Women’s tennis’ win streak comes to an end at ITA indoor championships

Winning ways came to a halt at the indoor championships.

No. 8 UCLA women’s tennis (5-1) fell to No. 3 North Carolina on Sunday in a 4-1 defeat a day after edging out No. 15 South Carolina (4-2) in a 4-3 win at the Oracle ITA Division I National Women’s Team Indoor Championship in Seattle.

The Bruins found themselves in unfamiliar territory, playing indoor matches against teams who train in similar environments.

“We play outside in 75-degree weather all the time,” said senior Alaina Miller. “It’s to the East Coast (teams’) advantage, but the fact that we did this well was impressive for me.”

Miller did not stray from her winning groove last weekend, as she provided the Bruins with two victories of her own in singles competitions.

“Physically, we had been doing a lot of fitness,” Miller said. “I think that really helped our mental aspect as well.”

Miller said she plans to use her experience in the wake of the Bruins’ first loss to show younger players how to learn from defeat.

“I think it was a really good test for us,” Miller said. “Knowing what to expect going into the rest of the season is very good for us.”

Senior Ayan Broomfield began her weekend with a win in straight sets over South Carolina’s Mia Horvit, but was unable to replicate her success against North Carolina’s Alexa Graham.

“I was just really pumped up,” Broomfield said. “But it was just a matter of who was going to take the opportunity first.”

Freshman Elysia Bolton protected her undefeated streak Saturday, defeating South Carolina’s Paige Cline 7-5, 6-3 to secure her fifth consecutive win in straight sets.

“She’s really good for this team,” Broomfield said. “She’s won so many matches already.”

But Bolton’s win streak came to an end Sunday, falling to North Carolina’s Sara Daavettila in 6-4, 6-3 sets. Broomfield said Bolton will not let her first collegiate loss impede morale.

“We need to make sure that (Bolton) is staying confident and positive,” Broomfield said. “I sent her a message after congratulating her on her freshman season.”

Freshman Taylor Johnson became the first Bruin to lose consecutive singles matches in the same weekend, conceding losses to South Carolina’s Silvia Chinellato and North Carolina’s Jessie Aney.

Despite the string of results, the team’s seniors said Johnson will have their full-fledged support throughout the season.

“For me, it’s more important that they feel comfortable,” Miller said. “There’s always going to be a second chance.”

The Bruins move to 5-1 on the season and will travel to Rancho Santa Fe, California for the Morgan Run Women’s Open next week.

Softball finds success early in season, strength in offense

The Bruins picked up right where they left off at the plate.

Last year, No. 1 UCLA softball (5-0) finished the season with the second-highest batting average in the NCAA at .335, and the Bruins’ bats didn’t slow down in their opening weekend at the Hawaii Paradise Classic.

The Bruins walked away with five victories, winning games by an average of 6.8 runs, capped by a runaway 13-1 mercy rule win in five innings against Saint Mary’s.

The Bruins have touted their depth this season as one of their strengths. Fourteen different players got a hit this weekend – 12 of whom were able to record an RBI.

“If you look at our run production, it’s coming not just from one or two people in the lineup, it’s coming from several people throughout the lineup,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez. “I was able to start a lineup and then bring people in, and it allows for there to be that anticipation of having to be ready when you’re given a chance to execute. … I think we did really well with players coming into the ball game.”

Junior centerfielder Bubba Nickles and sophomore shortstop Briana Perez are leading UCLA with batting averages of .533 and .588, respectively. The two had a combined 18 hits in the five games, four of which were for extra-bases, including Nickles’ two home runs.

“I have a little bit more experience and I’m a little more confident, and a lot of the girls on offense are the same way,” Nickles said. “Even some of the girls who don’t have as much experience at the collegiate level, they’re able to see how to play the game that way.”

Last year UCLA hit 68 home runs and through the first five games of this season, the Bruins already have seven. Redshirt sophomore outfielder Aaliyah Jordan led the team in home runs last year with 12 and despite still recovering from Tommy John surgery in the fall, hit two of this weekend.

“Nobody really knew that she took the fall off,” Inouye-Perez said. “But for her to come back from that, where game one wasn’t the best, but she got stronger and stronger over the weekend.”

The Bruins have also seen offensive power from their freshmen. Freshman catcher Colleen Sullivan had a double and a solo home run this weekend and freshman third baseman Kelli Godin went 3-7 on the weekend, scoring five times.

Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher Rachel Garcia said pitchers also feel the benefit of the overpowering offense.

“I’d definitely say it’s a stress reliever, in a way, knowing that you have so much insurance behind you and that you’re able to focus on just one batter at a time,” Garcia said.

Garcia pulls double-time for the Bruins and contributed both to the offense last season, with a .339 batting average and 11 home runs and lead the pitching staff.

UCLA and its offense will play its first home games of the season this weekend at the Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament.

Men’s basketball players have varied reactions to performance against Utah

David Singleton took the loss a little differently than his teammates.

“Saturday night I went out there, shot 200 free throws,” the freshman guard said. “I just needed to get some free throws down, make sure to get my mind right so I could move on (to) the next game.”

UCLA men’s basketball (12-12, 5-6 Pac-12) blew a 22-point second-half lead to Utah (13-10, 7-4) on Saturday. Interim coach Murry Bartow said he and the rest of the coaching staff sat down to hash things out as they typically do after games, but the loss hit harder than usual.

“It’s not easy,” Bartow said. “I’ve been doing this a long time and I’ve had some hard losses. But that was a hard one.”

Singleton was intentionally fouled with five seconds left in the game with the Bruins up by one. The freshman missed the first before his team ultimately lost on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

“I think (Singleton) was kind of beating himself up after the game because he felt like, maybe because he missed a couple free throws, that it was on his shoulders,” said sophomore guard Chris Smith. “But I made sure after the game, I told him that wasn’t his fault.”

Smith wasn’t the only Bruin to stand up for Singleton – sophomore guard Jaylen Hands said he and his family tried their best to keep the freshman’s spirits high.

“I gave (Singleton) a high-five. I saw my parents cheered him on after too,” Hands said. “I think that’s a big thing by him to go out there and put (free throws) up (after the game). But you know, we all have to get better in that area.”

Hands was UCLA’s leading scorer with a career-high 27 points, and his 7-of-8 mark from the free throw line was one of the best on the team. However, the guard’s one miss came in crunch time and allowed Utah to cut the lead to seven.

Smith said he thought Singleton was good enough that he could have hit all 200 of his postgame free throws, but that he handled the loss in another way.

“I think I was the second-to-last player to leave the locker room,” Smith said. “I took a shower, I went down (to the locker room), put some clothes on and I just sat there. I was just thinking about it, whatever I could have done more.”

Smith had four points and four rebounds in 14 minutes Saturday but was the lone Bruin to go perfect from the charity stripe.

Hands applauded Singleton’s commitment after the game but said he did what he normally does after a loss.

“I like to decompress for a while,” Hands said. “I normally like to watch tape after, see what I did good, see what I did bad, stuff like that.”

The lead was the largest UCLA had blown this season. It sent every player and coach in different directions and brought the Bruins down to .500 for the first time all year, but Bartow said that it won’t faze the team for long.

“I want to make it clear; there’s no lack of motivation,” Bartow said. “These guys, they want to win. They want to win.”

Women’s basketball beats high altitudes with beet juice

The Bruins ascended in both altitude and national consideration this past weekend.

UCLA women’s basketball (15-9, 8-4 Pac-12) received eight votes in the latest AP Poll after defeating Colorado and then-No. 17 Utah (18-5, 7,5) – its first time receiving votes since Nov. 9.

The difference in elevation between Los Angeles and Boulder, Colorado is just over 5,000 feet, and the difference is approximately 4,000 feet for Salt Lake City.

The Bruins prepared for the high elevation by hydrating with a purple and pungent liquid, not suited for those with a sensitive palate: beet juice.

“We were really just trying to do everything that we can,” said coach Cori Close. “We always talk about being champions of the preparation and that’s what we’re really focused on. And this week, (drinking beet juice) is what we needed to do.”

No UCLA starter played less than 30 minutes in each game and freshman guard Ahlana Smith led the bench with 33 minutes.

“We don’t have a real deep rotation so (drinking the beet juice) was a huge key,” Close said.

The Bruins were without sophomore guard Chantel Horvat and redshirt freshman guard Kayla Owens, who average 15 and eight minutes per game, respectively.

Senior guard Japreece Dean – averaging a team-high of 33.4 minutes per game – said she noticed a difference in her endurance as a result of the drink.

“It helps a lot with oxygen (deficiencies) and our breathing,” Dean said. “I think it helped with our bodies for sure.”

Nitrate-rich beet juice serves to improve blood vessel functioning and delivers oxygen to the body at high altitudes, according to a 2015 study by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

But senior guard Kennedy Burke said she didn’t drink it for the taste.

“Honestly, that was probably the most disgusting thing I ever tasted in my life,” Burke said. “But it helped because it contains iron in it and it just helps with giving us that energy.”

Burke moved into the top 20 on UCLA’s all-time scoring list with a 10-point performance against Colorado and a career-high 26 points against Utah.

Close said athletic performance dietician Lauren Papanos introduced the idea of using beet juice.

“We have a great nutritionist in (Papanos),” Close said. “She did a great job explaining to our team about how to get them ready to play their best and our team bought in and got it done.”

With UCLA matching its longest winning streak of the season at six games, Close said the team has to take the small things into accountability.

“You never know (how much you improve) by doing those things,” Close said. “You have to take care of every little thing under your control to give yourself a chance to play at an elite level.”

Alumna singer draws inspiration from diversity, seeks to uplift Asian voices

This post was updated Feb. 12 at 6:25 p.m.

Samantha Shen learned to add R&B and jazz influences to her pop repertoire after graduating from UCLA’s ethnomusicology program.

Shen will perform at the next installment of the Fowler Out Loud concert series Wednesday. She plans to sing new music as well as songs from her extended play, “Rose Colored Glasses.” While in the past her music style has been radio-friendly, Shen said her music has become more fluid and diverse. Majoring in ethnomusicology opened her mind to what music means and how different cultures can influence her, she said.

Shen said she has felt a lot more pressure after graduating in 2018. On Wednesday, she will perform her upcoming song “Daze,” which is about her postgraduate struggle. Being labeled as just an artist and not a student is tough for her, she said, since she has carried the student label her whole life. However, she said newfound freedom and her changing musical influences – from Ariana Grande to Cardi B – have been growing experiences for her.

Jordan Avesar, a UCLA alumnus and drummer who will be performing with Shen, said he and Shen began playing together after meeting in a jazz history class at UCLA. He said Shen’s original songs display her songwriting talent. Although they have experimented together in the past, Wednesday will be the group’s first time performing in front of an audience, as Shen does not usually perform with a live band.

“I’m excited about the order of the set because that can make a big difference,” he said. “Some of the songs are just piano and vocals, low-key, but some are large scale and have a huge drum set.”

While her first EP was more lighthearted, Shen said her new music will be more soulful, since she wants to create music that will make her audience feel something. After exploring different cultural genres, such as Indian music, at UCLA, she said she wanted to incorporate those into her music.

Additionally, Shen said she wants to use her musical career to support and uplift other Asian-American artists. While she has found some Asian-American communities in Los Angeles, the recent UCLA alumna said she’s still sometimes the only person of color in the room.

“I’ve definitely felt alienated, like people (in the music industry) are almost thinking ‘What do we do with her?’” she said. “(They were) basically making my race an angle.”

Laura Jane Yee, the coordinator for Fowler Out Loud and a fourth-year ethnomusicology student, said she appreciates Shen’s intentions when it comes to social justice and supporting other Asian-American artists. Yee also said Shen’s changing sonic style is a reason her application to perform was accepted. Her initial, happy-go-lucky pop EP reflected her mindset during her last year of college, Yee said, but since graduating, she has become more pensive with R&B and jazz influences.

“(Fowler Out Loud) really motivated (Shen) to find a band to perform with. She used to work with producers and sing to a track, but now she gets to be more creatively flexible,” she said. “I’ve always supported her as a solo act, but musicians can inspire each other.”

Budding Los Angeles: Cannabis testing facilities expand, ensure high-quality products for consumers

Thirty years ago, buying cannabis was difficult, expensive and illegal. Buying cannabis in 2019 is somewhere between picking up a prescription from a pharmacy and buying beer from a liquor store. Join columnist John Tudhope each week as he visits cannabis companies in Los Angeles and discusses the budding industry.

Gone are the days when your friend’s older brother was the source of objective truth about cannabis.

Today, cannabis testing laboratories are able to precisely measure what compounds are in cannabis, which cannabis strains are safe to consume and which products can have the strongest effects.

The quantification of what compounds can be found in the cannabis plant is one of the most innovative and exciting aspects of the new legal cannabis industry. This drug is no longer a mystery plant brought illegally across borders but is instead a subject of scientific interest for its medicinal and therapeutic values.

The main differences between products from black-market dealers and those acquired from legal services are the quality of the cannabis and the fact that it has been tested in a state-licensed laboratory.

There are currently 33 cannabis testing labs operating in California. To learn more about testing laboratories, I visited CannaSafe Analytics, a leading laboratory in Van Nuys that tests 20 percent of California’s legal cannabis and cannabis products.

When I first entered their lab alongside UCLA’s Cannaclub, I was given eyewear and an ill-fitting black lab coat. Danielle Van Lerberg, a support specialist with CannaSafe, warmly greeted our small group in the lobby and proceeded to take us on the journey that a cannabis sample takes when entering the lab for compliance testing.

The lab was clean, organized and clearly making an effort to be cutting edge in the world of cannabis science. As we entered the intake room – the lab’s most bustling space – technicians were unwrapping finished cannabis products and preparing them for the series of tests. It was only slightly saddening to see people ripping apart joints, breaking open vaporizer cartridges and essentially destroying weed in the name of safety and science.

CannaSafe tests dried cannabis flowers, concentrates and infused products, and must verify 0.35 percent of any batch produced. This means that if a grower produces 50 pounds of dried cannabis, they must send 2.8 ounces of dried cannabis to a laboratory for compliance testing.

After the sample is unpackaged, mixed in a solution and placed in test tubes, it begins its journey through the lab’s maze of rooms. The lab looks exactly like you’d imagine: Each room had a variety of large white or gray machines with lab technicians sitting at adjacent computers.

The first specialized testing space looked for microbes such as mold, salmonella and E. coli. Van Lerberg said this step is necessary for ensuring a safe product, as the lab has detected salmonella in test samples for legal products before.

After a product moves through microbial testing, it is tested for pesticides. CannaSafe tests for 66 pesticides in total – over two rounds of analysis – to ensure that growers are only using state-approved chemicals on their plants.

The sample batch moves onward to another round of testing for a variety of heavy metals and solvents. Van Lerberg said CannaSafe has seen an increase in heavy metals in cannabis vaporizer cartridges and mentioned the only way to ensure consumers avoid lead or other harmful materials in their products is by purchasing state-compliant products from state-licensed retail or delivery services.

From my experience seeing the manufacturing process that concentrates go through, I’d guess that as the industry expands rather rapidly and competition is fierce, manufacturers are taking less due diligence in cleaning and refining products to rid them of the harsh chemicals used in extraction. Compliant products will include a seal of approval if it has been tested and approved for sale.

In the final phase of testing, samples go through cannabinoid detection in the space that Van Lerberg called the “three-million-dollar room” because of the cost of equipment. This room provides perhaps one of the most intriguing measurements in the laboratory: the potency.

The strength of cannabis is mainly measured through two compounds, tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol, more commonly known as THC and CBD, respectively.

The technicians testing for potency said there are many more obscure compounds in the plant, such as cannabigerol and tetrahydrocannabivarin, known respectively as CBG and THCV, that cannabis scientists are still learning about.

Van Lerberg said labs like CannaSafe are able to research and discover new and unknown compounds because of the sheer volume of products that they test. Private companies are in a unique position because they are able to collect data on the products that are being consumed in legal states, whereas universities and publicly funded research organizations are greatly limited in their ability to work with cannabis.

UCLA’s own research is legally restricted to human studies or testing federally approved plant material, which does not represent products that consumers are purchasing in legal states, according to UCLA Cannabis Research Initiative executive director Jeff Chen.

After all of these steps are completed, at a cost of about $800 per batch, the product is either given approval to be sold or is denied for failing one of the series of testing procedures. If rejected, it is then quarantined for 45 days in the lab’s safe room and sent away to be destroyed – no “sampling” for the employees here.

This experience gave me faith that the legal cannabis products people consume are safe, regulated and thoroughly tested. Labs like CannaSafe are leading the way in forging a new legal market with quantifiable products and reliable information. This industry may be a long shot from the days when weed was grown wild in the backcountry, but at least I know people aren’t consuming salmonella with a touch of lead when they light up their evening doobie.

Op-ed: Opposition to The Agora housing project is misguided, fails to consider benefits

“This will be a giant student party zoo!”

That’s one of several sentences written in bold on a site denouncing an incoming Westwood housing project.

It’s an alarming, awful, sad thing, to feel under attack just because of who you are, your occupation or where you go to school. But that’s exactly what us UCLA students are feeling right now by the community at large. As a first-generation graduate student, I can’t conceive that anyone would tolerate such derogatory language directed at students.

You may have seen the recent coverage in the Daily Bruin about The Agora, a self-described health- and wellness-oriented student housing project that promises to provide 462 beds of student housing on Hilgard Avenue. According to the project’s website, more than 50 of those beds will rent for less than $500 per month and the rest will cost between $1,000 to $1,200 per month.

Westwood hasn’t had a new private student housing project in decades. The tremendous demand for housing and the lack of supply is one of the main reasons why rents are so high. As the Los Angeles Times reported last year, Westwood has the highest rents of any community in all of California.

Indeed, it’s very promising if The Agora does what it says it’ll do.

Of course, The Agora is not the solution to all of Westwood’s housing problems. But I and a majority of the Graduate Students Association representatives at forum believe it may be a good first step. It will not absolutely solve the crisis of student homelessness, but it could help. Adding 462 beds in Westwood, including at least 50 that promise to rent for less than $500 per month, is a commitment that not even our university is making right now.

But some Westwood community members don’t see these benefits. Westwood neighbors blithe to the needs of students have argued The Agora is a “giant party zoo” and that community leaders are willing to “say anything” to approve the project. This callous slander of students is beyond disrespectful: It interiorizes the image of them as party animals from a zoo, not as rightful and eligible members of Westwood.

I certainly respect the right of current residents to be apprehensive about construction in Westwood Village. But neither I nor the majority of the representatives at the GSA forum share this position.

If The Agora project fulfills its promise of affordable student housing, it will embody what Westwood Forward campaigned for – precisely why the coalition’s student leadership committee and graduate student leaders unanimously endorsed the project two weeks ago. That’s also why the GSA endorsed The Agora last week.

It’s disappointing that homeowners would oppose affordable student housing in Westwood, but it’s their right to do so. Regardless of their position, they should never play to derogatory stereotypes.

Westwood should be an inclusive community, for everyone. And yes, that includes students.

Arciniega is the founder and president of the UCLA Hispanic Latinx Graduate Students Association. He is also the GSA director of diversity, inclusion and community engagement.