Toward the end of each season, NCAA women’s gymnastics coaches are able to nominate their senior gymnasts for the AAI Award – the so-called “Heisman Trophy of gymnastics.”

In 2025, Jade Carey (Oregon State) won the award over Jordan Bowers (Oklahoma), Audrey Davis (Oklahoma), Aleah Finnegan (LSU), Grace McCallum (Utah), and Leanne Wong (Florida).

The finalists for the AAI Award generally come from only the highest-ranked programs, but every AAI nominee, regardless of school, has had an impact on their program worth celebrating.

Let’s take a deeper dive into the seven finalists for the 2026 AAI Award, along with some that may not have made it to the final round but have still experienced immense success throughout their college careers.

The seven finalists

Carly Bauman – Michigan

Carly Bauman and Reyna Guggino are the two gymnasts remaining from the roster that helped win the Wolverines their first national title back in 2021. Now a sixth-year senior, Bauman has led the charge for a Michigan squad that has finished every year of her career in the top 20. 

Along with her team national championship, Bauman has experienced great individual success as a Wolverine, winning the Big Ten bars title in 2023 and two regional gymnast of the year nods in 2025 and 2026.

The AAI award also takes academic and leadership success into account, areas in which Bauman has excelled. After graduating with a degree in biology, health, and society in 2024, Bauman used her fifth year to earn her Masters of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology, and is currently working toward a Masters of Management.

Jordan Chiles – UCLA

Perhaps the most recognizable name on the list belongs to Jordan Chiles, the multiple-time Olympic medalist, three-time world medalist, and three-time NCAA Champion.

Chiles has been nothing short of legendary through her stint at UCLA, earning 19 Perfect 10s thus far and 21 All-American nods. With her five nods this season, Chiles became just the second Bruin ever to earn the maximum five first-team regular season All-America honors, joining Kyla Ross who achieved the feat in 2019. 

If this wasn’t enough, Chiles has also managed to write a New York Times Best-Seller, mount a successful elite comeback, and finish fourth on Dancing with the Stars – all since enrolling at UCLA in 2021.

Chiles has been among the top gymnasts in the country on all four events during her tenure as a Bruin, but it will be her energetic floor routines that gymnastics fans are likely to miss most.

Perhaps her most iconic floor routine was her 2025 junior year routine, which featured a medley of music from Prince. Chiles brought the routine back earlier this season in a dual meet against Minnesota in Prince’s native Minneapolis, bringing light to a community rocked by political tensions and exhibiting her prowess not just as an athlete but as a credible leader.

Gabby Gladieux – Alabama

Alabama had one of its best regular seasons of the past decade and finished the regular season ninth after a heart-breaking elimination in the toughest regional final in the country.

A large part of that success has been due to Gabby Gladieux, who finished the regular season as a top-10 all-arounder in the country after finishing last season ranked 12th. Her best event is undoubtedly floor, where she has scored a 9.975 seven times in her career.

Morgan Price – Arkansas

Few gymnasts can say they have been a program-defining star for multiple programs, but it’s safe to say that if we retired jersey numbers in gymnastics, Morgan Price’s would get retired at both of her alma maters.

After originally committing to the Razorbacks in 2021, Price turned heads when she committed to the newly-created program at Fisk University, immediately becoming the new squad’s premier recruit.

Price made history for Fisk, sweeping the event titles at WCGNIC nationals in 2024 and becoming the first HBCU gymnast to score a Perfect 10 when she achieved the feat on bars in 2025.

Shortly before Fisk announced that 2026 would be the program’s final season, Price announced that she would be transferring to Arkansas, her original commitment and the school where her older sister, Frankie, had just completed her fourth season with the team.

Price picked up right where she left off at Fisk, earning Arkansas’ first-ever perfect 10 in February when she was flawless on vault. Price’s presence as a key all-arounder has helped the Razorbacks make it to nationals as a team.

Anna Roberts – Stanford

Few teams have experienced the ups and downs of college gymnastics over the last five years as much as the Stanford Cardinal. A truncated 2021 season saw Stanford break any sense of momentum it had, finishing the year ranked 52nd after only five meets.

But today, Stanford is one of the top teams in the ACC and is knocking on the door of a top-five national ranking. One of the biggest keys to this turnaround has been Anna Roberts, who joined the Cardinal squad in 2023.

Competing in the all-around as soon as she arrived on campus, Roberts immediately became the backbone of the team’s lineups. 

Despite missing the majority of the 2024 season, Roberts came back with a vengeance in March and April, capturing the Cardinal’s first national title since 2018 on vault. 

She has only gotten better since then, winning shares of the ACC all-around and floor titles in 2025. This season, Roberts has earned three Perfect 10s and broken Stanford’s all-around program record with a blistering 39.875.

Nikki Smith – Michigan State

Similar to Stanford, Michigan State has seen an explosion of success since a shortened COVID season, currently experiencing the most successful era in Spartan history under head coach Mike Rowe. 

Michigan native Nikki Smith has been integral to the Spartans’ success, competing in the all-around in all but one of her meets over the past two seasons.

While a consistent all-arounder in her own right, Smith’s best events are vault and floor, where she has totaled five perfect 10s. She finished the 2025 season ranked top five nationally on vault and finished the regular season No. 7 on floor this season.

Smith has racked up the accolades during her time at Michigan State, winning the 2023 Big Ten Freshman of the Year award and the league’s 2025 Gymnast of the Year award.

Faith Torrez – Oklahoma

While it would be unfair to pinpoint Oklahoma’s massive success over the last few seasons on one gymnast, Faith Torrez has had an undeniable impact on the Sooners since arriving in Norman in 2023.

Torrez won back-to-back Big 12 floor titles during her freshman and sophomore years, establishing her as one of the best in the country on the event.

It was beam, however, where Torrez won her first individual NCAA championship title in 2024. Also in 2024, she guided Oklahoma to an all-time national record 198.950 team score. 

2025 was a breakout year for Torrez, who won the SEC beam and floor titles to round out Oklahoma’s first year in the conference. She followed the strong performance at SECs with another strong nationals run, finishing top three on beam, floor, and in the all-around, and leading the Sooners to the second national title of her tenure.

Torrez has largely been limited to bars and beam this season, and is currently ranked top three nationally on the latter.

Seven more nominees worth celebrating

Luciana Alvarado-Reid – Central Michigan

Luciana Alvarado-Reid first hit the major international elite scene in 2019, when she finished 104th in the all-around at worlds, missing out on an Olympic berth.

After the COVID break, Alvarado-Reid got her chance at redemption, winning silver in the all-around at the 2021 Pan American Championships and becoming the first Costa Rican gymnast to qualify to the Olympics. Her floor routine, which included a tribute to the Black Lives Matter movement, garnered worldwide attention.

Since arriving in Mount Pleasant, Alvarado-Reid has brought polish and panache to the Chippewa lineups, particularly on bars and floor. The two-time MAC Gymnast of the Year led the Chippewas to a regional appearance this season and competed individually as an all-arounder as well. She finished her college career as the 2026 MAC vault, beam, and all-around champion.

Kara Houghton – Sacramento State

Kara Houghton has been a consistent three-event contributor during her time in Sactown, but her best work over the years has come on bars, where she has scored as high as a 9.975.

In 2024, Houghton won the MPSF bars title and broke the Hornet’s 22-year program NQS record on the event. She went on to qualify to regionals as a bars specialist. 

Along with her work on bars, she also leads the Hornets on floor in terms of NQS and matched her career high of 9.900 in early March.

Abigail Kenney – Bridgeport

After winning WCGA DII Co-Gymnast of the Year in 2025, Bridgeport’s Abigail Kenney is back and better than ever as a veteran leader for the Purple Knights.

Heading into the postseason, Kenney has earned Bridgeport’s highest score of the season on all four events, and currently leads the Purple Knights in NQS on bars, beam, and floor. 

She has qualified for USAG/WCGNIC nationals every year of her career so far, first as an individual in 2023 and 2024 before guiding her team to a third-place finish in 2025 and 2026 while placing third in the all-around both years.

Skyelar Kerico – Penn

Once a Georgia commit, Skyelar Kerico spent the last few years of her Level 10 career dealing with injury before switching her commitment to Penn.

The decision to become a Quaker has paid dividends for Kerico, who has become one of the top gymnasts in the Ivy League over her career. 

In 2025, Kerico won the GEC titles on vault, bars, and in the all-around and was named the league’s Gymnast of the Year. Soon after, she became the first Penn gymnast to qualify for regionals in the all-around since 2013. 

Unfortunately, Kerico suffered a season-ending injury before the 2026 season, causing her to miss out on her entire senior season. While the Ivy League does not allow graduate student-athletes, Kerico has already announced her intention to fulfill her SEC dreams by transferring to LSU for the 2027 season.

Isabella Minervini – Towson

From February 13th, 2022, to January 17th, 2025, the Towson Tigers did not have a single gymnast compete in the all-around. Then came Isabella Minervini.

Minervini competed in the all-around in ten of Towson’s 14 meets, along with at regionals as an individual qualifier. She’s been consistently placed in the all-around since, competing all four events in all but one meet this year and scoring a career-high 39.450 in January.

While her all-around contributions have been critical for the Tigers, Minervini’s work on bars is what has gotten her national recognition. In 2024, Minervini finished the regular season ranked fourth nationally on the event with an NQS of 9.960 en route to national regular season All-American honors. 

Minervini finished this season second among all non-power conference gymnasts in the national bars ranking and competed at regionals as an individual all-arounder.

Serena Mullin – New Hampshire

One of the EAGL’s top-ranked gymnasts in the all-around, Serena Mullin has been key to New Hampshire’s rise in the rankings after ending the 2025 season ranked 51st. 

A seven-time All-EAGL First Team selection, Mullin led the Wildcats’ NQS standings on bars this season. Her bars routine in particular has gained praise from gymnastics fans for its unique composition, which includes a high-flying full-twisting double tuck dismount. 

Kami Zarlengo – Texas Woman’s

The Texas Woman’s Pioneers have quietly risen through the rankings since 2023, the year that Kami Zarlengo arrived on campus.

Voted the 2025 “Pioneer Gymnast of the Year” by her teammates, Zarlengo has been a consistent contributor on bars and floor during her time in Denton.

Also in 2025, Zarlengo became the first gymnast to be named a National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) All-American, recognizing her commitment and dedication to strength training and conditioning.

During her time at TWU, the Pioneers have won multiple USAG/WCGNIC national titles and have earned a plethora of conference championship titles.

Individually, Zarlengo has saved some of her best gymnastics for her final season, posting a new career high on floor earlier this season against Centenary.

Forty-five female athletes were nominated for this year’s award, which AAI has been awarding since 1982. The AAI Award winner will be announced after the conclusion of national semifinal competition on Thursday.