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Bruins are coming off win over Arizona.
Jan. 26, 1998
NEXT WEEK - Defending NCAA Champions UCLA (4-1) will have a week off to prepare for the UCLA Invitational Feb. 7. The Bruins will take on Stanford, Michigan and Cornell at Pauley Pavilion at 7 pm.
BRUINS ON TV - Fox Sports West 2 will televise the UCLA Invitational on a delayed basis, Monday, Feb. 9 at 7 pm. Bill Macdonald and former UCLA gymnastics great Kim (Hamilton) Anthony will provide commentary.
COOK RETURNS TO UCLA - UCLA will be reunited with former assistant coach Mark Cook, now the head coach of the Stanford Cardinal. Cook was UCLA's top assistant from 1995-1997 and helped lead UCLA to the 1997 NCAA Championship. He heads a Stanford team that returns its whole 1997 lineup which placed a close second to UCLA at last year's Pac-10 Championships.
UCLA-MICHIGAN MATCHUP GUARANTEES BEST PERFORMANCES - Competing against Michigan always seems to bring out the best in the Bruins. The Top 3 team scores in school history have come in meets in which Michigan competed. The highest (197.475) came at the 1996 NCAA Championships, where the Bruins took second place to Michigan's sixth. The next highest (197.15) was at last year's NCAA Championships, where UCLA and Michigan entered the final rotation tied with an opportunity to overtake leader Arizona State. The Bruins not only outscored Michigan, but they outscored ASU to win the NCAA title. Michigan finished in fourth place. The third highest team score (196.925) also came in 1997, when the Bruins took first place at the Magical Classic in Florida with a convincing 2.7 point win over the Wolverines.
BRUINS DEFEAT WILDCATS - UCLA continued its winning ways, defeating Arizona on the road last Friday, 192.875-191.55. The Bruins swept the four individual events for the second consecutive meet. Freshman Mohini Bhardwaj and senior Stella Umeh tied for first on vault (9.825). Sophomore Heidi Moneymaker scored a career high 9.975 (one judge awarded her a perfect 10) on bars. Junior Luisa Portocarrero won the beam for the second consecutive week with a 9.775, and sophomore Lena Degteva placed first on floor with a career-best 9.925.
FONG INSPIRES BRUINS WITH ALL-AROUND PERFORMANCE - The highlight of the meet, by far, for the Bruins was the all-around performance of senior walk-on Andrea Fong, who competed all four events for the first time in her collegiate career. Fong finished in third place with a score of 37.5 and hit career highs on bars (9.65) and beam (9.35). Fong hit her routine on beam (her first ever in collegiate competition) despite injuring her ankle on the previous rotation.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS - Tickets for the 1998 NCAA Gymnastics Championships are on sale now at the UCLA Central Ticket Office.