UTICA, NY - After sending two gymnasts to the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association Championships, and crowning another pair of All-Americans, the Utica University gymnastics team is set to begin its junior campaign this weekend. The team will travel to take on the SCSU Quad, hosted by Southern Connecticut State University, alongside Springfield College and Rhode Island College, on Saturday January 17. Start time from New Haven, CT is set for 1pm. 
 
Follow Along: For those unable to attend, live results can be found here, courtesy of Virtius. Live video can also be found here. 
 
Run it Back: In the team's sophomore campaign, the program put forth a sixth place finish at the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association East Regional, combining for a team total of 187.830 points. A pair of gymnasts in Grace Marra (St. James, NY/Smithtown East) and Emmy Graff (Boulder, CO/Connections) qualified for the NCGA National Championships, where the pair were crowned as All-Americans. Graff placed eighth in the All-Around with a combined score of 37.350, while Marra earned her second All-American title in the all-around with a combined score of 37.775, and another nod after a sixth palace finish in the floor exercise with a score of 9.825. The team put together some stellar performances, setting a new school record team score of 189.325 against Cortland,  a new team uneven bars record of 47.150, and a new team floor exercise record of 48.275.
 
Behind it All: Head Coach Danielle Cerminaro is set to lead the program in its third season. With 40-plus years of gymnastics experience, Cerminaro has coached numerous Division I and Division III gymnasts while having owned and operated local Valley Gymnastics since August 2008. She also serves as the head of Section III gymnastics. 2025 NCGA East Region   Assistant Coach of the Year Jenna Zakala will assist Cerminaro with all facets of the program including scouting, recruiting, practice and meet preparation, as well as day-to-day operations in the office. As a coach of Valley Gymnastics, Zakala has been mentoring athletes of all ages as she enters her third season coaching at the collegiate level. AJ Banker and Byron Saggese will also assist Cerminaro as volunteer coaches.
 
Schedule Breakdown: The Pioneers are poised to host more than one home meet for the first time in program history this season. The first of three will be a dual meet against Cortland beginning at 6pm on Friday, January 23, hosted at Valley Gymnastics.After a week break, the Pioneers will welcome Ursinus College to Miga Court inside of the Clark Athletic Center for a 1:00 dual meet on Sunday, February 8. The Pioneers' final home meet is slated for Sunday, March 1 as the team will welcome Springfield College and Rhode Island College to Valley Gymnastics for a tri-meet beginning at 1pm. The NCCGA East Regional is scheduled for Saturday March 7 in Providence, RI with RIC serving as host. If qualified, gymnasts will then compete at the NCGA National Championship on Friday, March 20, with Cortland serving as this year's event host. 
 
Guess Who's Back: In search of her third consecutive All-American nod in the all-around, Grace Marra (St. James, NY/Smithtown East) has returned for her junior campaign with the Pioneers. Marra was dominant last season, posting team season high scores in the vault, the balance beam, and the floor exercise. Marra's top score of 9.525 on vault was good enough for the third spot on the team leaderboard, while her career high 9.700 on beam was good enough for third, and her career high 9.850 on floor was good enough for third. Emmy Graff (Boulder, CO/Connections) has also returned for her sophomore campaign after being crowned the program's second All-American two seasons, searching for her second All-American nod. Graff set a new school record in the All-Around last season with a combined score of 38.625 between the four events, scoring a 9.625 on vault, a 9.750 on the uneven bars, a 9.650 on beam, and a 9.600 in the floor exercise. 
 
All-Stars: Several Pioneers that posted top scores last season have returned to their respective event lineups this season. Returning to the vault are Madison Villani (Port Jefferson Station, NY/Comsewogue) and Haley Miller (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy). Villani and Miller put up some of the highest vault scores on the team last season, with Villani posting a 9.500 and Miller a 9.475. On the uneven bars, Kaitlyn Vaz (Salem, OR/Baker Early College) and Alyssa Langston (Pearland, TX/Pearland) have returned for this season. Vaz posted the third highest bars score on the team last season with a 9.550. Langston set a new school record on bars last season, posting a 9.825 on the apparatus. Langston also managed to find herself in second on the program leaderboard on the balance beam after posting a team season-high 9.750. Ainsley Pinckard (Pflugerville, TX/St. Dominic Savio Catholic) has also returned this season after posting a 9.700 season high on the beam last season. In the floor exercise, the Pioneers have returned both Addison Ferri and Emily Plone (Hudson, OH/Hudson), who posted top scores in the event last season. Ferri managed the third best on the team with a 9.650, while Plone followed behind with a 9.625. 
 
Welcome to the Show: The Pioneers will welcome five newcomers to the team this season. Head Coach Danielle Cerminaro will look to Claire Reider, Ellie Ott (Saratoga Springs, NY/Saratoga Springs), Lola Kiesel (Long Island, NY/Bayport Blue-Point), Alisya Dorman (Killingworth, CT/Haddam Killingworth), and Lexi Bregande (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) to make an immediate impact this season. 
 
A Look at the Field: Southern Connecticut State University will serve as the host and enters the meet with early-season momentum after a second-place finish at a quad meet at Brown, totaling 190.725 points. The Owls showcased depth across all four events, led by first-year transfer Lola Sepulveda's 38.575 all-around performance. Southern Connecticut also flashed high-end scoring potential on floor, highlighted by Angelina Stanfa's meet-best 9.850, while Jordan Villani added a strong all-around effort and a team-leading 9.700 on vault. Rhode Island College comes in after placing third at the same quad with a 189.325 team score, proving competitive throughout the lineup. Junior Madeline Brandt led the Anchormen by tying for first on floor with a 9.850, while Aaliyah Krause delivered a consistent all-around performance, finishing second overall with a 37.725. RIC also showed balance on vault, bars, and beam, making them a steady contender in a tight field. Springfield College opened the season with a fourth-place finish, posting a 183.425 team score. The Pride were highlighted by Kora Donley's 9.700 on floor, along with solid vault performances from Stacy Taylor and Sage Kaplan. Springfield also found success on beam, with Reagan Charlton and Brooke Ginter each recording top-10 finishes, as the Pride continue to build consistency early in the season.
 
Up Next: The Pioneers will welcome Cortland to Valley Gymnastics for the team's first home meet of the season. Start time on Friday, January 23 is set for 6pm.