Aryn Bell ’09 Named Head Gymnastics Coach

St. Peter, Minn. – Gustavus Adolphus College has named Aryn Bell as head coach of its gymnastics program. A 2009 Gustavus graduate and four-year member of the gymnastics team, Bell served as an assistant coach at her alma mater for the past year and will now take over the reigns as the sixth head coach in the program’s history. She takes over for Charlie Aydt, who coached the team during the 2013-14 season.

“I’m excited to announce the hiring of Aryn Bell as our head gymnastics coach,” said Athletics Director Tom Brown. “Aryn is a driven individual who brings a fresh attitude and a great deal of excitement into the gym. Being a former Gustie gymnast, she has a tremendous amount of pride in the program and certainly proved herself capable of moving the team in the right direction during her time as assistant coach last season.”

A native of Eden Prairie, Minnesota, Bell is a 2005 graduate of Eden Prairie High, School where she was a two-sport athlete competing in gymnastics and track & field.

While at Gustavus, Bell was a member of both the gymnastics and track & field teams. As a gymnast, she earned four letters and was a key contributor on the vault, uneven parallel bars, and floor exercise. She competed in the vault at the NCGA Championships in 2008 and 2009 and was named a NCGA All-Academic honoree her senior season. On the track, Aryn excelled in the 100-meter high hurdles and earned a total of four all-conference honors over her career.

After graduating from Gustavus with a degree in history, Bell attended the University of North Dakota, where she served as a graduate assistant coach in the track & field program for two seasons while working toward her master’s degree in history. Following her time at UND, she assisted two years with the Macalester College track & field program before returning to Gustavus as an assistant for the gymnastics team in June of 2013.

During her year long stint as the assistant at Gustavus, Bell assisted in all aspects of practice and meet management. She served as the team’s travel coordinator, coached two national competitors, assisted in the recruitment of prospective student-athletes, and organized the program’s first Alumnae meet.

“I am thrilled to be returning to my alma mater to lead the program that has given me so much,” said Bell. “I’d like to thank Tom Brown for giving me the opportunity to be a part of an exceptional athletics department and supportive Gustavus community. It is a great honor to start my head coaching career as part of a strong Division III gymnastics tradition in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and the National Collegiate Gymnastics Association. I am excited to get started and will work to continue the program’s history of success.”

Bell follows in the footsteps of former head coaches Nancy Baker, Jerry Connolly, Kris Glidden, Katie Olson, and Charlie Aydt.  The Gustavus gymnastics program is home to eight national championships, 55 All-Americans, and 18 national event champions.

Aryn currently resides in St. Peter and is pursuing a master’s in library and information science from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.