Halfway through the Pac-12 championships Saturday, .175 separated No. 9 UCLA gymnastics from a three-way scrum for second place between No. 5 Utah, No. 11 California and No. 14 Oregon State.
With a tenuous lead, leadoff Mikaela Gerber took a deep breath before mounting the balance beam. Smooth full twists, precise aerials and a stuck back handspring dismount culminated in a 9.9 as the Bruin junior led the team to a 49.575 beam score.
The beam performance – the sixth-highest score in program history – doubled the lead and helped UCLA storm off with its 17th Pac-12 championship title with an overall total of 197.250.
No. 5 Utah fell twice on beam, including its first gymnast Samantha Partyka, and the Utes’ low 9.30 put them in an early hole. Gerber’s score – the first of six 9.90s or higher on the rotation – and more importantly her confident and calm approach set the tone for the rest of team as the Bruins faced the daunting four-inch beam.
“What we did was not uncharacteristic for us,” said coach Valorie Kondos Field. “For other teams, it can be make or break, but with someone like Mikaela who’s enthusiastic and has no trepidation, it’s just infectious to everyone after her.”
Sonya Meraz fell off the beam twice in UCLA’s last meet against No. 1 Oklahoma. But the sophomore, who has been one of the team’s most consistent performers, stuck another landing and followed up her season-low score with a career-high 9.9 – the first of three highs on beam for the Bruins Saturday night.
Freshman Nicki Shapiro put together her career-high 9.925 and fellow freshman Katelyn Ohashi had her fourth straight career-high 9.90 on beam to secure a solid rotation for UCLA with senior Danusia Francis still to go.
“With everyone that went before me, it really took the pressure off,” Ohashi said. “We didn’t have to worry about who was in the lineup because everyone went out there and did their jobs.”
Francis closed out the rotation with a 9.950 and put the Bruins ahead of Pac-12 rivals Utah by .350 heading into floor.
“Coming off of beam and going to floor, it was ours for the taking,” Francis said. “All we had to do was do our jobs.”
Five solid routines stood between UCLA and its first Pac-12 championship title since 2012. Four gymnasts posted 9.80s or higher on floor, including Francis who scored a 9.875 in her final Pac-12 routine, to hold off the Utes and the Beavers.
Junior Angi Cipra, who averages a 9.813 on floor, couldn’t control her tumbling runs, falling backwards and out of bounds in the middle of the routine to put up the lowest score on floor – a 9.10.
Sadiqua Bynum closed key meets for the Bruins on floor against then-No.3 Alabama and then-No. 7 Utah.
The senior needed a 9.60 or higher to keep her team in first, but calmly came away with a big 9.90 to clinch the title for UCLA.
“Everyone’s heart and souls were in it today,” Francis said. “You believed in them because we knew everyone could do it.”
Francis and sophomore JaNay Honest also had individual meet titles on balance beam and uneven bars respectively to close out the meets for the Bruins.
UCLA will find out which region they’ll compete in during the selection show on Monday. NCAA regionals start on April 2 with the top teams from each region advancing to the NCAA championships in Fort Worth, Texas two weeks later.
Email Dam at tdam@media.ucla.edu or tweet her @tueydam.