UCLA
NCAA Regionals
UCLA Advances to NCAA Gymnastics Championships
April 07, 2018 | Gymnastics
Columbus, Ohio - The UCLA Gymnastics team won its 23rd NCAA Regional Championship, taking first place at the NCAA Columbus Regional with a score of 197.650 to advance to the NCAA Championships, which will be held Apr. 20-21 in St. Louis, Mo. Also qualifying out of the Regional was Arkansas, who placed second with a 196.675, edging out Ohio State, who finished third with a 196.500.
UCLA started the meet on floor exercise with a solid 49.375. The Bruins had three scores of 9.9 or higher, with Katelyn Ohashi scoring 9.925 and Felicia Hano and Gracie Kramer adding 9.9s. Madison Kocian's 9.85 and Pauline Tratz's 9.8 also contributed to the team score.
The Bruins blasted a 49.4 on vault in rotation two, led by 9.9s from Anna Glenn and Tratz. Nia Dennis and Hano added 9.875s, and Napualani Hall scored 9.85. The team incurred a neutral team deduction of one-tenth of a point for competing out of order but still held the lead with a two-event score of 98.675. UCLA's lead was 0.25 ahead of second-place Arkansas, who held a two-event total of 98.425, and 0.625 ahead of third-place Ohio State.
On uneven bars in rotation four, UCLA came back from a shaky performance at Pac-12 Championships to post a 49.5, its third-highest bars score of the year. Dennis led off with a 9.9, and JaNay Honest followed with a 9.8. The Bruins switched up the middle of their lineup, adding in Anna Glenn and Kocian, and the move paid dividends, as Glenn scored a 9.875 on just her third routine of the year, and Kocian matched that score on just her first bar routine of the year after undergoing shoulder surgery in August. Christine Peng-Peng Lee also scored 9.875, and Ross closed it out with a nearly-perfect 9.975 to take her sixth-straight victory on bars.
UCLA posted three scores of 9.9 or higher on beam – 9.95 from Ross and 9.9 from leadoff Grace Glenn and Ohashi - and finished with a total of 49.475 to clinch the win and the Bruins' 34th trip to the NCAA Championships.
Anna Glenn and Tratz tied for first place on vault. Ross won on bars (9.975) and beam (9.95), and Ohashi won floor with a 9.925.
Players Mentioned
