The crowd roared in approval as coach Valorie Kondos Field called Anna Li to the center of the floor after listing the senior’s numerous athletic awards. Li, a five-time All-American who is currently No. 1 in the nation on uneven bars, was honored during Sunday’s meet against Michigan State and Cal State Fullerton. The competition marks the final regular season meet for Li in Pauley Pavilion.
Despite being in the spotlight for senior day, Li stood on the sidelines during the tri-meet. She sat out Sunday’s competition as a precaution against seriously injuring an aggravated ankle before the start of the postseason.
Fortunately for the No. 3 Bruins (11-3, 5-2 Pac-10), Li’s absence did not stop the team from defeating the No. 27 Spartans (11-6) and Titans (4-9) with a score of 196.525. Both opponents established season-high team totals, with Michigan State scoring 195.95 and Cal State Fullerton scoring 193.875, but both were unable to overcome UCLA.
Neither Michigan State nor Cal State Fullerton had a single gymnast score a 9.90 or above. The Bruins had five.
Sophomore Vanessa Zamarripa scored 9.90 or above in all four events, setting a career-high score in the all-around of 39.7. Despite her impressive performance, Zamarripa was not entirely satisfied with herself or the team.
“I still have a lot to improve on because I didn’t feel today was my best day,” she said. “I’m still looking forward to that day. The team did all right. We didn’t do so well on beam, but that is not going to affect us in the future. We are going to put that behind us and just do what we normally do, which is great gymnastics.”
UCLA began the meet with several strong performances on vault. Sophomores Tauny Frattone and Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs both scored 9.95, a season-high for both on the apparatus. Frattone’s total was also a career-best.
The Bruins stumbled during their third rotation on balance beam, committing a season-high of three falls. After scoring a perfect 10 the previous week against Georgia on beam, Hopfner-Hibbs suffered her first fall of the season, uncharacteristically misleading after a flip sequence.
“There is no reason for us to have falls on balance beam,” Kondos Field said. “Even with Anna out, everybody was fully prepared to compete. I feel they are taking the fact we can hit routines anytime for granted. They have cues for each skill that they do, and those cues may be getting a little soft mentally.”
Even though her teammates had problems on balance beam, junior Niki Tom shined on the apparatus, matching her career-high from 2009 with a 9.90. She also matched her season-high on floor with a 9.825.
“I’m really happy with my performance,” Tom said. “I couldn’t have done it without the team though, we pulled it together.”
Kondos Field believed Tom’s stellar routines were the best of the meet.
“Niki Tom had a great night,” Kondos Field said. “She started us off on beam in Anna’s absence with a legitimate 9.9 and had a great set on floor. She stepped up, and she certainly was her best when it was needed.”
After a weak third rotation, UCLA led Michigan State by a small margin of 0.25 but secured the win with six strong floor exercises. The crowd cheered loudly, and gymnasts from every team intently watched as Hopfner-Hibbs performed the last routine of the meet, scoring a 9.925.
“We went out with a bang on floor, and the crowd was amazing,” Tom said. “We are definitely ready to go into championship season.”
After Sunday’s meet, the team begins the postseason with the Pac-10 Championships in Arizona on March 27 with a determined and prepared attitude.
“I’m looking forward to Pac-10, nationals, everything. I’m so ready for it,” Zamarripa said. “I have been looking forward to these upcoming meets for a long time. I’m ready to put in some work so our team can go out there and do our best.”