The first days after Lindenwood announced its decision to cut 10 athletics programs, including gymnastics, were intensely emotional for sophomore gymnast Nya Kraus and her teammates. The story is familiar to us now: The 10 affected teams were invited to a mysterious mandatory meeting where a brief statement declared their programs would be eliminated with no possible recourse.
“I have never felt such a sinking feeling in my stomach before,” Kraus said. She left the meeting in tears.
But the ending of a storied program didn’t have to mean the end of an athletic career for the Lions. The transfer portal has enjoyed increasing visibility as an option for NCAA gymnasts, and Kraus’ thoughts turned to the possibility of transferring soon after learning the unfortunate news. Though Lindenwood offered scholarship athletes the option to keep their scholarships and finish their degrees, she felt sure that her gymnastics career wasn’t meant to end this way. Navigating the complex NCAA compliance rules on short notice provided some initial challenges, but ultimately, she officially entered the transfer portal on Dec. 6, less than a week after learning that her team had been discontinued.
In those early days, Kraus “had no idea how the transfer portal…
