On a day when the team was honoring past champions, the UCLA women’s gymnastics team turned in a performance that made them seem worthy of a national championship of their own.
In front of an energetic audience at Pauley Pavilion, the Bruins defeated the second-ranked Georgia Gym Dogs with a score of 197.150-197.000. It was the team’s best performance of the season and marked the first time the team eclipsed the 197-point mark this year.
“It wasn’t a great meet, but it was a good meet. They just kept fighting. We don’t have the depth or the talent (due to injuries) but this shows what you can do if you keep believing and keep fighting,” coach Valorie Kondos Field said.
Led by junior Jordan Schwikert, who had her best all-around performance of the season with a score of 39.450, the gymnasts overcame some of their own mistakes and took advantage of Georgia’s falls to earn the victory.
Schwikert began the season limited to just the uneven bars due to a hamstring injury. Since then she has struggled to return to full form but finally made her return to the all-around in the team’s last meet.
Her return to the lineup gives the injury-plagued Bruins a major boost and added depth.
“It’s amazing to be back. It’s just so much more fun. When you’re healthy and you’re not hurting, you can go out there and give it your all. I finally feel 100 percent and I know I am still going to get better throughout the season,” Schwikert said.
Sunday’s meet was the team’s final home meet, and the two graduating seniors also turned in stellar performances in their farewell to Pauley Pavilion. Michelle Selesky had a career-high score of 9.925 to lead off on vault and Ashley Peckett’s floor routine that earned a 9.925 brought the crowd to a standing ovation as she walked off with tears in her eyes.
“It was just really exciting to be out there for the last time. I cannot even describe the emotions that I felt,” Peckett said.
With Kristina Comforte out for the season and several other gymnasts struggling with injuries, the Bruins have battled all season long with makeshift lineups and last minute changes. But in the absence of their teammates, new stars have emerged to fill the gaps.
Sophomore Ariana Berlin, who is still unable to train completely due to pain caused by a rod in her leg, leads off the team on three events and continues to post solid scores. On Sunday, she had a career-high on the vault with a score of 9.875, and her floor routine infused energy into the crowd and got her teammates going.
Freshman Anna Li has been the team’s most consistent and reliable gymnast. Li has competed in every meet thus far in all four events and is currently ranked 12th nationally in the all-around, averaging 39.103 points per meet. Her all-around score of 39.400 fell slightly short of Berlin’s third-place performance of 39.425.
“The girls on the team have done an amazing job this season. Michelle, Ariana, who can’t even train, and the others have stepped in and been awesome. They believe that they can do it. This is what Bruin gymnastics is all about,” Kondos Field said.
The meet also marked the 10-year anniversary of the Bruins’ first NCAA gymnastics championship. The 1997 women’s team was honored after the meet, leaving many of the current team members with some inspiration as they head into the last stretch of the season.
“It was really motivating to see them. We have the potential to be there too. We didn’t have the best meet, but we still pulled through and picked each other up. All of us can improve so we are going to go back and focus on our details. We all have more potential,” Schwikert said.
Despite the team’s best score of the season, they know they are far from done with their work. In the upcoming weeks, the team will look to repeat this performance and remain consistent as they make their way toward nationals.
Defeating the defending national champions in a dual meet was one thing, but beating them at the Super Six in Utah in April will be a whole different story.
“I just think they need to believe they are that good. We can compete with anyone in the country. This meet showed is that we can play to win. We need to believe that and we’ll be fine,” Kondos Field said.