UCLA
California
Gymnastics Hosts California Sunday Afternoon
March 06, 2020 | Gymnastics
No. 3 UCLA vs. No. 9 California
Date/Time: Sunday, Mar. 8, 2020 – 1 p.m. PT
Location: Los Angeles, Calif. (Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom)
TV: Pac-12 Network
TV Talent: Jim Watson, Samantha Peszek
Live Stats: uclabruins.com
Tickets: $20 reserved/$12 general admission (UCLA students are free)
Ticket Promo: 4 free admission for all veterans & active duty military with valid ID
UCLA HOSTS CALIFORNIA
No. 3 UCLA (9-3, 4-2 in the Pac-12) will host No. 9 California (9-5, 3-3) on Sunday, Mar. 8 at 1pm in Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. The Top 10 matchup will be televised live on Pac-12 Network with Jim Watson and Samantha Peszek on the call.
TICKETS/PROMOTIONS
Tickets for the UCLA-Cal meet, as well as the Senior Day meet on Mar. 14 and the NCAA Regionals April 2-4, are on sale at the UCLA Central Ticket Office and at Ticketmaster. UCLA students are free with ID and eligible to win a raffle prize each home meet. This week's prize is an Xbox. All active duty and retired military can receive up to four free admissions with valid ID at the box office as part of Military Appreciation Day.
TRAFFIC ADVISORY
Fans are advised to arrive early to Sunday's meet, as it is the same day as the LA Marathon. Visit lamarathon.com for road closures and alternate routes. The Wilshire Exit off the 405 Freeway will be closed, so fans headed to campus via freeway are encouraged to take the Sunset Blvd. exit. Doors to Pauley Pavilion will open at 12pm.
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Pauley Pavilion continues to implement a clear bag policy which limits the size and type of bags that may be brought into the arena. One large clear bag, either a one gallon Ziploc style bag or a 12' by 6" by 12" clear bag, or a small clutch may be allowed into the arena. Increased screening through the use of electronic security equipment will be used at all entry gates. For more information, visit uclabruins.com/pauleygamedayinfo.
BRUIN BRAVE
Sunday's meet will celebrate resiliency and mental health awareness via the Bruin Brave campaign, which is spearheaded by senior Anna Glenn through the UCLA Athletics Student-Athlete Mentors (SAMS) program.
ALUMNI TO BE HONORED
At the conclusion of Sunday's meet, UCLA will recognize its gymnastics alumni and honor members of the 2000 and 2010 NCAA Championship teams on their 20th and 10th anniversary. The 2000 team started its season with a school-record performance and ended it with a 24-for-24 performances at the NCAA Championships to win its second team title. The 2000 squad was led by seniors Lena Degteva and Heidi Moneymaker, who had helped UCLA win its first NCAA Gymnastics Championship in 1997, and junior Mohini Bhardwaj, who went on to win Olympic silver with the U.S. squad in 2004. In 2010, the Bruins led from start-to-finish in the team finals, scoring 49.475 on vault and closing with a 49.55 on floor to win by nearly half a point. Three Bruins recorded all-around scores of 39.5 or higher - Vanessa Zamarripa with a meet-leading 39.625, Anna Li with a 39.575, and Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs with a 39.5.
NIA NATION SWEEPS OVER THE NATION
Junior Nia Dennis has taken the world by storm, becoming the latest Bruin to go viral. Video of her 9.975 floor exercise routine from Feb. 23 has totaled over 18 million views across UCLA's Twitter (10.2M) and Facebook (8.6M) accounts. Celebrities such as Gabrielle Union, Alicia Keys, Reese Witherspoon, Steve Harvey, and Ellen DeGeneres have shared her performance, and highlights from her routine aired on Good Morning America. Dennis has been on fire this season, averaging 9.897 on floor and 9.864 on vault. She ranks 16th nationally on floor and 25th on vault and has totaled four event titles this year. Last year, the Columbus, Ohio native earned first-team All-America honors on the uneven bars and second-team All-Pac-12 acclaim on vault.
LAST TIME OUT
UCLA used a strong balance beam set in the final rotation to hold off No. 18 Oregon State, 197.250-196.825. The Bruins led by .350 heading into the final rotation and slammed shut any Beaver comeback hopes with six beam routines that scored 9.85 or higher. After Grace Glenn started the rotation with a 9.925, Samantha Sakti followed with a 9.85, and Norah Flatley recorded a 9.9. Nicki Shapiro followed with a 9.875, and Felicia Hano set a new career-high with a 9.85. Kyla Ross closed it out with her second 9.975 of the meet and ninth of the season to give UCLA a season-high-tying team score of 49.525.
ROSS NAMED PAC-12 SPECIALIST OF THE WEEK
Kyla Ross earned her sixth Pac-12 weekly award in nine weeks, this time receiving her second Pac-12 Specialist of the Week honor of the season and third of her career. Ross won all three events in which she competed at Oregon State, scoring 9.975 on uneven bars and balance beam and 9.875 on vault. Her three victories give her 31 out of 40 individual wins this season.
BRUINS BREAK 198 BARRIER
In an electrifying down-to-the-wire battle against Utah on Feb. 23, the Bruins recorded a season-high score of 198.025 yet fell to the Utes, who scored 198.075 after Abby Paulson scored a perfect 10 on beam on their final routine. The Bruins had tied the meet halfway through the final rotation, but when Utah finished with a 9.95, 9.975 and 10.0, it allowed the Utes to drop a 9.8 score, giving them a school record total of 49.775. UCLA did everything it could in the final rotation to snatch the victory, scoring 49.8 on floor, but the Bruins' total fell just short. As a team, UCLA posted season-high marks on vault (49.375), beam (49.525) and floor (49.8), and six Bruins earned career-high marks - Savannah Kooyman (9.9 on bars), Kalyany Steele (9.925 on bars), Grace Glenn (10.0 on beam), Felicia Hano (9.825 on beam), Chloe Lashbrooke (9.9 on floor), and Nia Dennis (9.975 on floor). Additionally, the Bruins received season-high marks from Gracie Kramer (9.85 on vault), Kyla Ross (9.95 on vault, 9.975 on beam and floor), Nicki Shapiro (9.9 on beam) and Hano (9.95 on floor).
GLENN EARNS HISTORIC LEADOFF 10
Senior Grace Glenn made NCAA history on Feb. 23 by becoming the first gymnast ever to record a leadoff perfect 10 on the balance beam. Glenn had been flirting with a perfect 10 all season, scoring 9.975 twice and 9.95 once, and this time, she was not denied. Perfect scores are extremely rare in the early part of the lineup and unprecedented on beam. UCLA's Elyse Hopfner-Hibbs scored a 10 as the No. 2 competitor on beam at Georgia in 2010, and Nia Dennis scored a 9.95 on her 9.95-start value vault against Utah in 2018.
FLOOR PARTY GOES NEXT LEVEL
UCLA became the first team in the nation this season to score 49.8 on any single apparatus, recording 49.8 on floor exercise in the Utah meet Feb. 23. The score was the fourth-highest floor total in school history and the highest team score on any event in the NCAA this year. The Bruins received 9.975 scores from Nia Dennis, Gracie Kramer and Kyla Ross, a 9.95 from Felicia Hano, a 9.925 from leadoff Norah Flatley and a 9.9 from Chloe Lashbrooke. UCLA has been ranked No. 1 in the nation on floor all season and remains No. 1 this week with a NQS of 49.565. The Bruins' season average of 49.533 is also best in the nation.
AMAZING GRACIE
Senior Gracie Kramer has captivated on floor exercise this season, ranking No. 3 in the nation and No. 1 in the Pac-12. She has won floor in a team-leading five meets and scored her first career perfect 10 on Jan. 31. Kramer averages 9.942 and has scored 9.95 or higher in six of nine meets this season. Since the start of the 2018 season, she has hit 38 consecutive floor routines without a fall, with 25 of those routines going 9.9 or higher. Kramer's perfect 10 is still the only 10 on floor in the nation this season.
THE BOSS REMAINS UNBEATEN
Kyla Ross keeps rolling this season, winning the all-around in all seven meets in which she has competed all-around. The AAI Award nominee has racked up a total of 21 individual event wins (six on bars and vault, five on beam and four on floor). Ross is averaging 39.695 in the all-around this season, with five scores of 39.7 or higher and a season-best of 39.825 set Feb. 23. She ranks first in the nation in the all-around and on uneven bars, second on balance beam, fourth on floor exercise and 12th on vault.
FRESHMEN CONTINUE TO SHINE
UCLA's freshmen continue to impress. Kalyany Steele has scored no lower than 9.85 on uneven bars in her last four meets and recorded a career-high 9.925 against Utah, which placed her in a tie for second place on the event. Chloe Lashbrooke has competed on floor exercise six times this year and has scored 9.825 or higher each time, with a pair of 9.9s. Emma Andres has competed on floor exercise three times and has a pair of 9.875 marks.
FLOORED BY FLOOR
UCLA has been ranked No. 1 in the nation all season on floor exercise, and they hold down the top spot this week with a NQS of 49.565 and a season average of 49.533. The Bruins have two of the Top 4 gymnasts in the nation on floor in No. 3 Gracie Kramer and No. 4 Kyla Ross, plus two others ranked in the Top 25 in No. 16 Nia Dennis and No. 22 Felicia Hano. The Bruins have scored 49.25 or higher in every meet and 49.5 or higher in five meets, with a high of 49.8 set against Utah on Feb. 23. The 49.8 ranks as the fourth-highest floor score in school history and the highest score in the nation on any event this year. UCLA has the Top 3 team scores on floor in the nation - 49.8 (Feb. 23), 49.725 (Jan. 12) and 49.675 (Jan. 31). Kramer has the only perfect 10 on floor in the nation so far this season, while Ross has three 9.975s and Dennis one. Felicia Hano, Margzetta Frazier and Norah Flatley have each scored at least one 9.95 this season. Every Bruin who has competed on floor this year has a season-high of 9.875 or better.
BRUINS BEAMING
Once ranked out of the Top 25 earlier this season, the Bruins have zoomed up the rankings to No. 5 this week after posting back-to-back season-highs of 49.525. UCLA has stabilized its beam lineup, with Grace Glenn, Samantha Sakti, Norah Flatley, Nicki Shapiro, Felicia Hano and Kyla Ross responsible for those two season-high marks. Glenn has the team's only perfect 10 on beam this year, and Ross has scored 9.975 four times. Sakti and Flatley have season and career-highs of 9.95, while Shapiro has scored 9.9 this year and Hano 9.875. Additionally, Kendal Poston has a season and career-high of 9.9, plus a pair of 9.85s.
RAISING THE BAR
UCLA has shown strong consistency on uneven bars, ranking second in the nation with a NQS of 49.430 and a season average of 49.392. The Bruins have scored 49.4 or higher in five meets, with a high of 49.525 on Jan. 18 at BYU. Two Bruins are ranked in the Top 10 nationally on bars - No. 1 Kyla Ross (9.970 NQS) and No. 10 Margzetta Frazier (9.915). Ross has scored 9.925 or higher on every routine and posted a pair of perfect 10s on Jan. 12 and Jan. 18. She also has two scores of 9.975. Frazier, who has not competed since Feb. 9 due to an ankle injury, has scored 9.9 or better on all six of her performances, with a pair of 9.95s. Kocian has four 9.9+ scores and a season-high of 9.95. She also has two career perfect 10s on bars, achieved in 2017 and 2019. Kalyany Steele and Savannah Kooyman broke into the 9.9 range against Utah, with Steele tying for second place with a 9.925 and Kooyman scoring her career-best with a 9.9.
ROSS RECORD WATCH
Kyla Ross recorded her 21st career perfect 10 on uneven bars Jan. 18 at BYU, moving into a tie for fourth on the NCAA's all-time perfect 10 list. She is seven away from tying the all-time record of 28 held by UCLA's Jamie Dantzscher (2000-03) and Kentucky's Jenny Hansen (1993-96). Ross extended her NCAA record to 11 career perfect 10s on bars (10 of her 11 were scored on the road). Last season, Ross set NCAA records with 10 consecutive meets with a perfect 10 and 14 10s overall in the season. This year, she became the first gymnast in the nation to record multiple 10s, having scored two in a row on uneven bars in weeks two and three.
COMEBACK QUEEN
After a three-year layoff, redshirt senior Nicki Shapiro is officially back as a key contributor to the Bruin lineup. She made her season debut on Jan. 27 at Stanford and scored a team-counting 9.8 on beam, and on Feb. 23 against Utah, she scored a season-high 9.9 to help the Bruins achieve a season-best team total of 49.525. She followed that performance with a 9.875 at Oregon State to again help UCLA earn 49.525, and she also contributed a 9.775 on her first competitive uneven bars routine since 2016 and just her second in her collegiate career. Shapiro competed in nine meets for the Bruins as a true freshman in 2016, hitting a career-high 9.925 on beam at the 2016 Pac-12 Championships, before leaving the sport. She returned to the team in the fall following a successful tryout and has competed in four meets.
UCLA SHOWCASES DEPTH
The Bruins have showcased their depth this season, competing anywhere from 12-15 gymnasts in each of their meets. A season-high 15 competed in the Bruins' last meet at Oregon State, along with two others who each performed an exhibition routine. UCLA's depth has been especially strong on floor exercise, where 11 athletes (Emma Andres, Nia Dennis, Norah Flatley, Margzetta Frazier, Felicia Hano, Madison Kocian, Gracie Kramer, Chloe Lashbrooke, Kyla Ross, Macy Toronjo and Pauline Tratz) have shown floor routines either in competition or in exhibition.
BY THE NUMBERS
UCLA has scored 49+ on floor exercise in 47 consecutive meets, its last sub-49 score coming on Feb. 20, 2017 … On bars, UCLA's 49+ streak stands at 43, with its last sub-49 coming at the 2017 Pac-12 Championships … UCLA has scored 49+ on vault in 39 straight meets since the 2018 season opener … The Bruins have outscored their opponents on vault in every meet this season … In her last 23 meets, Nia Dennis is averaging 9.871 on vault, with nine scores of 9.9 or higher … Norah Flatley has hit 24 consecutive uneven bars routines … Margzetta Frazier has hit every routine she has competed in her career, with 45 of her 46 routines scoring 9.8 or higher … Grace Glenn has scored 9.9 or higher on beam on 19 of 35 routines …Felicia Hano has hit 44 consecutive vaults … Madison Kocian has hit 36 consecutive uneven bars routines, 20 of those going 9.9 or higher, and 22 consecutive floor exercise routines … Gracie Kramer has hit 38 floor routines in a row, with 25 of those routines earning 9.9 or higher … Kyla Ross has scored 39+ in the all-around 33 times in her career … On balance beam, Ross has hit 42 consecutive routines, 32 of them for 9.9 or higher … Ross has UCLA's second-longest active streak of hit routines with 45 straight … Pauline Tratz has hit 64 of 66 routines without a fall in her career.
GOLDEN BRUINS
UCLA seniors Kyla Ross and Madison Kocian remain the only Olympic gold medalists to compete in NCAA Gymnastics and the only female gymnasts to win NCAA, World and Olympic championships. Ross was a member of the 2012 U.S. Olympic team, the Fierce Five, that became just the second U.S. team to win team gold. She also won a World Championship team gold medal in 2014 and has won five NCAA Championships (2017 bars and beam, 2018 team, 2019 vault and floor). Kocian was a member of the 2016 U.S. Olympic squad, dubbed the Final Five, and took home a team gold medal and an uneven bars silver medal. She won three World medals - team golds in 2014 and 2015 and uneven bars gold in 2015 - and helped UCLA win the 2018 NCAA Championship.
SETTING NEW ACADEMIC STANDARDS
Fourteen members of the Bruin squad were part of the UCLA-record total of 415 student-athletes to make the Athletic Director's Honor Roll in Fall 2019. Sixty-two percent of all UCLA student-athletes earned honor roll recognition, with 28 earning perfect 4.0 GPAs, including Macy Toronjo and Pauline Tratz. The 12 other Bruins to make the Director's Honor Roll last quarter were Emma Andres, Norah Flatley, Anna Glenn, Felicia Hano, Madison Kocian, Gracie Kramer, Chloe Lashbrooke, Kendal Poston, Kyla Ross, Samantha Sakti, Mercedez Sanchez and Sara Taubman.
SCOUTING THE BEARS
California ranks No. 9 in the nation with a NQS of 196.980 and ranks No. 6 on vault, No. 9 on bars, No. 11 on beam and No. 15 on floor. The Golden Bears, who have a season-high of 197.325, are coming off a 196.400-196.275 win over Arizona State. Cal junior Kyana George ranks No. 8 in the nation in the all-around and No. 15 on vault and has won Pac-12 Gymnast of the Week honors three times. Nevaeh DeSouza is also a three-time winner, as the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week.
NO. 1 IN SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWERS
UCLA Gymnastics has the largest social media followings in all of women's collegiate sports, ranking No. 1 across all women's sports in combined followers on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, a total over 800,000. The Bruins rank first among all NCAA gymnastics teams on Instagram (359k), Facebook (390k) and Twitter (72k) and also have 584k subscribers on Snapchat, plus 11k on their one-week old TikTok account. Among all UCLA teams, gymnastics ranks first on Instagram and Facebook, and UCLA Gymnastics is the most followed collegiate women's team Instagram account in the nation. Follow the Bruins at @UCLAGymnastics on Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and TikTok and on Facebook at facebook.com/uclagymnastics.
WATCH THE BRUINS OFF THE MATS
Felicia Hano returns as the host of Bruin Banter, UCLA's weekly interview series. The guest for Episode 8 this week will be Kalyany Steele. UCLA also has a docuseries, UCLA Gymnastics: The New Era that gives fans a behind-the-scenes look at the team. Episode 3 of the docuseries is now available. The videos can be viewed on YouTube.com/UCLAAthletics and uclabruins.com.
Players Mentioned
