CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Fighting Illini women's gymnastics head coach Nadalie Walsh announced the addition of Rachel Borden to the Illinois roster on Friday morning. Borden joins junior-transfer Morgan Bixler and freshmen Grace Hester (early-enrollee), Mallory Mizuki, Shaylah Scott, and Erin Weisel to the list of newcomers this season.

"It is truly a blessing to be given the ability to add Rachel Borden to the team at this point in the semester," said Walsh. "She took a year off of gymnastics as a freshman at Illinois, but this year she has been training with the club team all year long, while also serving as our team manager. When she recently sent me her training videos, I was extremely impressed with her beam and bars routines.  On beam, she is solid, confident and has a unique routine that I believe will turn heads."

Borden was a team manager for the women's gymnastics program before officially donning the Orange and Blue for the Illini. The in-state product from Naperville, Ill. spent her club career at the prominent and elite Chicago area-based club, Legacy Elite Gymnastics. Under the guidance of owners and head coaches, Jiani Wu and Yuejiu Li, Borden spent five years as a level 10 gymnast and displayed some of the most unique skills, especially her beam mount.

The Naperville, Ill. native qualified to the 2017 J.O. Level 10 Championships with a sixth-place finish in the all-around and third-place on beam at the 2017 Region 5 Level 10 Championships. Known as a beamer, Borden consistently placed in the top-three on the event at national, regional, and state events. On the national scene, she was the 2014 J.O. National Invitational Tournament (NIT) beam champion and finished runner-up on beam at the 2015 J.O. National Invitational Tournament (NIT). Qualifying to the 2015 J.O. NIT competition, Borden captured the Level 10 Regional beam title with a 9.600. Borden improved the following year, placing third in the all-around (37.000) and first on beam (9.600) at the 2016 Illinois Level 10 State Meet.

"Rachel has proven to me she is clearly an extremely hard worker and truly has a heart of gratitude," noted Walsh. "She fits into this program so well. Without the support of the team, a transition like this would not work. Because of who they are and the character they carry, adding Rachel Borden has already brought even more excitement to the gym."

WATCH: Vault | Bars | Beam | Floor

Off the floor, Borden graduated from Neuqua Valley High School with a 3.92 GPA and academic honors. She is currently a sophomore at Illinois and is majoring in Chemical Engineering.

"I chose the University of Illinois because of its outstanding engineering programs," said Borden. "When I visited, I fell in love with the campus and I knew this was the school for me."

Illinois continues Big Ten play on the road, facing Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. The Princess and Superhero Night is slated for a 6 p.m. CT start on Saturday and will stream live on BTN2go.com. A tape delay version will air on BTN, Sunday, February 17 at 9 a.m. CT.

Follow the Illini

Stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com for all the latest information on Fighting Illini Women's Gymnastics. Follow the Orange and Blue on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for complete coverage.