MARY HOLSCHER/Daily Bruin Alyssa Beckerman, performing at the
NCAA championships in Alabama, helped her team to a third-place
finish.
By Adam and Eli Karon
Daily Bruin Staff
[email protected]
[email protected]
Winning back-to-back championships is difficult, but winning
three in a row is nearly impossible. Such were the odds
stacked against the 2002 UCLA gymnastics team this season as it
fell just short of achieving its goal of a third straight
title.
Despite high expectations and untimely injuries, the 2002 Bruins
completed a very successful season, winning the Pac-10 title and
finishing the season No. 3 in the nation.
The quest for a three-peat did not start on a positive note for
UCLA. Before competition began, the team learned it would be
without the services of junior Carly Raab and sophomore Kristen
Maloney. Raab tore her ACL, and Maloney suffered complications from
a lower-leg injury, leaving both gymnasts on the sideline for the
season’s entirety.
Things went from bad to worse during the first meet when
freshman sensation Christie Tedmon fell from the beam, breaking
several toes. She would not return in 2002.
“We started out with a lot of injuries, so everyone got
experience competing,” junior Doni Thompson said.
This early experience would prove invaluable as the Bruins
struggled through several more injuries. Jamie Williams and Valerie
Velasco, typically restricted to alternate or sideline roles,
stepped up on several occasions to provide the Bruins with solid
performances.
By the end of the year Velasco, a senior, found herself
competing in front of 7,000 fans at the NCAA championships.
No one seemed to escape the injury bug this year. Kristin Parker
suffered a concussion and sprained ankle. Malia Jones, Onnie Willis
and Jaime Dantzscher all had foot and ankle problems.
Sophomore Alyssa Beckerman stepped into a new role, becoming the
team’s anchor on the beam as well as competing on the
floor.
In addition, the Bruins received a huge boost when Jeannette
Antolin rejoined the team in February. The sophomore had been
taking care of personal issues when members of the team asked that
she be allowed to compete. With head coach Valorie Kondos
Field’s blessing, Antolin made a triumphant return, helping
propel the team through the Pac-10 finals.
“It was really good to see our team go from beat up and
struggling to a championship team,” Willis said.
Willis earned four All-American honors to give her 12 for her
career, just one short of the school record.
Jones provided the team with solid routines, going All-Around
five times during the regular season to tie with Dantzscher for the
team lead. In addition, she regularly led off on several
events.
Dantzscher finished the season as one of the most decorated
gymnasts in UCLA history. The sophomore from San Dimas was named
the Pac-10 and Western Region gymnast of the year. She was also
crowned the all-around, vault and floor national champion. In
addition, Dantzscher was named a first-team All-American in all
four events and the all-around.
In all, the Bruins won 13 All-American honors, including 11
first-team awards.
UCLA finished the season with a 19-5 record, a far cry from last
season’s two-loss total. But the team still called the season
a major success.
“We had a great time at a lot of the meets that we
didn’t win this year,” Kondos Field said.
As for the third place finish at the national championships?
“We don’t look at it as we finished third,”
she said. “We look at it as we went into the national
championships and didn’t count a fall. Looking back over the
entire season, I think we had an incredible year because we learned
a lot.”