The college gymnastics is about to see a massive shift as All-American Ava Piedrahita, from Penn State, is transferring to Clemson as a part of the 2026 signing class just ahead of the 2027 Gymnastics season.

Ava Piedrahita is officially moving to the Death Valley for her fifth year of eligibility. In an Instagram note, Ava expressed her excitement to embrace the change and wrote that she is grateful to have been part of the Nittany Lions for the past four years.

In her heartfelt note, she thanked the team at Clemson for welcoming her with open arms and giving her the incredible opportunity to finish her collegiate career there.

She extended a “huge thank you to Justin, Liz, Jesse, and Luke,” from Clemson, as she had already formed connections with them.

Ava’s arrival at Clemson signals a new era for the program. She established herself as a Big Ten standout at Penn State with her historic performance in the 2024 season, when she recorded the highest single-season point total in program history since 2000 at 589.025. Her achievements as an all-arounder at Penn State will definitely leave a void for the Nittany Lions.

As Ava joins Clemson, she will benefit from the expertise of Justin Howell and Liz Crandall-Howell, the coaching duo who recently moved from Cal to Clemson and are known for developing all-arounders into perfect 10 contenders.

Co-head coach Justin said they are thrilled to have Ava join the Tigers, adding that she has proven herself at the highest level and that they cannot wait to watch her "light up Littlejohn Coliseum".

From Nittany Lions to Tigers

As a freshman in 2023, Ava Piedrahita earned the All-American title on vault. This shook the gymnastics world, as she established herself as one of the best at the NCAA Championship so early.

During her sophomore year, she competed in 15 all-around outings, which led to a record-breaking total of 589.025 points for Penn State and helped the team advance to the NCAA Regional Final.

In 2025, Ava was out due to injury, but in the 2026 season, she scored 9.950 on bars and later performed seven consecutive routines, four on vault and three on bars, with scores of 9.9 and above in her final year. She has earned three All-Big Ten selections and 9.925-plus scores on multiple events.

Ava's track record explains why speculation about her transfer had been intensifying online earlier. She has proven herself across multiple championships, and her move to Clemson will lead to more such accomplishments.

Read more at the Gymnastics Digest!

Written by

Sebi Mehta

Edited by

Sahil Prashar