Just as everything had seemingly fallen back into place for the
second-ranked UCLA gymnastics team, adversity once again has struck
the squad.
Junior Kate Richardson, who suffered a functional rupture of her
ulner collateral ligament during bar warm-ups at Stanford last
Friday, will be absent from Sunday’s meet against Georgia and
Arizona. It is unclear whether the ligament, which is responsible
for holding the thumb close to the hand, will require surgery,
sidelining her for the remainder of the season. Richardson is
hopeful it can be taped in such a manner that would allow her to
compete sparingly in the coming meets.
Left with the difficult task of deciding how to fill the void
left by Richardson’s sudden departure, UCLA coach Valorie
Kondos Field said it is likely sophomore Ashley Peckett will now be
competing in the all-around. Increased production from fellow
sophomore Lori Winn will also become an issue of greater importance
since Richardson’s injury.
Perhaps a more difficult task than putting together a lineup
will be defeating the eighth-ranked Gym Dogs and the Wildcats (No.
17).
Georgia, who has finished third or better in the past nine NCAA
Championship meets and matches UCLA with five total championships,
presents the Bruins with one of the most serious challenges they
have faced so far this season.
Though losing its last four meets going into competition with a
challenging Utah team today, Georgia features several talented
gymnasts, including Katie Heenan and Kelsey Ericksen, both ranked
in the nation’s top 20.
Georgia has long been a thorn UCLA’s side, defeating the
Bruins in 11 of the teams’ 15 regular season meetings.
Arizona, who defeated UCLA by a substantial margin last season,
will presumably pose less of a threat this time around. The
Wildcats have posted a season-high score of 195.225, over a full
point less than the Bruins’ Regional Qualifying Score.
UCLA will counter with its strongest possible lineup sans
Richardson, with senior Kristen Maloney and freshman Tasha
Schwikert, who remain the top two gymnasts in the nation, competing
in all four events.
Also likely to compete in the all-around are freshman Jordan
Schwikert and Peckett.