A literal lifetime of hard work in gymnastics has resulted in Sophia Stellato sticking the landing collegiately.
Stellato, a Level 10 gymnast from Marblehead, is about to enter her freshman year at Division 1 Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey, where she has earned a full scholarship.
She’ll compete for head coach Anastasia Candia and the Scarlet Knights, who are part of the Big Ten Conference. Rutgers is coming off of a season in which it earned its highest national team ranking in school history
“Gymnastics has been such a huge part of my life, and the journey has taught me so much about discipline, perseverance, and believing in myself,” said Stellato. “There have been so many highs and lows along the way, but every challenge has made me stronger and helped shape who I am today.”
Stellato has been involved in gymnastics since her mother, Krista (Lantych) Stellato (a two-time state champion at Danvers High who later coached the Falcons to another state crown in 2005) put her into a program at Yellow Jackets when was just one year old.
“I think she put me in gymnastics to help burn off some (of my) energy,” said Sophia, a long-time and highly successful Yellow Jackets gymnast.
As a Level 10 gymnast, Stellato has earned top scores of 9.650 on floor exercises, 9.6 on balance beam and 36.375 on the all-around. Like her mother before her, she’s also competed at Nationals in Oklahoma City, and was a Massachusetts state champion on floor exercises.
“I like the satisfaction of putting work into something and seeing the results,” said Stellato, who plans on studying study exercise science at Rutgers. “If you put the work into it, you can see the results.”
She’ll take part in both beam (“It takes away from the stress and real life, something that calms me” she noted) and floor for the Scarlet Knights, who compete against national powerhouses such as UCLA, Minnesota and Michigan, among others, in the Big Ten. Their matches are often show on ESPN+ as well.
Her father, Salem native and current NFL Player Agent Sean Stellato, beams with pride when discussing Sophia’s path to Rutgers.
“Sophia has always worked incredibly hard in the classroom and the gym,” said the fedora-wearing father of four daughters. “My wife and I couldn’t be more proud to watch her continue to grow and develop as a student-athlete at Rutgers. Her dedication, work ethic and commitment make us incredibly proud every day.”
Sophia Stellato acknowledged how grateful she is to her family, friends and coaches who have helped her to realize this dream of competing at the Division 1 collegiate level.
“Receiving a full scholarship to Rutgers is a dream come true, and I’m excited to start this next chapter (while) continuing to grow ass a gymnast and person and see where this journey takes me,” she said.
Contact Phil Stacey
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