Illinois (194.175) placed second in its 2025 season opener in Muncie, Indiana, over the weekend. It fell just 0.275 points short of a first-place victory over No. 14 Ball State (194.450) in a hard-fought battle. Illinois did manage to edge out SEMO (189.750) and UW-Eau Claire (181.500).
Leading up to the meet, head coach Nadalie Walsh posted to her Instagram story that fifth-year Amelia Knight would be “confidently leading the way to the first stop on our 2025 season journey!” It was big news for a program that needed the boost and will benefit from Knight’s return this season.
1st-place finishers
Illinois started the meet on the bars with its strongest routines. Junior Arielle Ward and senior Makayla Green finished in the top three. Ultimately, it was Green’s score of 9.800 that earned her a tie for first.
On the balance beam for the Illini, Knight led her team and the meet. An unexpected return for the fifth-year began with a score of 9.850, good enough for first place.
Get The Daily Illini in your inbox!
The Illini’s third event, vault, earned them yet another first place. Both sophomore Mareli Muller and freshman Chloe Cho saw themselves vaulting to the podium. Muller’s score of 9.800 earned her a four-way tie for second place, while Cho’s extra 0.050 points earned her the first-place finish.
Talented freshmen
The Illini had numerous freshmen in various events for their first meet. Seven first-year athletes make up roughly 32% of the Illini’s roster, and five competed on Sunday.
Kennedy Brown, Cho, Marly Esteves, Mya Gordon and Eden King filled the lineup with fresh talent in Indiana. Cho was the leading freshman who earned a first-place finish on the vault and tied for third in the all-around with a score of 38.700.
Early improvement areas
Even with success, there is always room for improvement as the season progresses. While the Illini finished No. 2 for the floor exercise, it was their only event without a top-three podium finish.
Ball State had five of its athletes tie or place higher than Illinois in the floor exercise. Illinois’ top finishers were Muller and junior Tali Joelson, who tied for fifth with their scores of 9.775. Cracking the podium in the floor exercise could be a key component for Illinois to improve its overall standing.
What’s next?
Illinois will have its first home meet and Big Ten matchup on Saturday at Huff Hall against Nebraska. Revenge is on the minds of the Illini in the conference opener after a close loss against the Cornhuskers last year.
@lauram0131
