Isabella Magnelli, front, hopes to have a lot to celebrate at the NCAA Gymnastics Championships on Thursday. (Larry VAught Photo)
It’s only fitting that Isabella Magnelli’s collegiate career will end at the NCAA National Championships Thursday in Ft. Worth, Texas.
She won 10 event titles (four on vault, six on beam) this season to bring her career total to 25. The fifth-year senior has ranked top 10 nationally on vault and beam all season and went into NCAA competition ranked sixth on beam and seventh on vault.
The Suffern, N.Y., native earned the fifth and sixth All-America honors of her career this season and became only the fourth UK gymnast to earn regular season All-America honors in three consecutive seasons joining UK legends Jenny Hansen, Mollie Korth and Raena Worley. She was one of only 11 gymnasts in the country earning multiple First Team All-America honors for the 2025 regular season.
Magnelli finished in a three-way tie at the NCAA Pennsylvania Region with a 9.95 on beam to earn an automatic spot in the NCAA Championships with a chance to win an individual national title. Kentucky just missed qualifying as a team as it finished third in the Pennsylvania Region behind defending national champion LSU and Michigan State.
Magnelli, who scored 9.90 or higher on beam in every meet this season except the regional, has a strong faith that she leans on and knows her faith has been a large part of her success.
“I grew up in a Christian home, so I’ve always been really strong in my faith within the Lord. And each time I come out here, each time in practice, I know that my faith, my trust, is in Jesus Christ, not myself, not my teammates, and that just truly has been such a big impact in my life in general, even outside of the sport of gymnastics,” Magnelli said.
“Without God, I wouldn’t be here today. I wouldn’t be able to compete the way I do, especially on beam each and every weekend. Beam is not an easy event to compete in. Like they say, Jesus Christ is my firm foundation. My faith is everything. This whole team is very faithful to the Lord, and it’s just truly has been such a blessing, and I wouldn’t be who I am, wouldn’t be where I am right now without God.”
Magnelli has been part of the “firm foundation” that coach Tim Garrison has built at UK. Kentucky is now regularly ranked nationally and has been a NCAA Regional fixture in recent years.
“I came into this program and I knew that I needed to bring something different. When I was a freshman, myself and Bailey Bunn really stepped into that leadership position even as a freshman, bringing that energy to the team,” Magnelli said. “I feel like I’ve continued to do that over the years. It is hard to be put in that position, and not everyone has the gift to be put in that position. It has truly been an honor to have the firm foundation.
“I tell these girls, ‘Hey, you sophomores, when you’re juniors next year, you got to step up in that leadership position.’ Throughout this year, they’ve just been able to speak more and be that example that all the upperclassmen have been over the years, so I’m super excited to see what they have in store for them next year when myself and the other seniors are not here.”
Magnelli has been a fan favorite not only because of her extraordinary skills but also due to her bubbly personality. She does not hide her emotions during competition and always seems to be smiling and having fun.
“I always have fun. I think it’s really hard when you practice so hard and then you have that one time where you just go and you make a little mistake, and I try my hardest not to get down on myself,” she said. “One meet when I didn’t stick my vault, I got really down on myself. But then I realized there’s so much more to this. I’m almost done, and just got to take that away, move on to the next event and just attack it and have fun.”
Magnelli played soccer and lacrosse — her sister, Tonianne, played lacrosse at Boston University — but she started gymnastics at age 5 and it was always her favorite.
“I’m super blessed. God has made me to be that type of person for so many reasons,” Magnelli said. “It’s so amazing to have such a beautiful talent that I’m so blessed with, but also having that personality that people can go to whether they’re having a bad day or a good day.
“Gymnastics is such a hard sport, mentally, and having teammates like me being mentally strong and bringing up the energy and saying positive things toward my teammates allows everyone to enjoy it. That has been God’s plan for me.”
