March 17, 2011

UCLA Gymnastics head coach Valorie Kondos Field will be answering your questions every Thursday over the course of the season. To submit questions for future Q&As, CLICK HERE.

Shana (St. Paul): Is Brittani going to do the Yurchenko 1 1/2 she's been doing at the end of the last couple seasons? I know she has foot and ankle issues, but she lands that vault better than her full.
Miss Val: We agree. Brittani's had such limited training time this year (not because of her ankle issues but because of her nursing clinical schedule) that she simply hasn't gotten in enough reps to be consistent with the 1 1/2. We're hoping that her schedule will lighten up a bit these last 3 weeks of training before NCAA's to allow her to train the 1 1/2 more.

Kortney (North Hollywood): When did Sam learn her 3 element beam dismount? Didn't she do a double pike at the pre-season mock meet and then get injured not too long after that? When did she have the time to learn it?
Miss Val: She learned it days before she competed it. We were very concerned about her foot being able to handle the punch for the double pike. She came to me and said, "I think I could do Aisha's dismount." It's taken a bit of training to get her to consistently flip out of her layout. I made the mistake of saying, "Sam, it's easy. Just think of it as a 3 series on beam." To which Sam replied, "Uhhh, Miss Val, I never did a 3 series on beam."

D'Angelo (Santa Monica, CA): I've always wondered why the senior salutes are done pre-meet. It seems like it puts so much extra pressure on them. How do they prepare for it?
Miss Val: I KNOW! Obviously we don't prepare well enough for it. We tried a few years honoring them at the end of the meet, but that didn't help.

Zane (D.C.): How do you decide who to put in the beam line up now that Tauny and Olivia have become so solid but Sam is amazing and just needs more meet reps?
Miss Val: By doing a lot of reps in the gym and figuring out who is most consistent. We have 2 different thought processes to consider. Do we go with who we feel will simply hit well regardless of what they will score? Or do we put in the line-up that has the greatest ability to score really high if they hit lights out? What do you think?

SuperFan#1 (Philadelphia, PA): WHY DIDN'T ELYSE GET A 10 ON BEAM ON SUNDAY?! It's an outrage! BTW I love that you have two people doing double double back dismounts. That is hot.
Miss Val: I AGREE!!! OUTRAGE! =) And thanks for the "hot" comment ... what's a double double back? (I'm just kidding.)

Ryan (Greensboro): Why isn't Anna Li a student-assistant coach this year? The team seems to be missing her leadership and her energy on the floor (and her scores!)
Miss Val: Anna is finishing her last final TODAY and moving back to Chicago this weekend. She's been extremely busy the past few months with school and training. She is in super-fantastic shape and is excited to see how far she can go in the Elite world, so it didn't leave time for her to coach for us. And she just skipped into my office with a big smile and said "I'm a UCLA GRADUATE!" =)

Paul (LA): Were you counting on Tauny to do so well this year, or had she exceeded your expectations? If she had done bars against NC State, she probably would have won the all-around.
Miss Val: I have to agree that Tauny has exceeded our expectations. She's commented that she's growing really confident in competition. One thing I've noticed and feel is healthy for the team is that she gets upset with herself when she makes a mistake but doesn't hold on to it where it affects anything else she does that day or her teammates. For example, her 2nd pass on floor at the last meet. She just said "It was weird, my legs buckled on me." Then just brushed it off, hit the rest of her routine (which includes performing) and then rocked beam.

Jess (Orange County, CA): Loved seeing the alumni at the last home meet. Can you tell us what they are up to now and how Jeanette Antolin still has legs like a mini-Hercules? :)
Miss Val: We need to do an insert to the program next year with an update on our alumni. A lot of people ask. Re: Jeanette - she eats well and has really good genes. She's going to look like that until she's 105. As will Brittani McCullough. =)

Nicole (Orange): Good luck at Pac-10's this weekend!! I noticed at the Cal State Fullerton meet that you were fixing Sam Peszek's hair a few times. Are you a hair stylist to the girls sometimes as well as their coach? :0)
Miss Val: NO!!! Although I am not a fan of the "messy" bun or the tuck-under pony tail. I just informed the team that those days are over and to come up with something else. We'll see what they come up with. Niki said she couldn't do a bun because then everyone will call her Mulan. What's wrong with Mulan???

Lanee Jackson (Washington DC): It seems like the judges aren't being as forgiving as they may have in the past if you cheat a landing by quickly saluting, or if you take 2 steps. Brittani is my favorite Bruin. Has she worked on taking one step and then bringing it back, rather than taking 2 steps on dismounts and on vault - so that she can score as high as possible at Championships? Thanks.
Miss Val: Thank you for the reminder, and yes - we work with all of our athletes on exactly what you've discussed. I think it's telling that one of the skills Britt is most consistent with landing well is her double back off beam, and I believe it's because she only thinks technique - not power.