South Jersey figure skater Isabeau Levito sits in first place at the U.S. Championships

Isabeau Levito, who lives in Mount Holly and trains in Mount Laurel, sits in first place after Thursday night’s short program at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in San Jose, Calif.

The 15-year-old performed a crisp, clean program, earning 73.78 points, which was two one-hundredths ahead of former U.S. champion Bradie Tennell, who won in 2018 and 2021.

Wearing a black-and-red dress with a large red flower behind one ear, she skated powerfully through her short program, to Una Noche Más, by Yasmin Levy. She landed a clean triple flip, double axel, and triple-lutz-triple toe loop combination, which is one of the hardest combinations women perform.

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She earned all positive grades of execution on her elements as well as Level 4s — the highest — on all three of her spins as well as her step sequence.

Tennell had been a question mark going in the short program, as she was injured and on and off the ice last year. Her comeback had been slow, but she, too, skated a clean, difficult program — to Restrictus, by Mario Batkovic, arranged by Cedric Tour. She lost levels on her flying sit spin, which was judged as a Level 1. Still, she earned a 73.76.

Starr Andrews sits in third, with 68.97 points. She, too, skated a clean program (to Dancing with the Devil by Demi Lovato), but she performed some easier jumps, such as a triple loop and a triple toe loop-triple toe loop combination.

Another former U.S. champion, Gracie Gold, who won in 2014 and 2016, sits in fifth with 67.44 points. She lives in Wilmington, Del., and trains and teaches in Aston. She skated a clean program to East of Eden by the London Symphony Orchestra.

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Levito, the World Junior Champion, who also won silver at December’s Grand Prix Finals, looked relaxed going into the program. She sang along to Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody while waiting to get on the ice for her six-minute warm up.

When she hit her opening pose, she gave a confident smile before starting her program.

The women’s competition ends Friday night with the free skate, or long program, which will determine the champion.

Levito’s free skate will be on Friday. It will be telecast from 7:45-11 p.m. on Peacock and 8-11 p.m. on NBC. The skate order is reverse placement, meaning Levito, who won the short program, will skate last in the free.