By Jennifer Blank Daily Bruin Contributor
After defending their Pac-10 championship two weeks ago, the
second-ranked UCLA gymnastics team clinched the NCAA Region 1 title
and a berth to the upcoming NCAA Championships last weekend.
The Bruins’ postseason successes, along with the team’s
history-making regular-season performances, have consistently shown
to the rest of the nation why UCLA is a candidate for this year’s
national crown.
At the Region 1 Championships in Corvallis, Ore., UCLA placed
first with a total of 197.025. It was the Bruins’ fourth score of
over 197 this year. Runner-up Oregon State came in with 196.125
points.
UCLA gymnasts dominated the individual standings in Corvallis as
well. A Bruin won or tied for first place in all four events, and
the Bruins swept the top three all- around spots.
Junior Mohini Bhardwaj won the all-around crown for the third
straight meet (39.65), and was followed by senior Heidi Moneymaker
(39.575). Senior Lena Degteva managed to tie for third with
Stanford’s Jen Exaltacion (39.3), despite a fall off the beam.
"That was a bummer for me," Degteva said. "I would’ve taken the
meet if it hadn’t been for the fall."
Degteva performed close to perfectly on the other three events.
She scored a 9.925 on bars to tie for first with Bhardwaj, and also
won the regional vault title with a 9.975.
Bhardwaj tied for first on beam with Stanford’s Katy Herbert
(9.925) to add the Region 1 beam championship to her all-around and
bars crowns.
Moneymaker posted a 9.95 on floor to take the top honors in the
event.
"I’m relieved that this meet is behind us," Moneymaker said. "We
are finally on our way to nationals. Our team is phenomenal."
The Bruins began the competition by scoring a 49.5 on floor,
which was the third-highest total in school history in the
event.
UCLA then went on to record a 49.5 on vault, which was once
again the third-highest mark in school history. On the next
rotation, the uneven bars, the Bruins continued to dominate,
earning a combined 49.4.
The balance beam was the last apparatus on which the Bruins
performed, and, heading into the final rotation, UCLA led Oregon
State and Stanford by more than a point.
Three UCLA gymnasts fell, however, and two of the falls were
counted in the team total (a one-point deduction). But the Bruins’
large lead, along with 9.875s from freshman Kristin Parker and
Degteva, and a 9.925 from Bhardwaj, still placed UCLA well ahead of
the field in the final standings.
"This meet was just a step," Bruin head coach Valorie Kondos
Field said. "We came in with a mission and didn’t get too hyped
up.
"The team did not peak here, so heading into nationals, the
girls are still hungry, which is exactly where they want to be,"
she continued.
If winning the Region 1 Championships was just one step in the
Bruins’ hunt for the 2000 NCAA title, then so was claiming the
Pac-10 championship back on March 18 in Tempe, Ariz.
UCLA stole the spotlight at the Pac-10 meet by winning its ninth
conference title with a score of 197.7 (a season-high on the road).
Oregon State was also the runner-up at this meet, finishing with a
196.575.
Bhardwaj captured the Pac-10 all-around title (39.7), and won on
vault as well. She also tied for first on floor with
Moneymaker.
Degteva was second overall and placed first on beam and
bars.
"I’m absolutely thrilled," Kondos Field said in a statement
after the meet. "I’m thrilled we started on beam and went
six-for-six. I’m also really proud we had four freshman out there
and they got the job done."
After the competition, Moneymaker was named Pac-10 Gymnast of
the Year and teammate Doni Thompson was named Freshman of the Year.
Kondos Field also earned conference Coach of the Year honors.
So, with the first two meets of the postseason now in the record
books, the UCLA gymnastics team is on a roll. The Bruins will head
to Boise State on April 13 for the NCAA Championships, where they
hope their final step of the year will be onto the first-place
podium, as national champions.