University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Title May Be Just A Glimpse Of What's In Store For Bruins
April 18, 2000 | Gymnastics
April 18, 2000
BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Now that UCLA has two NCAA women's gymnastics titles, coach Valorie Kondos has no intention of slowing down.
The Bruins built their 2000 championship on seniors Heidi Moneymaker and Lena Degteva and junior Mohini Bhawdwaj. A talented freshman class delivered the supplemental performance UCLA needed to win it all.
But already, Kondos has outdone herself. Last November, she signed three gymnasts who competed in the 1999 world championships and reaffirmed commitments from two other Olympic hopefuls who originally signed in 1998.
"If everyone who is supposed to report shows up next season, we will have a lot of depth and possibly five Olympians," Kondos said.
The Bruins scored 197.3 points Friday by turning in excellent team efforts on each apparatus. Utah was second at 196.875, and two-time defending champion Georgia was third at 196.8.
Moneymaker and Degteva were freshmen when the Bruins won their first championship, then went dry for two years. When the freshmen enrolled last fall, the two seniors sat down with the newcomers and issued an ultimatum.
"Win or die," Moneymaker recalled, giggling at the memory.
They chose to win, and it was UCLA's meet from the start. However, Nebraska senior Heather Brink was the star performer individually.
After winning the all-around competition, Brink added the vault championship and placed second on the bars Saturday night. She scored 9.95s on two vaults, and she knew immediately she had nailed each.
"I couldn't ask for a better way to go out," Brink said. "I'm so honored. I don't even know what to say because I'm so astonished. I honestly didn't think I'd be able to hold together this long."
Brink scored a 9.925 on the bars and was poised to win that event until Bhardwaj, the nation's top-ranked bars performer and next-to-last competitor, hit a near-perfect 9.95.
"My dreams have come true," Bhardwaj said. "If this is all I can have out of my collegiate career, I'll take it."
Hold on. There's a good chance of more championship hardware for Bhardwaj and the Bruins. When the 2001 national meet is staged in Athens, Ga., it could be time for UCLA to shine again.
In a sport dominated by Utah, Georgia and Alabama during 19 years of NCAA sanctioning, UCLA has crashed the party.
"No matter how good the kids who are coming in are, now they've got something to prove," Kondos said. "This championship gives this year's underclassmen a sense of accomplishment. They won't be intimidated by the new recruits."
