Jan. 11, 2011
Complete Release in PDF Format 
UCLA At Southern Utah - The fifth-ranked UCLA gymnastics team (5-2) returns to Utah for a meet at Southern Utah in Cedar City on Friday, Jan. 14. The meet will take place at Centrum Arena at 7 pm MT.
Live Coverage - Visit Southern Utah's website for live coverage of the meet - suutbirds.com.
In The Rankings - After the first week of competition, UCLA now stands at No. 5 in the national rankings with a season average of 195.613. The Bruins rank fourth on floor (49.05), fifth on vault (49.138), sixth on bars (49.038) and 19th on beam (48.388). Individually, Brittani McCullough (12th, 39.15) and Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs (19th, 39.113) are ranked in the Top 20 in the all-around. Hopfner-Hibbs ranks 13th on vault (9.85). Sydney Sawa and Monique De La Torre are tied for 21st on bars (9.838). Aisha Gerber ranks fifth on beam (9.863) .
Last Week: UCLA At Utah - UCLA opened the season on Friday at fifth-ranked Utah, dropping a closely-contest match, 195.7-195.3. The Bruins trailed throughout the meet and had their comeback hopes dashed by a pair of falls on balance beam in the final rotation. Nevertheless, UCLA still had a solid opening meet, with standout performances by freshman Olivia Courtney, who had team-high scores on vault (9.875) and floor (9.85); junior Aisha Gerber on beam (meet-winning 9.875); sophomore Lichelle Wong on beam (career-high 9.825), and veterans Brittani McCullough and Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs on bars (first-place marks of 9.8).
Last Week: Pac-10 Showcase - In its second meet in three days, UCLA finished in second place at the Pac-10 Showcase, scoring a season-best 195.925 to finish behind Stanford, who scored 196.625. Junior Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs won the all-around with a 39.55 and also took first place on beam and floor with scores of 9.95. Balance beam proved to be the difference maker in the meet. The Bruins and Cardinal were neck-and-neck until the Bruins suffered two falls amongst their first three competitors. UCLA rebounded on floor with a meet-high 49.25 team total, led by career-highs of 9.95 from Hopfner-Hibbs and 9.9 from Niki Tom, to close the competition and wrap up second place.
About The Bruins - The defending NCAA champion Bruins return all but one gymnast who competed at last year's national championships, although reigning NCAA vault champion and current U.S. National Team member Vanessa Zamarripa is out for the year with a torn Achilles tendon. The Bruins return five All-Americans in Aisha Gerber, Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs, 2010 NCAA floor exercise champion Brittani McCullough, Niki Tom and Zamarripa. Also back are All-Pac-10 honorees Tauny Frattone, Mizuki Sato and Lichelle Wong, and Monique De La Torre, who competed on two events at NCAAs.
The freshmen will be led early in the season by 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials competitor Olivia Courtney and 2009 Canadian National Champion and two-time World Championships competitor Sydney Sawa. Olympic silver medalist Samantha Peszek will miss the beginning of the year with a foot fracture.
About Southern Utah - Southern Utah opened its season on Friday with a 193.475-192.800 victory over Utah State. Thunderbird gymnasts Ari Lamb and Brooke Cersosimo tied for the all-around title with scores of 38.875. Lamb currently ranks 21st in the nation on balance beam with a 9.825 average.
Oh Canada - UCLA's Canadian trio of Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs, Aisha Gerber and Sydney Sawa were the team's standouts in week one. Hopfner-Hibbs won the all-around at the Pac-10 Showcase with a nation-high score of 39.55 and also placed first on beam (9.95) and floor (career-high tying 9.95). She also tied for first on bars at Utah with a 9.8. Gerber won beam at Utah with a 9.875 and was third at the Pac-10 Showcase with a 9.85. She also recorded a 9.85 leadoff mark on bars at the Pac-10 Showcase, leading the way for a 49.25 team score. Sawa was extremely consistent in both meets over the weekend, averaging 9.838 on bars, 9.8 on vault and 9.788 on floor. Her 9.9 score on bars was good for fourth place on the event.
Consistent Bruins - UCLA ended its 2010 season with amazing consistency, hitting 95 of 96 postseason routines without a fall. Three returning Bruins missed just one routine all of last year (all on beam) - Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs and Brittani McCullough, who each went 40-for-41, and Aisha Gerber, who hit 30-for-31. Vanessa Zamarripa, who is redshirting this season, hit 52-for-53, and graduated senior Anna Li was a perfect 47-for-47. McCullough hit six-for-six last weekend and has hit 76 of her last 77 routines, including 29 in a row. Aisha Gerber went four-for-four and has hit 34 of her last 35 routines, including 28 in a row.
Looking Ahead - UCLA travels to Stanford on Sunday, Jan. 23 in the second of four scheduled competitions against the Cardinal in 2011. Stanford won the first matchup with a first-place showing at the Pac-10 Showcase.