Oct. 3, 2000

By Stuart Wolpert

UCLA's Gymnastics team has adopted as its role model not another gymnast, but a legend: John Wooden. When last season's team celebrated its national championship at its annual awards banquet in May, Coach Wooden was among those who honored the team. The way last season's team thoroughly dominated its meets reminded me of Wooden's championship teams that often defeated opponents by 50 points or more.

The seniors from last year, superstars Lena Degteva and Heidi Moneymaker, are gone, but should never be forgotten. It's time to give them their rightful place among UCLA's greatest student-athletes ever - a pantheon that includes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Arthur Ashe, Jackie Robinson, Bill Walton, and Troy Aikman, among others. The loss of such gifted athletes and leaders would be devastating to most teams in most sports, but there are compelling reasons to think that even without Lena and Heidi, this year's team will again be special.

The first reason for confidence is Head Coach Valorie Kondos, who has built not just a championship team, but a championship program. When you praise her student-athletes for one of their remarkable accomplishments, they often deflect the credit to "Miss Val." It's time to give Valorie Kondos her due as one of the outstanding coaches in any sport. She is the best choreographer in gymnastics, and demands high standards for her student-athletes athletically and academically. The team respects her and responds. They excel in the classroom, earning a very impressive team grade point average of 3.29 - which is higher than UCLA's overall undergraduate GPA (just under 3.1) - and we've seen how well they achieve in their sport. She and the assistant coaches have built a program that certainly has the potential to excel every year.

Eighteen other reasons to believe in this team are the team members themselves. Senior Mohini Bhardwaj, the 2000 NCAA bars champion and a first-team All-American, is very talented, and has a lot of help throughout the team's roster. My advice to fans is when Onnie Willis is performing, be very alert and keep your eyes on her at all times, Onnie is spectacular and you won't want to miss anything she does. Onnie was part of last year's "Fab Five" freshman class. Returning with her as sophomores are Malia Jones, Doni Thompson, Kristin Parker and Carly Raab. It will be fun to follow them and their many accomplishments throughout their UCLA careers. The juniors are Stephanie Johnson, Lindsey Dong (both Academic All-Americans) and Valerie Velasco.

UCLA has recruited the top freshman class in the country with Kristen Maloney and Jamie Dantzscher, who both competed for the United States in the Summer Olympics, Alyssa Beckerman, who was selected as an alternate to the U.S. Olympic team, Yvonne Tousek, who led Canada's Olympic team, and Jeanette Antolin, who competed in the U.S. Olympic trials. Lena and Heidi cannot be replaced in the hearts of the fans who watched them over the years, but these five freshmen will also be very special. Four other talented freshmen have also joined the team: Angie D'Agostino, Christy Erickson, Trishna Patel and Jamie Williams.

The team genuinely appreciates the support of its growing number of fans. You can meet Coach Kondos and the team at a free exhibition on Sunday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m. in, appropriately, UCLA's John Wooden Center. It's a fun afternoon when you can watch the gymnasts perform and participate in a Question & Answer session. The meets at UCLA will all be held on Sundays at 2 p.m. in Pauley Pavilion, the dates are Jan. 21, Jan. 28, Feb. 11, March 4, and March 18 (against rival Georgia). The tickets still cost only $8 for adults, $6 for kids, and you choose your own seats, it's the best entertainment value in Los Angeles. This season, the NCAA Regionals will also be held in Pauley Pavilion, on Saturday, April 7, at 6 p.m.

How will this team do without Lena and Heidi? Here are more reasons to think this will be another successful year: The team will start the season ranked number one in the country, Lena and Heidi are still providing inspiration, and remember this: John Wooden's teams achieved great success after the graduation of their superstars, as other superstars took their place.

So what are you doing on Nov. 5, Jan. 21, Jan. 28, Feb. 11, March 4, March 18, and April 7?

Stuart Wolpert is a senior media relations representative for UCLA's College of Letters and Science.