CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Southeast Missouri women's gymnastics head coach Ashley Lawson announced Tuesday the signing of junior transfer Ashley Albrecht. Albrecht previously competed at Illinois-Chicago for her first two collegiate seasons and will join Southeast for the 2020 season. 
 
"We are excited for Ashley to be joining our 2020 roster," Lawson said of Albrecht. "She comes in as a consistent contributor from a powerful program (UIC), and will help take our program to new heights. Her postseason experience will be something she can share with the current team and they can look to her leadership, especially in those high pressure situations. Ashley is a powerful floor worker and an aggressive vaulter. We can't wait to watch Ashley shine in her final two years of college gymnastics and we're blessed that she has selected SEMO to finish out her career."
 
At #37-ranked Illinois-Chicago, Albrecht helped the Flames capture the 2019 Midwest Independent Conference Championship and finish as 2019 USA Gymnastics National Runners-up. 
 
In 2019 as a sophomore, she competed in 15 meets and earned Second-Team All-MIC honors on floor. Albrecht registered a career best 9.775 (4/13) on vault at the USAG Team Finals and hit two personal-best floor scores of 9.875 to earn individual event titles against SEMO (2/17) and at a tri meet with Lindenwood and Pennsylvania (3/3).
 
As a freshman, Albrecht competed in all 13 meets while garnering MIC Newcomer of the Week three times and Performance of the Week honors once as a member of the Flames' bars squad. She notched season highs of 9.675 on vault, 9.775 on bars, 9.625 on beam, 9.725 on floor and an all-around total of 38.650.
 
The Everett, Washington, native, competed at the Level 10 Junior Olympic Nationals all four years during high school (2014-17), placing 10th in the all-around in 2016. Albrecht was crowned the 2016 Regional Beam, Floor and All-Around Champion and was also the 2017 Regional Vault, Beam, Floor and All-Around Champion.
 
The daughter of Lori and Mark Albrecht, Ashley Albrecht, trained at the Leading Edge Gymnastics Academy (LEGA) and attended Cascade High School, where she also participated in varsity diving her freshman and sophomore years.
 
Albrecht will join early signing period signees Dahlia Solorzano-Caruso, Jordan Jones and Mallory Desch along with Catherine Costantini, Taylor Fishkin, Lindsey Moffitt and Molly Maxwell who signed in 2019 this upcoming fall ahead of the 2020 season.