Women's Gymnastics | November 22

 
DeKALB, Ill. - The Northern Illinois University gymnastics team will add five gymnasts for the 2024-25 season as NIU head coach Sam Morreale announced the signing of Aliyah Kelly, Maria King, Audrey Brenner, Katie Ferguson and Drake White on Wednesday.

"I am super excited about the 2024 class and what they are bringing to NIU Gymnastics," Morreale said. "They all have a chance to contribute right when they arrive, so we are excited about that. They raise the skill level and ability of the team when they get here. I am looking to continue the success we have already had and build on that to take the program to the next level."

Manteno, Illinois product Aliyah Kelly attends Manteno High School and competes for the United Gymnastics Academy in Frankfort. She has qualified for nationals two years in a row after returning from a back injury. Kelly has competed at Level 10 for four years and has a high score of 9.725 on uneven parallel bars. She qualified for the state, regional and nationals meets in 2022 and 2023. Kelly plans to study health sciences.

"Aliyah has a chance to come in and be one of our best freshmen ever. Her skill level and competitiveness are something we are really happy about," Morreale said.

Maria King attends Currey Ingram Academy in her hometown of Nashville, Tenn. and trains with the Nashville Gymnastics Training Center. After injuries prevented King from training for two years, she bounced back in 2023 as she qualified for the Eastern Championships. Her top events are uneven parallel bars and the balance beam. King has been a Level 9 gymnast for two years and her top score is a 9.650 on bars at the 2023 Tennessee state meet. She is planning on pursuing a degree in psychology at NIU.

A 2023 national qualifier while competing for Precision Athletics in Oshkosh, Wis., Audrey Brenner comes to NIU from Fond du Lac, Wis. and Fond du Lac High School. Brenner's top events are the vault and floor exercise with her top score being a 9.55 at nationals and regionals in 2023. Brenner has qualified for the USAG State Meet the last three seasons, the USAG Regional Meet in 2022 and 2023 and the USAG National Meet in 2023. She also competed in track and field while in high school.  Named to the National Honor Society in 2022 and 2023, Brenner is planning on studying biology and hopes to be an orthopedic surgeon.

A native of Bloomington, Ind. who attends Bloomington High School North, Katie Ferguson trains at the Jaycie Phelps Athletic Center in Greenfield, Ind where her top event is the uneven parallel bars. She has competed as a Level 10 gymnast for five years. Ferguson's top score was on the bars at the Jaycie Phelps showdown in 2022 where she scored a 9.725. She has qualified for the USAG State and Regional meets in 2021, 2022 and 2023. Ferguson's mom and dad were both athletes at Yale. Her father Andrew played soccer and her mom Elise was a gymnast for the Bulldogs. She plans to major in elementary education at NIU.

The Huskies also went to Indiana to bring Indianapolis' Drake White to NIU. The Bishop Chatard High School student competed at the club level for The Flip Zone in Plainfield, Ind. Where she was a state qualifier the last three seasons. She has been a Level 10 gymnast for three seasons and earned a 9.6 on vault at the state meet in 2023. White won the Region 5 most entertaining floor routine award in 2021. White has made the honor roll all four years of high school and plans pursue a degree in communications or journalism.

"All five gymnasts will push our returning roster and that will just make us better in the long run," Morreale said.

The Huskies open the 2024 gymnastics season on January 6 at the Missouri Quad Meet. The Huskies will host four meets in 2024, the first of which will be a quad meet in the NIU Convocation Center on January 28.

-- NIU --