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Utah's gymnastics team prepared for the loss of some key seniors by signing four gymnasts to National Letters of Intent on Tuesday.
The signees were U.S. senior national team member MyKayla Skinner (Gilbert, Ariz.) and junior Olympic qualifiers in Shannon McNatt (Houston, Texas), MaKenna Merrell (Pleasant Grove, Utah) and Erika Muhaw (Montville, N.J.).
Skinner was a member of the gold-medal team at the 2014 World Championships in China where she finished third on the vault and fourth on the floor. She was also first on the vault and floor and fourth in the all-around at the 2014 City of Jesolo Trophy in Italy.
"MyKayla is one of the top gymnasts in the world and will immediately be considered a top contender on every event at the NCAA Championships," Utah coach Greg Marsden said.
McNatt was the 2014 J.O. Level 10 national floor co-champion, Muhaw has earned six top-10 finishes in the last three J.O. national championships and Merrell has qualified for the J.O. championships the last three years, most recently placing fourth on the bars and beam.
The four will called upon to fill the gaps left by Tory Wilson, Becky Tutka, Corrie Lothrop and Georgia Dabritz, the current seniors who make up one of Utah's strongest senior classes in recent history.
"Our 2015-16 class will come with a good skill set and all four have the potential to get even better throughout their college careers," Marsden said.
The Utes open the season Jan. 9 against BYU. Fans can get their first look at the team with the Red Rocks Preview on Dec. 12.