Story By: Sarah Turner
You might notice the words “Make History” stitched onto the right sleeve of Montevallo’s acrobatics and tumbling team’s uniforms.
For this group, that’s not just a slogan. It’s become a standard.
In just two seasons, Montevallo’s acrobatics and tumbling program has gone from brand new to a conference semifinalist, building momentum faster than most programs ever do. At the center of it all is head coach Kati Horstmann, and it’s not the first time she’s done it.
A former Division I acrobatics and tumbling athlete at Baylor, one of the nation’s premier programs, Horstmann moved into coaching after her collegiate career and helped launch Trine University’s program in 2019. So when Montevallo announced in 2023 that it would add acrobatics and tumbling in 2025, she recognized the opportunity immediately.
“There’s a lot of schools that add acro just for the sake of numbers and it’s not like that here,” Horstmann said. “At Montevallo, they really want to see the sport succeed, they really want to see the athletes do well athletically, academically, mental health, all of that.”
The inaugural 2025 season came with expected challenges. The Falcons finished 3-5 with a roster made up of 21 freshmen and four transfers, forcing a young team to adjust quickly to a sport many were still learning.
“At the end of the day, because this is such a unique and different sport, it’s something that you don’t fully understand until you’re actively doing it,” said Horstmann.
The learning curve was steep, but the foundation was forming. The transfers helped establish early standards, while the freshmen gained experience that would quickly become invaluable.
That growth showed up a year later.
In 2026, those same athletes returned not just more experienced, but more confident, and more accountable. The freshmen had become leaders, setting the tone for a new class and reinforcing a culture that had already started to take shape.
“That’s something that went really well this year is just the internal leadership,” Horstmann said. “Overall the team really cares, so the leaders were really able to capitalize on that and really bring out that care in their teammates.”
That culture is best captured in small moments during practice.
“Sometimes we’ll do a rep and I’m like ‘Alright, that looks great, do it just like that,’ and someone will say ‘but better!” Horstmann explained, “So they really care about the details and they want to do incredibly well.”
Overall the team really cares, so the leaders were really able to capitalize on that and really bring out the care in their teammates.
Kati Horstmann
Picked fifth in the preseason poll in their first year in Conference Carolinas, and their first year eligible for postseason competition, the Falcons entered the season with little outside expectation. Still, the recognition signaled that the rest of the conference was paying attention.
“It was very cool to see that other schools in the conference had noticed us, and they were nervous for us coming in.”
That mindset translated into results. Montevallo finished 6-4 overall, including four straight conference wins during the regular season, hosting a Conference Carolinas quarterfinal, and advancing all the way to the conference semifinals.
“I am just blown away from how this season went,” Horstmann said, “It was just really cool seeing the freshmen turn into sophomores in leadership roles and then just growing and developing as people.”
That growth culminated in the semifinal against Lander, where the Falcons posted a program-best score of 253.750.
“I couldn’t have asked for a better meet,” Horstmann said.
The success didn’t go unnoticed. Horstmann was named Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year on April 9, an honor she didn’t expect at all.
She explained that she woke up one morning to a text from her one of her friends who is an acro coach at Mars Hill University congratulating her on winning coach of the year.
“I said ‘Coach of the year?’ So then I pulled up Instagram and I was like ‘Oh my god wow, I was not expecting that,” Horstmann said. “So that was really exciting, I had zero expectations on that.”
The postseason honors extended to the athletes as well. Sophomore Lexie Cole and freshman Tracie Leopold earned First Team All-Conference recognition, while sophomore Rilyn McAllister was named Second Team All-Conference.
Now, heading into year three, expectations have changed.
With three key seniors graduating, the Falcons will have to reload, but not rebuild. The culture is in place, the leadership pipeline is established, and the results have already set a new standard.
For a program that didn’t exist two years ago, that’s significant.
“I think us being a second year team and being able to make such a big impact on the conference so early so quickly, I think it really is such a positive and special indicator for the team going forward because next year’s just gonna be even better,” Horstmann explained.
And if the message on their sleeves still holds true, they may just be getting started.
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