LOGAN, Utah – Utah State Vice President and Director of Athletics John Hartwell announced on Friday that Kristin White has been named the head gymnastics coach, replacing Amy Smith, who is the new gymnastics coach at Clemson.
“We are thrilled to welcome Kristin White to the Aggie family to be the head coach of our gymnastics program,” Hartwell said. “With all of her attributes: from being an All-American gymnast at Oklahoma, to coaching at the club level, at Oklahoma, Iowa State and at Arizona State, combined with her positive personality, made her our clear-cut choice from an outstanding pool of candidates. Under Kristin’s leadership, we are confident the upward trajectory of our gymnastics program will continue.”
White joins the Aggies after spending the last two seasons as an assistant coach under co-head coaches Jay and Jess Santos at Arizona State as the Sun Devils finished the 2022 season ranked No. 22 in the nation and captured a share of the Pac-12 regular season title. ASU finished the 2021 season among the top-10 in the nation, as the Sun Devils were ranked No. 9 in the final poll and White was named the WCGA Regional Assistant Coach of the Year.
With White working with gymnasts on beam and floor, Arizona State finished the 2022 season scoring 49-plus in nine-straight meets on beam as junior Hannah Scharf led the Sun Devils with a team-best 9.950 on the event and earned WCGA second-team All-American honors and first-team all-Pac-12 accolades.
“I would like to thank Vice President & Athletics Director John Hartwell, Deputy AD Jerry Bovee, Executive Associate AD & SWA Amy Crosbie, and the rest of the hiring committee for believing in my vision and giving me the opportunity to lead Utah State gymnastics,” White said. “I would also like to thank the staff at Arizona State along with mentors throughout my career that have helped me become a better coach and made me who I am today.
“The Aggies are coming off a historic season and it was very clear from the moment I stepped on campus that the administration is committed to excellence,” she continued. “Our student-athlete experience will be at the forefront of the program, and I look forward to getting to Logan and empowering our young women to success in the classroom and on the competition floor.”
Prior to Arizona State, White was an assistant coach at Iowa State during the 2018-20 seasons as the Cyclones finished in the top-25 during each year. During her final season in Ames, White mentored a floor lineup that finished the year ranked No. 16 in the nation, an improvement of 23 spots from the season before. Individually, junior Andrea Maldonado was named a 2020 WCGA first-team All-American on floor, as well as earning first-team all-Big 12 honors on the event as her 9.935 national qualifying score ranked seventh in the nation and second in the league.
Before entering the college ranks as a coach, White spent five years at the club level, where she mentored club gymnasts with Dynamo Gymnastics in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Dynamo, one of the top clubs in the nation, was awarded a pair of Region III Program of the Year honors in 2015 and 2016, as White was recognized individually as the 2016 Oklahoma State Coach of the Year.
A 2010 graduate at Oklahoma, White remained as her alma mater as a graduate assistant during the 2011 and 2012 seasons as the Sooners finished among the top-10 each year. At OU, White completed a master’s degree in adult and higher education.
As a student-athlete at Oklahoma, White helped lead the Sooners to a trio of Big 12 team championships from 2008-10, and a runner-up finish at the 2010 NCAA National Championships. Individually, White was recognized with All-American honors on beam and floor as a senior in 2010. In addition to her excellence in the gym, White also earned three Outstanding Community Service Awards and spent three years as a member of Oklahoma’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee and two years on OU’s Athletics Council.
White will be joined in Logan by her husband Trent White and their eight-month-old son Brayden.
Utah State capped one of the most successful seasons in school history in 2022 by finishing third in Session 1 of the second round of the NCAA Norman Regional on March 31, at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Oklahoma. USU ended the year ranked No. 23 in the nation.
The Aggies scored at least a 49.075 on each event en route to finishing with a team score of 196.825, which is the highest score in program history for an NCAA regional meet and also ranks third all-time in school history.
Utah State captured its first-ever Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference championship as the Aggies recorded a season-high 197.025, which ranks second all-time in school history. It proved to be USU’s sixth conference title overall and its first since 2005 (Western Gymnastics Conference).
For more information on the Utah State gymnastics program, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUGymnastics, on Facebook at UtahStateGymnastics and on Instagram at USUGymnastics.
Kristin White File
Coaching History:
2023- Utah State – Head Coach
2021-22 Arizona State – Assistant Coach
2018-20 Iowa State – Assistant Coach
2013-17 Dynamo Gymnastics (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) – Coach and Choreographer
2010-12 Oklahoma – Graduate Assistant
Education:
2010 Oklahoma – Human Relations
2012 Oklahoma – Masters in Adult and Higher Education