University of Minnesota Athletics
Gymnastics
Stenger, Rich
Rich Stenger
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- rstenger@umn.edu
- Phone:
- 612-625-6576
Phone: 612-625-6576
Email: rstenger@umn.edu
Associate head coach Rich Stenger completed his 11th year with the Gophers Gymnastics program in 2024-25.
In 2025, Stenger helped the 'U' to a 17-7 (8-1 Big Ten) record. Minnesota finished second in the Big Ten regular season standings and took third at the Big Ten Championships.
The team made the NCAA Regional Finals for the fourth time in the last five seasons (one of just two Big Ten teams to do so) and had an individual reach nationals for the second consecutive year. Four Golden Gophers earned All-Big Ten honors, including Mya Hooten making her five all-league team in five seasons. Jordyn Lyden, Sarah Moraw and Ava Stewart were named Second Team All-Big Ten while Stewart became the first freshman since 2021 to make the B1G All-Freshman Team.
Mya Hooten made nationals for the fourth time in her career, including her second straight year as an individual. Hooten won floor event titles in 11 of 15 meets, going 9.900-or-better 10 times. She was named First Team All-Big Ten, WCGA Second Team All-America, NCAA Championships Second Team All-America and Academic All-Big Ten.
Stenger helped guide Mya Hooten (vault) to qualify for the NCAA Championships as an individual. It was the first time since 2019 the Gophers have had an individual go to nationals (without the team). She won Big Ten titles in three events (every one except beam) and was named a WCGA First Team All-American on both floor and vault for the first time in her career. For the team, it was the sixth straight year with four-or-more All-B1G selections and the seventh straight year with 10+ Academic All-Big Ten honorees. The team had B1G Individual Champions in all four events for the first time since 1989 and second time ever. It was just the third time in the last 20 seasons that multiple Gophers took home B1G Individual titles (Mya Hooten, bars, floor, vault); (Sarah Moraw, beam).
In year year nine in 2023, the Maroon and Gold qualified for regional competition for the 27th season in a row, making it nine straight seasons with Stenger, including six as an associate head coach.
Stenger helped guide Mya Hooten through another elite season in 2023 in which she collected WCGA First Team All-American honors on floor and Second Team honors on vault. Hooten also earned two more perfect 10s on floor, bringing her career total to six. Maddie Quarles was named a Second Team All-American on vault.
Minnesota had four All-Big Ten selections in 2023, including Hooten (first team), Gianna Gerdes (first team), Halle Remlinger (second team) and Maddie Quarles (second team).
In the classroom, Minnesota set a program record with 19 WCGA Scholastic All-Americans. Minnesota made the top five in team GPA's for the first time ever, coming in at number three with a 3.8095 overall GPA. 16 student-athletes earned over a 3.5 GPA, while three earned a 4.0 GPA. The squad took top percentage honors by having 100% of the team, all 19 members, receiving Scholastic All-America status.
In his eighth season as an assistant with the Maroon and Gold, the Gophers had one of the best overall seasons in program history. The 2022 season was highlighted by a program-best sixth-place finish, as well as claiming a spot at the National Championship.
The Gophers broke numerous team records including a new team score record of 198.025 vs. Iowa in February. Minnesota also set a new record on floor six different times in 2022, ending the year with a new record score of (49.750). The Gophers also scored their second-highest vault score in program history (49.575) vs. Michigan.
Fifth-year senior Lexy Ramler through another historic year, one in which she won NCAA Championships First Team All-American honors and NCAA Region 2 Gymnast of the Year. Ramler won two more Big Ten event championships in 2022, bringing her career total to seven. She tied the previously-held team record of 9.975 (by Ramler) on unevem bars at Maryland in February. Ramler also scored a perfect 10 on beam, the fourth of her career in the event.
Then-sophomore Mya Hooten had another show-stopping season in 2022, as she scored three perfect 10s (vs Michigan, at Iowa and vs. LIU, Utah State and Temple), bringing her career total to four entering her junior season.
Stenger completed his seventh season with the Gophers and fourth season as associate head coach in 2021. The season was highlighted by the program’s first Big Ten Championship since 2006 and claiming a spot at the National Championship for the first time under the new eight-team format.
With Stenger’s assistance, the Gophers broke numerous team records including a new team score record of 197.750 set at the Big Ten Championship. Minnesota also set a new record on uneven bars (49.575).
Stenger coached senior Lexy Ramler to an individual Big Ten Championship on bars (9.950) and to tie the program record of 9.975 twice during the 2021 season. He also led the Gophers to a season-high fourth place national ranking on bars (Week 8).
The 2020 season was Rich Stenger’s sixth with the Gophers and third as associate head coach. The Gophers finished the shortened season ranked No. 10 overall, No. 16 on vault, No. 8 on bars, No. 4 on beam and No. 19 on floor nationally. The season ended on March 12, 2020 when the Big Ten and NCAA announced they were ceasing competitions and championships because of COVID-19 public health concerns.
With Stenger’s assistance, senior Ivy Lu finished the season ranked No. 22 nationally and No. 2 in the Big Ten on bars and was a two-time Big Ten Event Specialist of the Week in 2020. Lexy Ramler closed out her junior season ranked No. 6 on bars nationally and No. 1 in the conference.
Rich Stenger entered into his fifth season with the Gophers and second as associate head coach in 2019. Minnesota finished their season ranked No. 13 overall, as well as in the top-15 in every event: No. 11 on vault, No.9 on bars, No. 12 on beam and No. 13 on floor.
Stenger assisted in coaching Ivy Lu to Second Team All-American honors on the uneven bars and First Team All-Big Ten honors. Lu competed on the uneven bars and beam at the National Semifinals, advancing to the Regional Finals on bars.
Stenger completed his fourth season with the Gophers and first as the associate head coach in 2018. The team finished ranked No. 22 overall and No. 10 on bars. They took fourth place at their 23rd straight NCAA Regionals appearance and were undefeated at home. Stenger coached Ivy Lu to a spectacular season on bars as she was named the Big Ten Champion on the event as well as a regular season First Team All-American.
Stenger, a Roseville, Minn. native led a seasoned coaching career in the Twin Cities area prior to joining the Gophers. Stenger worked with the Twin City Twisters as an optional and elite coach since 2007.
Stenger oversees the bars team, is the main spotter, coordinates club outreach, organizes strength & conditioning for the team and leads recruiting efforts.
During his time with the Twisters, he has coached two Elite National Team members, five Junior Olympic National All-Around champions, 15 Junior Olympic National Team members and served as a technician for numerous high performance and collegiate camps. Before joining the staff at Twin City Twisters, Stenger lead the Roseville High School gymnastics team to four state championships in 2006-09. During his tenure (2005-09) the National Coaches Association ranked the team No. 1 in the country four times. He was in charge of daily assignments, served as the strength coach, spotted high level skills, planned skills training and development opportunities while maintaining equipment maintenance. Since leaving the program in 2009,
Stenger has continued to serve as a consultant for the team that has continued its success with state championships in 2012, 2013 and 2014 while earning second place in 2010 and 2011. Before working with the Roseville High School gymnastics team, Stenger served as the team coach for Roseville Gymnastics where he was responsible for all levels of development and competition and created the training curriculum for all different levels of gymnasts in the program. He coached and developed the USA TOPS program and coached a National TOPS Team member and two Junior Olympic National champions.
Email: rstenger@umn.edu
Associate head coach Rich Stenger completed his 11th year with the Gophers Gymnastics program in 2024-25.
In 2025, Stenger helped the 'U' to a 17-7 (8-1 Big Ten) record. Minnesota finished second in the Big Ten regular season standings and took third at the Big Ten Championships.
The team made the NCAA Regional Finals for the fourth time in the last five seasons (one of just two Big Ten teams to do so) and had an individual reach nationals for the second consecutive year. Four Golden Gophers earned All-Big Ten honors, including Mya Hooten making her five all-league team in five seasons. Jordyn Lyden, Sarah Moraw and Ava Stewart were named Second Team All-Big Ten while Stewart became the first freshman since 2021 to make the B1G All-Freshman Team.
Mya Hooten made nationals for the fourth time in her career, including her second straight year as an individual. Hooten won floor event titles in 11 of 15 meets, going 9.900-or-better 10 times. She was named First Team All-Big Ten, WCGA Second Team All-America, NCAA Championships Second Team All-America and Academic All-Big Ten.
In 2024, the 'U' finished second at the 2024 Big Ten Championships with a score of 197.500, falling to Michigan State by just .100. Their score of 197.500 was the second-best score at the B1G Championships in program history. Minnesota advanced to the Regional Finals for the third time in the last four seasons in 2024, one of just three Big Ten teams to do so. Their 197.400 score in Fayetteville, Ark., placed them fourth in the region behind No. 2 LSU (198.250), No. 7 Arkansas (197.825) and No. 10 Kentucky (197.475).
Minnesota finished with a 20-11 (6-3 Big Ten) final record, their most wins for any team in Stenger's 10-year tenure. The Gophers were slotted as the No. 18 team in the country according to the WCGA Preseason Poll and finished six spots ahead of that at No. 12, the highest finish of any Big Ten program. Four Gophers earned All-Big Ten honors in 2024, including the fourth for Mya Hooten (First Team) and second for Gianna Gerdes (First Team). Lauren Pearl and Ella Sirjord both made the second team for their first career All-B1G honors.Stenger helped guide Mya Hooten (vault) to qualify for the NCAA Championships as an individual. It was the first time since 2019 the Gophers have had an individual go to nationals (without the team). She won Big Ten titles in three events (every one except beam) and was named a WCGA First Team All-American on both floor and vault for the first time in her career. For the team, it was the sixth straight year with four-or-more All-B1G selections and the seventh straight year with 10+ Academic All-Big Ten honorees. The team had B1G Individual Champions in all four events for the first time since 1989 and second time ever. It was just the third time in the last 20 seasons that multiple Gophers took home B1G Individual titles (Mya Hooten, bars, floor, vault); (Sarah Moraw, beam).
In year year nine in 2023, the Maroon and Gold qualified for regional competition for the 27th season in a row, making it nine straight seasons with Stenger, including six as an associate head coach.
Stenger helped guide Mya Hooten through another elite season in 2023 in which she collected WCGA First Team All-American honors on floor and Second Team honors on vault. Hooten also earned two more perfect 10s on floor, bringing her career total to six. Maddie Quarles was named a Second Team All-American on vault.
Minnesota had four All-Big Ten selections in 2023, including Hooten (first team), Gianna Gerdes (first team), Halle Remlinger (second team) and Maddie Quarles (second team).
In the classroom, Minnesota set a program record with 19 WCGA Scholastic All-Americans. Minnesota made the top five in team GPA's for the first time ever, coming in at number three with a 3.8095 overall GPA. 16 student-athletes earned over a 3.5 GPA, while three earned a 4.0 GPA. The squad took top percentage honors by having 100% of the team, all 19 members, receiving Scholastic All-America status.
In his eighth season as an assistant with the Maroon and Gold, the Gophers had one of the best overall seasons in program history. The 2022 season was highlighted by a program-best sixth-place finish, as well as claiming a spot at the National Championship.
The Gophers broke numerous team records including a new team score record of 198.025 vs. Iowa in February. Minnesota also set a new record on floor six different times in 2022, ending the year with a new record score of (49.750). The Gophers also scored their second-highest vault score in program history (49.575) vs. Michigan.
Fifth-year senior Lexy Ramler through another historic year, one in which she won NCAA Championships First Team All-American honors and NCAA Region 2 Gymnast of the Year. Ramler won two more Big Ten event championships in 2022, bringing her career total to seven. She tied the previously-held team record of 9.975 (by Ramler) on unevem bars at Maryland in February. Ramler also scored a perfect 10 on beam, the fourth of her career in the event.
Then-sophomore Mya Hooten had another show-stopping season in 2022, as she scored three perfect 10s (vs Michigan, at Iowa and vs. LIU, Utah State and Temple), bringing her career total to four entering her junior season.
Stenger completed his seventh season with the Gophers and fourth season as associate head coach in 2021. The season was highlighted by the program’s first Big Ten Championship since 2006 and claiming a spot at the National Championship for the first time under the new eight-team format.
With Stenger’s assistance, the Gophers broke numerous team records including a new team score record of 197.750 set at the Big Ten Championship. Minnesota also set a new record on uneven bars (49.575).
Stenger coached senior Lexy Ramler to an individual Big Ten Championship on bars (9.950) and to tie the program record of 9.975 twice during the 2021 season. He also led the Gophers to a season-high fourth place national ranking on bars (Week 8).
The 2020 season was Rich Stenger’s sixth with the Gophers and third as associate head coach. The Gophers finished the shortened season ranked No. 10 overall, No. 16 on vault, No. 8 on bars, No. 4 on beam and No. 19 on floor nationally. The season ended on March 12, 2020 when the Big Ten and NCAA announced they were ceasing competitions and championships because of COVID-19 public health concerns.
With Stenger’s assistance, senior Ivy Lu finished the season ranked No. 22 nationally and No. 2 in the Big Ten on bars and was a two-time Big Ten Event Specialist of the Week in 2020. Lexy Ramler closed out her junior season ranked No. 6 on bars nationally and No. 1 in the conference.
Rich Stenger entered into his fifth season with the Gophers and second as associate head coach in 2019. Minnesota finished their season ranked No. 13 overall, as well as in the top-15 in every event: No. 11 on vault, No.9 on bars, No. 12 on beam and No. 13 on floor.
Stenger assisted in coaching Ivy Lu to Second Team All-American honors on the uneven bars and First Team All-Big Ten honors. Lu competed on the uneven bars and beam at the National Semifinals, advancing to the Regional Finals on bars.
Stenger completed his fourth season with the Gophers and first as the associate head coach in 2018. The team finished ranked No. 22 overall and No. 10 on bars. They took fourth place at their 23rd straight NCAA Regionals appearance and were undefeated at home. Stenger coached Ivy Lu to a spectacular season on bars as she was named the Big Ten Champion on the event as well as a regular season First Team All-American.
Stenger, a Roseville, Minn. native led a seasoned coaching career in the Twin Cities area prior to joining the Gophers. Stenger worked with the Twin City Twisters as an optional and elite coach since 2007.
Stenger oversees the bars team, is the main spotter, coordinates club outreach, organizes strength & conditioning for the team and leads recruiting efforts.
During his time with the Twisters, he has coached two Elite National Team members, five Junior Olympic National All-Around champions, 15 Junior Olympic National Team members and served as a technician for numerous high performance and collegiate camps. Before joining the staff at Twin City Twisters, Stenger lead the Roseville High School gymnastics team to four state championships in 2006-09. During his tenure (2005-09) the National Coaches Association ranked the team No. 1 in the country four times. He was in charge of daily assignments, served as the strength coach, spotted high level skills, planned skills training and development opportunities while maintaining equipment maintenance. Since leaving the program in 2009,
Stenger has continued to serve as a consultant for the team that has continued its success with state championships in 2012, 2013 and 2014 while earning second place in 2010 and 2011. Before working with the Roseville High School gymnastics team, Stenger served as the team coach for Roseville Gymnastics where he was responsible for all levels of development and competition and created the training curriculum for all different levels of gymnasts in the program. He coached and developed the USA TOPS program and coached a National TOPS Team member and two Junior Olympic National champions.
Signing the Block M
Tuesday, May 20
Mya Hooten: NCAA Floor Final
Friday, April 18
Mya Hooten Previews NCAA Championships
Monday, April 14
NCAA Qualifier Mya Hooten
Monday, April 07
