March 15, 1999
THIS WEEK - UCLA (14-5, ranked No. 18) will seek its eighth Pac-10 Championship when it travels to Corvallis, OR for the 1999 Pac-10 Championships March 20 at 6 pm in Gill Coliseum. The meet will be televised delayed on Fox Sports Net Wed., Mar. 24 at 1:00 pm.
BRUINS, BEAVERS LOOK TO REGAIN PAC-10 SUPREMACY - In the first 11 years of the Pac-10 Gymnastics Championships, only two schools had ever won the team title - UCLA (seven times) and Oregon State (four times). Stanford broke the two-team domination in the conference last season when it won its first Pac-10 title. Although neither UCLA nor Oregon State won the team title in 1998, they collectively swept the individual titles. UCLA's Stella Umeh won the all-around, beam and floor, while teammate Lena Degteva won the vault. Oregon State's Deanne Droegemueller won the bars. Individually, UCLA (32) and Oregon State (19) hold the most number of conference individual event champions.
ROTATION ORDER Bye V UB Bye BB Bye FX I UCLA ASU ARIZ CAL OSU STAN UW II UW UCLA ASU ARIZ CAL OSU STAN III STAN UW UCLA ASU ARIZ CAL OSU IV OSU STAN UW UCLA ASU ARIZ CAL V CAL OSU STAN UW UCLA ASU ARIZ VI ARIZ CAL OSU STAN UW UCLA ASU VII ASU ARIZ CAL OSU STAN UW UCLA
PAC-10 NOTES - UCLA holds the record for most individual event champions (32), most uneven bars champions (9), most floor champions (6) and most all-around champions (8) Former Bruin Leah Homma holds the Pac-10 Championship records in the all-around (39.725) and bars (10.0, shared with another former Bruin Megan Fenton) A UCLA gymnast has won the uneven bars title five times in the last seven years, the all-around title five of the last six years and the floor title in each of the previous two years Previous Pac-10 Champions looking to recapture more individual titles are UCLA's Lena Degteva (1998 vault) and Arizona's Heidi Hornbeek (1996 all-around, 1997 beam and floor). Two other former champions - Arizona State's Lisa Vincijanovic (1996 beam) and Washington's Tiffany Simpson (1997 vault) - are questionable due to season-long injuries.
LAST YEAR AT THE PAC-10s - UCLA senior Stella Umeh, UCLA's second consecutive Pac-10 Gymnast of the Year, dominated the 1998 Pac-10 Championships, held in Pauley Pavilion, winning the all-around (career-high 39.6), beam (9.925) and floor (9.95). Umeh's performance, however, wasn't enough for the Bruins to overcome their shaky start on floor in the first rotation. UCLA finished in fourth place behind Stanford, Oregon State and Arizona State. Lena Degteva won UCLA's first vault title in four years by scoring a career-high 9.925.
LAST WEEK - UCLA recorded its second-highest score of the season, a 195.7, in a second-place finish in a triangular meet at Michigan. The host Wolverines placed first with a season-best 197.4, followed by the Bruins and Rutgers (189.075). Heidi Moneymaker had a strong showing for the Bruins, placing second in the all-around (39.275) and bars (9.9) and third on vault (9.925) and floor (9.9).
MONEYMAKER's VAULT STREAK HALTED AT SIX - Only a perfect 10 by Michigan's Sarah Cain could stop Heidi Moneymaker's six meet win streak on vault. Moneymaker scored a 9.925 to place third. Her average has increased, however to a xx, and she ranks in the Top 10 nationally on that event.
MS. RELIABLE - Senior Susie Erickson (Pomona, CA) increased her "hit" streak on beam to 19 straight routines without a fall. At Michigan, Erickson, UCLA's leadoff performer, scored a season-best 9.8 to place sixth.
THE IRON WOMAN - Junior All-American Lena Degteva (Mississauga, Ontario) has won the "Iron Woman" award this season, competing 39 of 40 possible routines so far this season. The only time this year she was held out of an event was on beam at the Bruins' season opener at Cal State Fullerton. Despite her lack of rest throughout the season, Degteva has been spectacular, winning 12 event titles and averaging 9.783 on vault. She scored a career-high 39.425 in winning the all-around at the Bruin Classic on March 7 and also set a new career-high on floor with a 9.95.
PORTOCARRERO VAULTS TO NEW HEIGHTS - Senior Luisa Portocarrero (Guatemala City, Guatemala) had her third straight strong showing on vault at Michigan, scoring a 9.825. Portocarrero made a dramatic return to the Bruin vault lineup at the UCLA Invitational Feb. 20, tying for first on her first vault in a year with a 9.85. The 1992 Olympian from Guatemala performed her first and last collegiate vault Feb. 7, 1998 at the UCLA Invitational and sprained her foot in the process, keeping her out of competition for two months. Prior to that vault last season, her last vault occurred at the 1993 World Championships. She performs a Yurchenko layout with a half twist (10.0 start value).
BRUIN VAULTERS INCREASE DIFFICULTY - With the recent addition of Luisa Portocarrero to the vault lineup, UCLA now has five vaulters with 10.0 start values. Freshman Lindsey Dong upgraded her vault to a 10.0 start value, throwing a Phelps and scoring a career-best 9.675. UCLA's other 10.0 vaults include a Yurchenko layout with a half-twist (Portocarrero, Degteva, Hayashi) and a handspring front pike with a half-twist (Moneymaker). When Mohini Bhardwaj returns to the vault lineup with her Yurchenko one-and-a-half, the Bruins will have six vaulters with 10.0 start values.
UPDATED ATHLETE BIOS
MOHINI BHARDWAJ - Sophomore All-American Mohini Bhardwaj, has returned to the Bruin lineup after missing a month due to torn ligaments in her elbow. Bhardwaj has competed on beam the last three meets and floor the last two. Since coming back, she has been more than impressive on floor, scoring a career-high 9.925 and a 9.85. Of Bhardwaj's four meets on floor, she has placed in the Top 3 three times. Her elbow injury has prevented her from competing on vault and bars, the two events on which she is a first-team All-American and holds career-highs of 9.95 and 9.925, respectively. Bhardwaj placed first both times she competed vault earlier this year.
LENA DEGTEVA - Junior All-American Lena Degteva has flourished in 1999, winning a team-high three all-around crowns, including two in her last three meets. Degteva has a team-high three wins on floor, where she holds a career-high of 9.95, along with three wins on bars (two wins in the last three meets) and two on beam. In UCLA's last four meets, Degteva is averaging a 9.89 on floor and a 9.83 on vault.
LINDSEY DONG - UCLA's steady leadoff on vault has been freshman Lindsey Dong. Dong has competed every meet on vault and has recorded a career-high of 9.675 twice in the last three meets. She upgraded her vault recently to a 10.0 start value Phelps.
SUSIE ERICKSON - Senior All-American Susie Erickson has been the epitome of grace under fire during her four years at UCLA. In the precarious leadoff position on beam, Erickson, voted the Bruins' team MVP a year ago, has been UCLA's rock, hitting her last 19 consecutive routines, dating back to 1997. In fact, she has hit 25 of her last 26 beam routines. Erickson has become quite adept on bars as well, scoring a career-high 9.825 Mar. 7.
KIRALEE HAYASHI - Senior All-American and team co-captain Kiralee Hayashi has been UCLA's most consistent bars and floor workers. Her averages of 9.765 on bars and 9.781 on floor are team-bests. Hayashi has four Top 3 finishes on floor, including two wins, and three Top 3 placings on bars. Her all-around average of 38.913 is also a team-best. In addition, Hayashi averages a 9.753 on vault, with a career-high of 9.925 set earlier this month.
LISA HILEY - Since returning to the bars lineup Mar. 7, senior Lisa Hiley has been solid, scoring a 9.675 and a season-high 9.8 in her last two meets.
HEIDI MONEYMAKER - Junior All-American and defending NCAA bars champion Heidi Moneymaker has picked up where she left off last year. Moneymaker leads the team with 15 even titles, including team-highs of six on vault, four on bars and three on beam. She has placed first on vault in six of her last seven meets. In the all-around, she has been most consistent, scoring above a 39 on five occasions., including three times in her last four meets.
LUISA PORTOCARRERO - Senior All-American Luisa Portocarrero has evolved into an outstanding three-event competitor since coming in as a freshman beam specialist. Portocarrero has scored no lower than 9.825 in her three vault attempts and has scored 9.8 or higher on bars three times. She owns four scores of 9.8 or higher on beam this season, in addition to three 9.775s.
ALISON STONER - Freshman Alison Stoner has been outstanding on floor for the Bruins all season. Stoner's dramatic tango has generated six straight 9.7+ scores, including a career-high 9.85 twice. Stoner won the floor title at a quadrangular meet in January and has placed in the Top 5 four times this year. She averages a 9.717. An elbow injury has kept her out of the bars lineup since Feb. 5, when she scored a career-best 9.75.
VALERIE VELASCO - Freshman walk-on Valerie Velasco was the Bruins' savior through January and February, competing all-around in four meets while UCLA struggled with injuries. Velasco's best performance came at Arizona State, where she scored a career-high 38.85. Velasco has the second-highest score by a Bruin on beam, a 9.85 that gave her a second-place finish at Penn State.
UCLA IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS - In this week's national rankings (by regional qualifying score - average of the top two home, top two away, plus two other top scores, throwing out the high and low), UCLA dropped from 17th to 18th despite scoring a season-high 196.5 in its last meet. UCLA's team RQS stands at 194.2875. The Bruins moved up to seventh on vault (48.825) and are ranked 15th on bars (48.7875), 22nd on beam (48.3812) and 22nd on floor (48.775).
Individually, Heidi Moneymaker is the Bruins' top all-arounder at 17th (39.0625). She is followed by Lena Degteva, who is 23rd (38.9437). Moneymaker ranks ninth on vault (9.8687).
BRUINS SIGN GREATEST RECRUITING CLASS IN HISTORY - UCLA has signed what is considered to be the greatest recruiting class in the history of the sport. Four current or past national champions highlight head coach Valorie Kondos' recruiting class of 1999-2000.
Signing with UCLA in November were current U.S. national all-around champion Kristen Maloney (Allentown, PA/Parkettes); 1997 Canadian national all-around champion Sarah Deegan (Oshawa, Ontario/Gemini Gymnastics); 1995 USA balance beam national champion Doni Thompson (Olympia, WA/Black Hills Gymnastics); and 1998 Level 10 national all-around, vault and bars champion Onnie Willis (Tacoma, WA/Puget Sound Gymnastics).
Maloney will defer college until after the 2000 Olympics, as will another Bruin signee, Alyssa Beckerman (Middletown, NJ/Cincinnati Gymnastics Academy). Beckerman placed eighth in the all-around and beam, second on bars and seventh on floor at the 1998 USA National Championships.
Also signing with UCLA are three top Level 10 competitors, Malia Jones (Sparks, NV/Flips Gymnastics); Kristin Parker (Hanford, CA/Central California Gymnastics Institute); and Carly Raab (Seattle, WA/Cascade Elite Gymnastics).
Said Kondos, "I am so excited about this year's recruiting class. This is the greatest collection of student-athletes gymnastics has ever seen."
Top 25 Team Rankings (by regional qualifying score) Rk School RQS 1 Georgia 197.1125 2 Alabama 197.0750 3 Utah 196.6375 4 LSU 195.9312 5 Penn State 195.8812 6 Michigan 195.6562 7 Arizona State 195.5062 8 Nebraska 195.2562 9 Maryland 194.8687 10 Ohio State 194.7000 11 Minnesota 194.6750 12 Iowa State 194.4750 13 Oregon State 194.4500 14 West Virginia 194.4375 15 Florida 194.3875 16 Utah State 194.3250 17 Oklahoma 194.3062 18 UCLA 194.2875 19 Stanford 194.1500 20 Illinois-Chicago 193.9750 21 Illinois 193.9375 Kentucky 193.9375 23 Denver 193.8937 24 North Carolina St. 193.8375 25 Towson Univesity 193.7125 *as of Mar. 9