BATON ROUGE – The defending national champions LSU Gymnastics team signed the No. 3 recruiting class on Wednesday during National Signing Day. National Champions Nina Ballou, Haley Mustari and Elyse Wenner will all join the Tigers in Fall 2025.
“This year’s signing class is complete from top to bottom. They compliment eachother really well in terms of where their strengths lie,” said head coach Jay Clark. “They bring consistency, power, grace and elegance. There’s a variety of attributes that exist in this class that I think will serve us well and we can’t wait to welcome home our future Tigers.”
Ballou is a five-star gymnast out of Boca Raton, Florida, who trains at American Twisters in Coconut Creek. A five-time National Champion and three-time Nastia Liukin Cup qualifier, the Florida native is the No. 7 recruit.
“Nina is an alpha in every way,” said Clark. “She has one of the most competitive and tenacious mindsets. A consistent all-around competitor, I think she will be someone that will be able to contribute on all four events for us.”
Ballou medaled in the all around at the last three national championships, including winning gold in 2022. She took home gold on floor and bars in this year’s Women’s Development Program (DP) National Championships in Daytona, her second gold medal on floor and first on bars in her career.
For Ballou, she has known she’s wanted to be a Tiger since a young age. “I come from a long line of LSU fans and the atmosphere just made me feel right at home. The culture, community, and family aspects that come out of this program and school are unmatched! (I absolutely love the food as well),” she said.
Ballou boasts career highs of 9.900 or better on three events with a career high 39.150 in the all-around.
A native out of Edmond, Oklahoma, Mustari is another five-star gymnast who trains at Dynamo Gymnastics. She is ranked No. 10 in this year’s recruiting class.
“Haley will initially be known for her bars and beam. She is really elegant and has beautiful lines on those two events, but has the potential for long-term impact in the all-around. She gives us a different style than we’re used to seeing.”
Mustari is a four-time national champion with five nationals appearances under her belt. Her first career top finish came in 2021, when she earned gold on bars, the event that she now owns three national titles.
On top of her bar national championships, the Oklahoma native was named the 2023 all-around champion for the first time in her career last year, while also claiming her first gold medal on beam this year. She owns nine perfect 10’s, with eight of those coming on bars, and over 25 top 100 scores across her level 10 career.
“Signing to LSU is a dream come true,” said Mustari. “This amazing opportunity is the culmination of years of hard work, sacrifice and determination and I could not be more excited to join this special program.”
The No. 3 recruit in the class of 2025 and a two-time nationals and Nastia Cup qualifier, Wenner is a five-star out of Breinisville, Pennsylvania who trains at Stallone Gymnastics. She comes to Baton Rouge a three-time national champion with two titles on beam and one on vault.
“Elyse is an incredibly athletic and powerful gymnast. Her ability level is unlike anyone in the country as a freshman. Everything she does is big, and she adds a dynamic to the leg events that we will need,” said Clark.
Wenner had a breakout season in 2023, putting up multiple Top 100 scores. She finished amongst the top-10 gymnasts on every event at regionals, highlighted by a first place finish on vault.
This year, she claimed gold on beam at nationals in Daytona and finished amongst the top-10 all-arounders in the Senior B division. She owns personal bests of 9.900 or higher on vault and floor and a 39.175 in the all-around.
Now, she’s ready to make her mark in collegiate gymnastics. “I am so excited to spend the next four years in the best environment for me and to have a chance to compete with the best people,” said Wenner.
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