The UCLA Gymnastics coaching staff was awarded Coach of the Year honors by the Women's Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA). The R.C. Rothman UCLA Head Gymnastics Coach Janelle McDonald earned Head Coach of the Year acclaim, and Bruin assistant coaches BJ Das, Kyle Grable and Autumn Grable were named the Assistant Coaches of the Year. The voting was conducted by their peers in the WCGA.
All four coaches are in their first year in their roles, with McDonald In her first year as a head coach after being an assistant coach at California the previous four years. The staff has led UCLA to its first NCAA Championships appearance since 2019, to a Pac-12 regular season co-championship, and to a No. 4 national ranking in 2023, 10 spots higher than they ranked a year ago. The Bruins improved their NQS by nearly nine-tenths of a point, going from 197.090 in 2022 to 197.950 in 2023.
UCLA has been ranked in the Top 6 all season, starting at No. 6 on Week 1, moving into the Top 5 on Week 7 and then settling at No. 4 for the final two weeks of the regular season. The team's consistency has been impressive. The Bruins have scored 197+ in all but one meet this season, just missing the 197 mark by one-tenth on Jan. 21. They have also scored 197.8 or higher in eight consecutive meets, including three meets at 198+. UCLA gymnasts have hit 309 of 312 routines without a fall and have had 50 of 52 clean rotations this season, scoring 49.0 or higher 50 times.
UCLA started strong out the gate, posting 197.725 in the season opener, its highest season-opening score in 18 years and just the fourth time in school history that a Bruin team scored 197 in the first meet of the year. The Bruins also posted the sixth-best score in program history on March 11, scoring 198.275 in the win over Iowa State.
The Bruins improved on all events under McDonald and her staff, moving from 12th to 11th in a year on vault (+0.125 NQS), from 19th to fifth on bars (+0.29 NQS), from 12th to fifth on beam (+0.205 NQS) and 12th to first on floor (+0.21 NQS). The team has posted high marks of 49.575 on vault (UCLA's No. 6 score of all-time), 49.725 on bars (No. 3 score), 49.675 on beam (No. 4 score), 49.700 on floor (No. 8 score) and 198.275 overall (No. 6 score).
All four coaches are in their first year in their roles, with McDonald In her first year as a head coach after being an assistant coach at California the previous four years. The staff has led UCLA to its first NCAA Championships appearance since 2019, to a Pac-12 regular season co-championship, and to a No. 4 national ranking in 2023, 10 spots higher than they ranked a year ago. The Bruins improved their NQS by nearly nine-tenths of a point, going from 197.090 in 2022 to 197.950 in 2023.
UCLA has been ranked in the Top 6 all season, starting at No. 6 on Week 1, moving into the Top 5 on Week 7 and then settling at No. 4 for the final two weeks of the regular season. The team's consistency has been impressive. The Bruins have scored 197+ in all but one meet this season, just missing the 197 mark by one-tenth on Jan. 21. They have also scored 197.8 or higher in eight consecutive meets, including three meets at 198+. UCLA gymnasts have hit 309 of 312 routines without a fall and have had 50 of 52 clean rotations this season, scoring 49.0 or higher 50 times.
UCLA started strong out the gate, posting 197.725 in the season opener, its highest season-opening score in 18 years and just the fourth time in school history that a Bruin team scored 197 in the first meet of the year. The Bruins also posted the sixth-best score in program history on March 11, scoring 198.275 in the win over Iowa State.
The Bruins improved on all events under McDonald and her staff, moving from 12th to 11th in a year on vault (+0.125 NQS), from 19th to fifth on bars (+0.29 NQS), from 12th to fifth on beam (+0.205 NQS) and 12th to first on floor (+0.21 NQS). The team has posted high marks of 49.575 on vault (UCLA's No. 6 score of all-time), 49.725 on bars (No. 3 score), 49.675 on beam (No. 4 score), 49.700 on floor (No. 8 score) and 198.275 overall (No. 6 score).