After taking third place in the Pac-10 Championships in Seattle on March 29, the No. 9 UCLA gymnastics team will travel to Gainesville, Fla., this weekend for the NCAA Southeast Regional.
The top two finishers at the tournament will advance to the NCAA Championships.
Meeting the Bruins in Gainesville will be No. 3 Florida, No. 15 Nebraska, No. 21 North Carolina State, No. 25 West Virginia, and No. 34 North Carolina.
This year’s teams will provide tough competition for the Bruins because UCLA, Florida and Nebraska combined have made 66 total NCAA Championship appearances.
Florida (12-3-1) is likely to be especially tough. The Gators hold the highest single-meet score of the season with a 197.925 set against LSU on Feb. 15.
Florida tied for second at the SEC Championships, and come equipped with five returning All-Americans.
Nebraska (10-7) finished fourth at the Big 12 Championships and holds a season-best of 196.675, recorded Jan. 25 against Missouri. The Huskers are led by All-Americans Emily Parsons, Tricia Woo, and Desire’ Sniatynski.
The Bruins are going into this weekend’s competition with four exceptional gymnasts who were recently named to the All-Pac-10 gymnastics team.
Ariana Berlin, Anna Li, and Jordan Schwikert received first-team honors in the all-around, while Tasha Schwikert was named first-team on the vault and uneven bars.
Berlin placed third in the all-around at the Pac-10 Championships with 39.4 and scored season highs on bars at 9.9, beam at 9.85, and 9.85 on floor.
Li scored a career-best 39.6 in the all-around this season and leads the team with 17 individual victories this year.
Coach Valorie Kondos Field has high hopes for the Bruins.
“We’re looking to go into regionals and hit 24 routines, and hit them well,” Kondos Field said.
“In preparation for that, we’ve really utilized every moment we’ve been in the gym to be focused and to work on the little things.”
After the Pac-10 Championships, the Bruins held a team meeting in which Kondos Field wrote down each athlete’s average score for the year and showed the marks to the team.
“Those scores represent what we will score if everybody hits what they are capable of hitting,” Field said.
“We’re fully capable, and it was really good for the girls to see in writing just how good we are.”
Senior Tasha Schwikert will go into Saturday’s meet after scoring a 9.9 or better on 15 of her last 21 routines. Schwikert has been UCLA’s most consistent competitor, hitting 37 of her 38 routines on the year, including 33 in a row.
“We have to step up our game now that we’re in an elimination round,” Schwikert said.
“We have to focus on our main goal which is making top two and advancing to nationals. I believe we can do it.”
The Bruins may also get a boost from junior Kristina Comforte. Comforte missed four meets after sustaining a knee injury that sidelined her for two months. While the injury was initially feared to be season-ending, Comforte has worked her way back into the competition lineup in three events.
“I want to compete the way I’ve been training, stay focused, and keep my mental game where it’s at right now,” Comforte said. “I feel really confident in myself and in my team, we just need to stay mentally tough.”
The Bruins travel to Florida with a spot at the NCAA Championships on the line, loaded with a team of driven, accomplished athletes.
“We just need to get a little sharper and a little cleaner,” Kondos Field said. “We can play ball with anybody in the country.”