No. 7 Mizzou Gymnastics opens season with a win over Iowa State

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Tigers kicked off their 2026 season with a victory over the Cyclones, 196.850-191.325.

No. 7 Mizzou kicked off its season with a dominant performance over Iowa State. The team swept the competition, picking up all four overall event wins, and each of the highest individual scores. Junior Hannah Horton earned event titles on the bars, floor, and vault.

"I thought I did quite good actually. Honestly I, of course, was a little nervous. But honestly you just have to trust in the practice. Like leading up to this week feels quite good, consistent, just trusted in my work. And honestly, I just remembered how I did it leading up to this preseason," Horton said.

You can watch the full press conference with head coach Shannon Welker, and gymnasts Hannah Horton and Addison Lawrence in the video player below.

Freshman Kimarra Echols made her college debut on Sunday, and was the only Tiger to compete in each of the four events. She finished the day with a 38.650, highlighted by a 9.900 on bars.

"We got to see a lot of Kimarra today doing great. I think we all know she had some great routines today," said coach Welker. "So certainly Kimarra has got the talent, otherwise we wouldn't put her in those positions."

The Tigers ended the day with nine performances of a 9.900 or higher. Senior Addison Lawrence picked up two of those marks, netting the highest single score of the day with a 9.950 on the balance beam.

"Everyone has a shot to be in the lineup and to whoever's day is that day. So it is so cool that we have so much depth that we're all able to put up great competition routines," said Lawrence. "So I'm very thankful that, the coaches trust me and I trust the coaches to be able to make those switches around."

Up Next - Mizzou gymnastics will travel to Nebraska to face the Cornhuskers on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 3 p.m. for the Ameritas Master's Classic.