LIVE BLOG: No. 2 UCLA at No. 24 Stanford

Event Coverage, NCAA WAG
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Welcome to madness. We’re glad you’re here.

Seriously, top schools visiting Stanford is never not weird. Maples Pavilion turns into a parallel dimension past a certain ranking. It used to be that these meets would inevitably generate a week of annoying Ebee discourse. Now she’s gone, I don’t even know what’s going to happen, but I’m pretty sure it’ll suck.

Short recap for anyone who’s been living in a cave: So far this season UCLA has showed potential through the roof but is expressing it in the usual chaotic sort of way. Stanford looks pretty OK all things considered, with Kyla Bryant holding down the fort while the rest of the underclassmen finally seem to be settling in. If you haven’t caught a Stanford meet yet this year, don’t blink during the beam rotation because Taylor Lawson is throwing AND LANDING her standing Arabian, and I’m really psyched about it.

Interesting lineups for UCLA! Slight depth day, resting Ross on floor and trying out Poston on beam.

ROTATION 1: STANFORD VAULT, UCLA BARS

COLE – STANFORD: Okay full, piked down with a hop. Solid start.

FRAZIER – UCLA: Maloney to Pak, tiny leg sep, van Leeuwen, double lay with a little step. Great start.

FITZGERALD – STANFORD: Bigger full with a big hop back.

KOOYMAN – UCLA: In for Toronjo. Maloney to Pak, pretty serious leg sep as is standard for her, full in with messy legs and a little bounce in place.

BRYANT – STANFORD: Lots of height off the table, twists late, pikes down a bit with a hop back.

A. GLENN – UCLA: Blind to Jaeger, beautiful, nice Pak. According to Sam she had some problems on the low bar but gets through fine today, blind change double back STUCK. That was fabulous.

FLAM – STANFORD: Appreciate the guts for Sam to say “Omelianchik” on television. Doesn’t always happen. Big and pretty with a cross step.

FLATLEY – UCLA: Giant to eagle to Jaeger, nice bail, maybe missed a handstand there with two quick steps back.

YU – STANFORD: Beautiful full, really love that one.

KOCIAN – UCLA: Chow to Pak really nice, full in dismount underrotated with a step forward.

GARCIA – STANFORD: Tsuk full, very minimal block and pikes down hard but gets it around. It always looks better than that on training…

ROSS – UCLA: Would like a big score here, this rotation has been lackluster. Maloney to bail to toe shoot, hitting handstands, double layout stuck. That’ll do nicely.

UCLA 49.250 – STANFORD 48.800

UCLA not feeling the landings today and had a few technical moments in the middle of routines. Stanford vault was Stanford vault. It’s never going to be extraordinary but the Card got through.

ROTATION 2: UCLA VAULT, STANFORD BARS

FRAZIER – UCLA: Just the full, way too easy, touch piked with a hop back.

LAWSON – STANFORD: Maloney to bail to toe shoot, bit of leg sep in the combo but it’s fine, blind full a touch messy to double back. Nice!

HANO – UCLA:  Saw speculation that she was just doing a full. Nope. One and a half, really nice in the air, hop to the side.

WAGUESPACK – STANFORD: Toe to Maloney to Pak, really pretty, double lay STUCK. Just a hint of feet here and there but I think that’s her best routine so far in college.

TRATZ – UCLA: Full is flared and huge. This has gotten better and better technically. She was a bit confused there, couldn’t tell if the flag had gone up, but got it done.

YU – STANFORD: Maloney to bail to Ray, nice, maybe shy on the handstand on the bail. Stalder double back with a hop. Landed moving sideways a little.

WRIGHT – UCLA: One and a half, huge and GORGEOUS, tiny hop in place.

BRYANT – STANFORD: Toe to Tkachev, big and quick, Pak is nice, double lay, flexes her feet… wonder if she was close to the bar, that’s not her style, hop.

ROSS – UCLA: One and a half, short… LOL walks backwards straight under the table.

BRUNETTE – STANFORD: Awesome Deltchev, struggling a touch with handstands, hollowed double layout stuck with an arm swing.

FLAM – STANFORD: Toe blind, Jaeger, short on a handstand, and another one, full twisting double lay pings off with a big step forward.

UCLA 98.350 – STANFORD 97.775

Scores reasonable bordering on low in a couple of cases—I’d have taken Wright and Waguespack higher in that rotation. UCLA’s still lackluster, but after such an intense start that’s not the worst thing.

ROTATION 3: STANFORD BEAM, UCLA FLOOR

COLE – STANFORD: BHS LOSO, wild legs, off. Switch double stag, nice full turn, double full dismount with two quick steps back.

KRAMER – UCLA: Double full front pike, was a little off direction on the punch but gets it back, one and a half front lay, makes the leap series, Rudi to arch jump clean. This is more like the UCLA we’ve seen so far this year.

STEPHENSON – STANFORD: Front aerial, BHS LOSO with a check, switch to sheep is clean, full turn, gainer full with a hop back. Nice reset.

DENNIS – UCLA: Little shuffle out of her PFI but it’s so beautiful in the air. Front full front lay… she always tries to stick that and never can, hops out, double back a little under with a step forward.

LAWSON – STANFORD: NAILED the Arabian. Shocked every time. One of the best ever done honestly, it was never that good in elite. Switch half great, full turn, BHS LOSO great. Gainer pike with a step back.

TRATZ – UCLA: STUCK FULL IN. Not even a question. Would have been out if she’d taken a step so it’s a good thing too. One and a half front lay, great, switch ring tj1/2 is great. Double back under with a step forward.

BRYANT – STANFORD: Full turn nice, BHS LOSO, check, pretends it’s dance. Dance series clean, punch front great, double back beautiful with a step back.

HANO – UCLA: Under on double lay, step forward, front full front half running jump, tour jete half wolf full, double pike great.

Miss Val hates the swimming choreography but the team voted to leave it in and Miss Val let them have their way.

FITZGERALD – STANFORD: Front aerial back tuck., lean, switch split, hitch kick two foot front aerial, one and a half twist with a hop. I think. Concentration is slipping, it’s been a long weekend. Forgive me if I mix up skills.

FRAZIER – UCLA: Full in great, just pulls her front foot a tiny bit, watching Norah do the choreo behind her is too good, whips thru double back and Sekai Wright pops up just as she lands like she’s on the other end of a see saw, double pike great, maybe a tiny skid of the front foot again?

FLAM – STANFORD: Layout looks wonky, leans and falls. Punch front is good, hitch kick switch side good, front full with a hop.

OHASHI – UCLA: No split leg DLO but great landing, one and a half Barani split punch front… yes I tracked it all the way through! Switch ring switch half great, always gets a cheer when the MJ kicks in at the end, gets the first real cheer all meet on the split drop. Great.

UCLA 147.700 – STANFORD 146.025

Tighter scoring and an off day for the Bruins isn’t keeping the score too far down. Stanford is on the struggle bus after a rockier beam rotation.

ROTATION 4: UCLA BEAM, STANFORD FLOOR

KOCIAN – UCLA: BHS LOSO, front aerial to split with a little hip bend in the middle. Nice full turn, double full dismount with a big hop back.

COLE – STANFORD: This routine is growing on me. Two and a half punch front is GREAT, switch ring switch half, straddle jump of dreams. Rudi to close, pivoting into the lunge but it’s solid.

POSTON – UCLA: Beat to straddle 3/4, really nice, NAILED the triple series. Full turn, NIA GET YOUR HAND OUT OF THE WAY, one and a half twist hop in place. Nice!! Great debut.

HOFFMAN – STANFORD: Love that her lips match the leotard. Front thru Rudi, rocky landing, leap series is great, double back underrotated with a step forward, looks painful. Another Rudi to stag jump.

FLATLEY – UCLA: Front aerial LOSO, off line but pulls it in with her arms, side aerial. Switch split great, BHS one and a half with a little hop back.

FLAM – STANFORD: Double arabian, gorgeous, little hop. Front full front pike, switch side Popa. Double pike under, steps forward.

DENNIS – UCLA: Full turn, front aerial LOSO a tiny bit awkward in the middle but it’s quick enough. Switch split is good, double full up on her toes and can’t quite stick it.

LAWSON – STANFORD: Front thru double back, little shuffle back, can’t lunge or she’ll run out of space. Turning leap series that I can’t even identify, positions a bit indistinct, double pike is great

ROSS – UCLA: BHS LOSO, she’s not injured by the way she was just resting on floor, front aerial sissone is gorgeous. Arabesque full turn is gorg, switch split, side aerial back full stuck. FANTASTIC.

HOANG – STANFORD: Double lay is GORG, tiny lunge forward, almost looked like she high fived her teammate during the routine, front lay front full, team is LIVING, much better double pike this week. Great routine.

OHASHI – UCLA: Nailed the layout, leg sep goes down a little every time. Switch split, mega combo incoming… Front aerial BHS LOSO back full, tiny bounce.

BRYANT – STANFORD: Really nice on the full in. Front thru double pike, somehow actually overpowers that with a scoot back, switch side Popa. Double back with another scoot.

FINAL: UCLA 197.225 – STANFORD 195.125

Pretty respectable scores from each despite wobbles. Nothing actively crazy happened to UCLA, which is encouraging. A lot of little stuff but it felt like a more settled week. Stanford was much better besides beam though I don’t know how much farther it can grow without different routine options. I’d like to see Flam out of bars and a few new vaults… but whether they exist at this point is uncertain.

VAULT: Wright 9.875
BARS: Ross 9.900
BEAM: Ohashi 9.975
FLOOR: Ohashi 9.975
AA: Bryant 39.325

Live blog by Rebecca Scally

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