Mizzou Gymnastics began its last season with the Beauty and the Beast event, where the gymnasts and the Mizzou Wrestling squad competed simultaneously at Mizzou Arena.
Now Mizzou Gymnastics is back in the arena, full-time.
The Tigers will compete in Mizzou Arena for five of their six regular-season home meets this season, a move made possible after last year’s historic campaign, a program-best third-place finish at the NCAA Championship Final to conclude its 2025 season.
This accelerated the long-term desire of Tigers head coach Shannon Welker, which he admitted carried personal weight.
“I got a little emotional at the beginning of tonight,” Welker said. “This is something I’ve been trying to work on for over 10 years. The premier venue is something you need to compete at a premier level, and now we have that.”
On the floor, Missouri split into Black and Gold squads, with Gold edging Black 158.150–157.650 in a tightly contested exhibition. Both teams posted consistent scores across all four events, reinforcing Welker’s belief that depth — not star power — will define this season.
“I think we’re deeper this year,” Welker said. “There’s competition everywhere. I don’t think there’s one person who’s going to carry us the whole way.
Missouri gymnastics gave the crowd a show in their first night at Mizzou Arena
Sophomore Rayleigh Jackson delivered one of the night’s top performances, winning vault outright with a 9.900 and tying for first on beam with a 9.950. Jackson competed all-around as she continues her return from a shoulder injury suffered late in high school — a milestone Welker called “real progress”
“It was very exciting,” Jackson said. “I’ve been waiting a long time to show that vault in front of a big crowd, especially in Mizzou Arena.”
Freshman Kamara Echols also made an immediate impression in her first unofficial meet as a Tiger. Echols tied for first on beam with a 9.950 and added a 9.900 on floor, finishing as one of the exhibition’s most consistent performers.
“The coaches have really helped with my confidence,” Echols said. “They believe in me, and that makes it easier to believe in myself.”
Across the meet, Missouri recorded multiple 9.9-plus scores on every apparatus. Kaia Tanskanen posted a 9.950 on bars and beam, while Kennedy Griffin won floor with a 9.950 for the Black squad. Beam and bars emerged as particularly competitive events, with several gymnasts separated by tenths or less.
As Missouri prepares to open the regular season against Iowa State before facing former Big Eight rival Nebraska, Welker emphasized that the exhibition was less about perfection and more about trajectory.
“You’ll see steady progress all year,” Welker said. “Different people stepping up. That’s what makes this team exciting.”
With a proven core, impactful newcomers, and a new stage worthy of its ambitions, Missouri gymnastics enters the 2025–26 season positioned to build on last year’s breakthrough — and to do so under brighter lights than ever before.