UCLA, which moved up to No. 1 in the national gymnastics rankings after winning its first meet, knows it must continue to polish the small details of its routines and stay focused to win a national title after finishing as runners up last season.
During the Collegiate Quad in West Valley City, Utah, Saturday against potent Oklahoma, LSU and Utah, the Bruins saw just how difficult it will be to win a championship.
No. 1 UCLA gymnastics finished in third place. Oklahoma, which was ranked No. 1 in the preseason coaches’ poll, and LSU, which was ranked No. 2 in the preseason, tied for first place at the meet. The defending national champion Sooners clinched the meet win on a tiebreaker.
UCLA’s Jordan Chiles finished second in the individual all-around competition with a total of 39.575 behind LSU’s Kailin Chio, who posted a score of 39.6.
The Bruins started on the uneven bars with a team total of 49.425. Chiles and Tiana Sumanasekera led the scoring with 9.9 marks. Katelyn Rosen, Nola Matthews and Ashlee Sullivan all posted 9.875 scores.
At the end of the first rotation, UCLA was in the lead and Oklahoma was in second place with a 49.350 score on the vault. Utah finished last after three falls on the beam, its lowest score since February 2000.
Moving over to the balance beam, the Bruins struggled at the start, with Matthews falling and Sumanasekera wobbling. UCLA closed off the rotation with strong performances from Chiles and Ciena Alipio scoring 9.85 and 9.925, respectively.
Still, UCLA dropped to third, with Oklahoma taking control of the top spot after a strong performance on the uneven bars.
The Bruins failed to gain ground in the team competition after moving to the floor exercise during the third rotation. They finished with a total of 49.125 after Chiles capped their performance with a 9.925. Her score was enough to tie for first as an individual in the floor competition, her sixth event title so far this season. UCLA closed the rotation with a total score of 147.725, leaving Oklahoma and LSU in front of them batting for first with a 0.175 difference.
During UCLA’s last rotation, Sumanasekera scored a 9.875 on her vault. Rosen and Riley Jenkins scored 9.825 during their attempts and Chiles closed with a 9.9. It wasn’t enough to mount a team comeback. The Bruins maintained their place in the team competition with a total of 197 points.
LSU and Oklahoma finished ahead of UCLA with 197.5 points apiece, but the Sooners came out on top of the meet thanks to a tiebreaker.
UCLA returns to Los Angeles and will host Nebraska on Jan. 17 during the Bruins’ first home meet of the season.
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