April 5, 1999

THIS WEEK - UCLA (20-5, ranked No. 15) will attempt to qualify for the NCAA Championships when it competes Saturday, Apr. 10 at the NCAA Regionals. The Bruins will compete at one of the toughest regionals in the nation, Region 1 at Oregon State's Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, OR. The meet begins at 7:00 pm. In order to qualify for the Championships, UCLA must place in the Top 2 against No. 3 Utah, No. 12 Oregon State, No. 18 Boise State, No. 34 Washington and No. 47 Sacramento State. Only the top two finishers at each of the six regionals will advance to the NCAA Championships Apr. 22-24 at Salt Lake City, UT.

ROTATION ORDER - In a blind draw conducted by the NCAA, the Bruins drew a favorable bye-bars rotation order. UCLA will have a bye in the first rotation and will begin the meet on bars in the second rotation then move to beam before taking another bye. From there, the Bruins will move to floor and end the meet on vault, where they rank fifth nationally with an RQS of 49.1125. Below is the complete rotation order for Regionals:

 V Bye UB BB Bye FX
I Sac St. UCLA OSU Wash. BSU Utah
II Utah Sac St. UCLA OSU Wash. BSU
III BSU Utah Sac St. UCLA OSU Wash.
IV Wash. BSU Utah Sac St. UCLA OSU
V OSU Wash. BSU Utah Sac St. UCLA
VI UCLA OSU Wash. BSU Utah Sac St.

UCLA AT NCAA REGIONALS - The Bruins have won nine regional championships, including five in the last six years. UCLA's last regional victory came at Boise State in 1997, the year it also won the national championship. Three current Bruins have won individual titles at Regionals - Heidi Moneymaker (bars, 1997), Lena Degteva (beam, 1997) and Luisa Portocarrero (beam, 1996).

BRUINS FIND SUCCESS IN CORVALLIS - UCLA will be making its third trip to Corvallis, OR this season. Corvallis has been kind to the Bruins in 1999. On Jan. 22 at Gill Coliseum, the Bruins defeated Oregon State 194.575-194.45, and on Mar. 20, UCLA won the Pac-10 Championships there with a school record 197.775.

BRUINS REGAIN PAC-10 TITLE - UCLA won its eighth Pac-10 title Mar. 20 by scoring a school and Pac-10 Championship record 197.775. The Bruins utilized a school record 49.6 on floor to move ahead of Oregon State, which placed second with a school record 197.4. In all, 13 career-highs were set by Bruins in this meet. Heidi Moneymaker won the all-around (career-high 39.675) and tied for first on vault (9.925), while junior Lena Degteva placed third in the all-around with a career-high 39.575. The Bruins now have a Pac-10 best 34 conference individual titles (including a record nine all-around champions), 11 more than Oregon State (23). Moneymaker's all-around win gave UCLA six all-around crowns in the last seven years.

PAC-10 TITLE BODES WELL FOR BRUINS AT REGIONALS - When UCLA wins the Pac-10 Championship, all signs point to a likely Regional victory as well. In six of the seven previous times the Bruins won the Pac-10 Championship, they won the Regional title later that year. UCLA won both titles in 1987, 89, 90, 93, 95 and 97.

HAYASHI GIVES HEARTFELT PERFORMANCE, NAMED PAC-10 GYMNAST OF THE YEAR - Senior co-captain and five-time All-American Kiralee Hayashi (Kailua, HI) became UCLA's third consecutive and eighth overall Pac-10 Gymnast of the Year when she was given the honor after the Championships. Hayashi, who follows 1997 winner Leah Homma and 1998 winner Stella Umeh, sat out vault and bars at Pac-10s due to a racing heartbeat but returned to score career-highs on beam (9.9) and floor (9.95).

This season, Hayashi has averaged a 38.913 in the all-around, 9.8 on floor, 9.753 on vault and a team-best 9.765 on bars. She has five individual wins and 18 Top 3 finishes.

HEIDI IS MONEY - For the seventh time in her last eight meets, Heidi Moneymaker (Santa Rosa, CA) placed first on vault, this time scoring a 9.925 at the Pac-10 meet. The junior All-American also scored career-highs of 9.925 on beam and floor Moneymaker now has a team-high 17 event titles and 30 Top 3 finishes to her credit this season. In addition, her average of 38.95 in the all-around is a team-best. She has scored 39+ in four of her last five meets. In the national rankings, Moneymaker ranks 12th in the all-around (39.2562 RQS) and 8th on vault (9.9062).

MS. RELIABLE - Senior Susie Erickson (Pomona, CA) increased her "hit" streak on beam to 20 straight routines without a fall. At Pac-10s, Erickson, UCLA's leadoff performer, scored a 9.775 to help lead UCLA to its season-best team total of 49.425, the third-best beam score in school history. She also helped the Bruins on bars, scoring a career-high 9.9 to place fourth.

BHARDWAJ BACK ON THREE EVENTS - Sophomore standout Mohini Bhardwaj (Cincinnati, OH) made her first appearance on vault since Jan. 10, scoring a 9.875 at the Pac-10s. She also recorded career-highs on beam (9.925) and floor (9.95). Bhardwaj, who was out for nearly two months with an elbow injury, could return to the all-around this weekend at Regionals.

THE IRON WOMAN - Junior All-American Lena Degteva (Mississauga, Ont.) has displayed her strength and fitness all year, competing 43 of 44 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 (including a team-high three on floor and three in the all-around) and placing in the Top 3 27 times. She is ranked 20th nationally on vault and averages a 9.802 and also ranks 21st on floor with an RQS of 9.8937. In the all- around, she ranks 23rd (39.1562), and she scored a career-high 39.575 in the all-around to place third at the Pac-10 Championships.

PORTOCARRERO VAULTS TO NEW HEIGHTS - Senior Luisa Portocarrero (Guatemala City, Guatemala) had her fourth straight strong showing on vault, scoring a career- high 9.9 at Pac-10s. Portocarrero, who now averages a 9.863 in four vault attempts, 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 collegiate vault Feb. 7, 1998 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 return of Mohini Bhardwaj to the vault lineup, UCLA now has six 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 9.85 at the Pac-10 Championships. Although Bhardwaj did not compete her Yurchenko one-and-a-half (10.0 start value) vault at Pac-10s, it is a vault on which she was competing and averaging a 9.892 prior to her elbow injury. 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).

FRESHMEN WALK-ONS PROVIDE PLEASANT SURPRISE - Walk-on freshmen Lindsey Dong (San Jose, CA) and Valerie Velasco (Fullerton, CA) have been the biggest surprises for the Bruins this season. On a team filled with national-caliber scholarship athletes, the freshmen duo have been constants in the Bruin lineup. Dong has competed on vault in each of the Bruins' 11 meets. She averages a 9.611 but most recently hit a career-best 9.85 at the Pac-10 Championships. Since upgrading her vault to a 10.0 start value, she is averaging a 9.7. Velasco was UCLA's savior during its injury-riddled first half of 1999. With several key gymnasts out, she filled in admirably in the all-around, averaging 38.15. Velasco's best all- around meet came at ASU, where she placed fourth with a career-high 38.85. But she one-upped that performance at Pac-10s, scoring career-highs on all three events in which she competed (9.75 vault, 9.775 bars, 9.85 floor). Velasco accomplished this despite being a last-minute substitute for Kiralee Hayashi.

UCLA IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS - In the final 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 finished ranked 15th with an RQS of 195.2937. The Bruins rank fifth on vault (49.1125), 20th on bars (48.9437), 23rd on beam (48.675) and 20th on floor (49.0187).

Individually, Heidi Moneymaker is the Bruins' top all-arounder at 12th (39.2562). Lena Degteva is 23rd (39.1562). Moneymaker is tied for eighth on vault (9.9062), while Degteva ranks tied for 20th on vault (9.8562) and 21st on floor (9.8937).

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)

Rank School RQS
 1 Georgia 197.4437
 2 Alabama 197.0875
 3 Utah 197.0750
 4 Michigan 196.7000
 5 LSU 196.1562
 6 Penn State 196.0375
 7 Nebraska 195.9437
 8 Stanford 195.8687
 9 Arizona State 195.7437
10 Florida 195.6375
11 Ohio State 195.6125
12 Oregon State 195.5312
13 Denver 195.4187
14 Maryland 195.3187
15 UCLA 195.2937
16 Iowa State 195.1875
17 Utah State 195.1312
18 Boise State 195.0750
19 Minnesota 195.0000
20 West Virginia 194.9125
21 Kentucky 194.8625
22 Oklahoma 194.8125
23 NC State 194.7250
24 BYU 194.6375
25 Arizona 194.6312

*as of Mar. 30

Regional Assignments

Region 1 (Corvallis, Ore.): No. 3 Utah, No. 12 Oregon State (host), No. 15 UCLA, No. 18 Boise State, Washington and Cal State-Sacramento

Region 2 (Logan, Utah): No. 1 Georgia, No. 10 Florida, No. 13 Denver, No. 16 Iowa State, No. 17 Utah State (host), No. 19 Minnesota

Region 3 (Lincoln, Neb.): No. 4 Michigan, No. 7 Nebraska (host), No. 22 Oklahoma, No. 25 Arizona, Illinois-Chicago, Illinois-Champaign

Region 4 (Baton Rouge, La.): No. 5 LSU (host), No. 8 Stanford, No. 21 Kentucky, Central Michigan, Auburn, Ball State

Region 5 (University Park, Pa.): No. 6 Penn State (host), No. 9 Arizona State, New Hampshire, Pittsburgh, Rhode Island, Massachusetts

Region 6 (Morgantown, W.V.): No. 2 Alabama, No. 11 Ohio State, No. 14 Maryland, No. 20 West Virginia (host), No. 23 N.C. State, Towson University

UCLA at Regionals

Team Championships: 1997, 1996, 1995, 1994, 1993, 1990, 1989, 1987, 1982

All-Around Champions:
Kareema Marrow, 1995, 1993
Jill Andrews, 1990
Kim Hamilton, 1987-89
Sharon Shapiro, 1982
Vault Champions:
Amy Smith, 1997
Dee Fischer, 1996
Karen Nelson, 1994
Kareema Marrow, 1993
Jill Andrews, 1988-90

Tanya Service, 1987

Bars Champions:
Heidi Moneymaker, 1997
Leah Homma, 1994
Kim Hamilton, 1988
Brigit Schier, 1987
Tanya Service, 1986

Tracy Curtis, 1984

Beam Champions:
Lena Degteva, 1997
Luisa Portocarrero, 1996
Stella Umeh, 1995
Jill Andrews, 1990, 1988
Tanya Service, 1989

Tracy Curtis, 1983

Floor Champions:
Amy Smith, 1996
Kareema Marrow, 1995
Stella Umeh, 1995
Amy Thorne, 1992
Jill Andrews, 1990
Renee Kelly, 1990
Carol Ulrich, 1990
Tanya Service, 1989
Kim Hamilton, 1987-89

Amy Lucena, 1986

UCLA Individual Career Highs

Gymnast V UB BB FX AA
Bhardwaj 9.95 9.925 9.925 9.95 38.8
Degteva 9.925 9.925 9.95 9.95 39.575
Dong 9.85 9.475
Dyson 9.675 9.675
Erickson 9.9 9.85 9.6
Hayashi 9.925 9.9 9.9 9.95 39.4
Hiley 9.775 9.875
Johnson 9.625
Moneymaker 9.975 9.975 9.925 9.925 39.675
Portocarrero9.9 9.875 9.9 9.725
Stoner 9.75 9.45 9.85
Velasco 9.75 9.775 9.85 9.85 38.85