The Bruins had their strongest overall meet of the year, despite having top-ranked all-arounder Samantha Peszek limited to just uneven bars due to tightness in her calf. Lee stepped into the role of delivering the big scores, going 9.95 on the two events in which she competed and earning a perfect 10 from one of the two judges on uneven bars. But it was the team's overall strength that propelled the Bruins to their season-best mark, as 11 Bruins recorded 15 scores of 9.8 or higher.
UCLA began the meet on vault and scored 49.1 thanks to the second half of the lineup all scoring 9.85 or better. Jennifer Pinches led off with a 9.775 on her first vault of the season. Janay Honest and Angi Cipra followed with scores of 9.75 and 9.725, respectively. After Bynum scored 9.85, the Bruins closed out the rotation with two straight sticks. LaNiesha-Jopré Irvin stuck her third consecutive vault to also score 9.85, and Jordan Williams stuck as well, scoring a season-best 9.875.
Leading by three-tenths after one rotation, UCLA increased its lead slightly by recording a season-best 49.375 on uneven bars as Cal scored 49.350 on vault. Danusia Francis provided a huge score in the leadoff position, posting a career-high 9.925. Sonya Meraz followed with a 9.75, and Hallie Mossett recorded her season-best with a 9.85, followed by a 9.775 from Sophina DeJesus. Lee's high-flying routine was deemed perfect by one of the two judges, but the other judge found one-tenth worth of deductions, giving Lee a final score of 9.95. Peszek closed the set with a 9.875.
UCLA performed beautifully on balance beam in rotation three, scoring 49.2 and building a .375 lead over Cal, who scored 49.15 on floor exercise. Mikaela Gerber provided another solid leadoff routine, scoring her third 9.8 of the season. Meraz, competing on beam for the first time this season, matched Gerber's mark with a 9.8. Mossett made her season debut on beam and scored 9.75, followed by a 9.8 by DeJesus and 9.85 by Francis. The rotation culminated in Lee's career-best 9.95 routine, which was punctuated by a high and stuck double full dismount.
The Bruins ended the meet on floor exercise, which started out shaky but closed strong with a score of 49.125. Pinches had a strong routine going but landed short on her final pass and scored 9.675. Meraz also had trouble on her final pass and scored 9.3, but the final four Bruins performed strong routines, with Gerber scoring 9.775, Francis 9.85, Bynum a career-high 9.925 and Cipra a season-high 9.9.
UCLA's coaching staff was pleased with how the team rebounded after last week's meet at Utah.
"All the athletes came together and decided what they needed to do individually to perform better," said UCLA associate head coach Chris Waller. "We did our best to have everyone hold each other to task during the week. It was difficult to put (last week's meet) behind us, but given our performance, I think we did really well. It's a good stepping stone."
UCLA remains at home next week, hosting Washington on Monday, Feb. 9 at 6pm.