The West Virginia University gymnastics team completed their 2025 campaign on Wednesday, April 2nd. However, Leigh, DiCello, and Rice represented WVU for the final time of the season as individual event specialists. Read more Leigh, DiCello, and Rice Represent WVU at NCAA Regional Competition.
Round Two
Thursday, April 3rd, the trio of individual event specialists represented WVU at the NCAA Pennsylvania Regional Championships, inside Penn State’s Rec Hall in University Park, Pa.
Anna Leigh
Anna Leigh, a senior, took to the floor to represent WVU. She competed in the third rotation, earning her sixth score of 9.9 on the floor this season.
Her performance marked the second-highest score on floor in the second session, tying Leigh for sixth place.
Hailing from St. Michael, Minnesota, she attended St. Michael-Albertville High. Career highs include a 9.85 on uneven bars, a 9.875 on balance beam, and a 9.925 on floor exercise.
Leigh has earned many accolades throughout her years at WVU. In 2024, these achievements included the Winter Academic All-Big 12 First Team (which she also earned in 2023) and WCGA Scholastic All-American (also earned in 2022).
Impressively, Leigh has surpassed 500 career points and received the honor of Student-Athlete of the Week in January. That recognition came after earning a 9.95 on floor exercise after earning a perfect 10.0 from one judge and a 9.9 from the other. This resulted in her career-best of 9.95 – and the Student-Athlete of the Week honor.
Read Now: WVU Earns Second Place in Round One of NCAA Regionals
Karleigh DiCello
Karleigh DiCello stuck her Yurchenko full in the first rotation, resulting in a score of 9.825 on vault. In the third rotation, she competed on beam and tallied a 9.8.
Originally from Boyds, Maryland, DiCello attended Northwest High School. Although this is her freshman year at WVU and her first season with the team, she has definitely made a name for herself.
Before joining the Mountaineers, DiCello earned several accolades in club gymnastics, including competing at the 2023 Level 10 Development Program National Championships. There, she finished in the top 10 on uneven bars and placed in the top 15 on both floor exercise and in the all-around competition. This appearance marked the third national appearance of her career.
At states in 2023, DiCello also achieved first-place finishes on floor and the all-around. Additionally, she earned third place on vault at the Level 10 Junior Olympic Nationals in 2019.
Sophia Rice
Sophia Rice finished off the last rotation with her Tsuk full vault and scored a 9.8. She was the last of the three Mountaineers to compete – and she did not disappoint!
A native of Morgantown, West Virgina, Rice was a natural-born Mountaineer. Despite being in her freshman year, she has already made a significant impact early in her WVU career.
Prior to attending WVU, Rice accumulated an impressive list of accomplishments in club gymnastics. In 2023, she qualified for the Level 10 Development Program National Championships, where she earned top-five finishes on vault and floor.
Her national appearance in 2023 was the second of her career. In 2022, Rice qualified for nationals and earned a pair of top-ten finishes on vault and floor. She also claimed second place in the all-around at the 2023 Region 7 Regional Championships.
The End of an Era
The Mountaineers’ 2025 campaign has now come to a close with the completion of the NCAA Regional Competition. WVU finished the season with a 4-14 record, however, the Mountaineers did post three scores of 196.0+ and qualified for its 44th Regional Championships appearance. WVU’s end-of-season NQS of 195.855 ranked us nationally at No. 36.
Following her performances this season, Leigh was named to the All-Big 12 Team on floor, while DiCello and Emerson Smith were named to the All-Freshman Team.
Rice also earned a spot on the All-Championship Team, due to her performance tying for second on floor at the 2025 Big 12 Championship.
Leigh, DiCello, and Rice Represent WVU at NCAA Regional Competition.
