding a 98.400-97.000 lead over the second-place Redbirds.

Missouri hopped onto the beam next, which was the team’s worst event in 2024. The Tigers still showed signs of struggle, as their worst scores of the night came on that apparatus.

Sophomore Jessa Conedera scored a 9.150, Missouri’s worst score of the competition. Fellow sophomore Kennedy Griffin's performance was also below her standard, as she earned a 9.550. 

Junior Addison Lawrence provided Missouri with some momentum on the beam. Before the meet, the gymnast took to Instagram to ask her followers if they were ready for the “coolest show in the NCAA.” A show is certainly what Lawrence put on, as she scored a 9.900 to win the beam event.

"Before my routines, I just couldn't help but smile," Lawrence said. "It was so amazing and I'm so happy to be back."

Following the third apparatus, Missouri was still in first place with a total score of 147.500. The Tigers headed to the floor to put the meet away.

That's just what they did after racking up a total floor score of 49.200. The score was accomplished after Celestine, Moore and Horton all earned 9.850s, which tied for first place out of all four teams. Missouri ended the meet with a total score of 196.700.

The Beauty and the Beast meet was one of Missouri's least challenging of the year, as none of the Tigers' opponents were ranked. However, it was a good way to ease into the season.

Various freshmen Tigers competed, providing fans with a glimpse of Missouri's young talent. The freshmen's inexperience showed in the first rotation, as Kaia Tanskanen and Ayla Acevedo earned two of the lower scores on the beam.

Freshman Railey Jackson showed promise as she earned a 9.800 on the beam. She also logged a 9.825 on her floor routine.

"We had a lot of new people in there," Welker said. "We really wanted to take tonight to test out some lineups."

Missouri will compete again on Jan. 12 in another quad meet. The Tigers will take on Denver, Georgia and Long Island University in Denver, Colo. at 3 p.m.