Stanford arrives in Westwood off of a bye week, and it’s heading into another one next week. On the bright side, the athletes will have the energy to go all out on one of the biggest stages in the West. That also means that the pressure’s on since the Cardinal only has this meet and the conference championship to try to boost its ranking before regionals seedings are set. We’re anticipating the return of Taylor Lawson to lineups after her illness two weeks ago.
UCLA lineups are settling down, but we’ll still be watching the bars lineup—Nia Dennis seems to have returned to training this week—and for any other unexpected shuffles. The Bruins are at or near postseason form on beam and floor, both of which are ranked No. 1, but it’s time for them to start hitting vault consistently.
https://twitter.com/uclagymnastics/status/1104830088887992321
Cardinal will begin on the uneven bars and sophomore @taylor_lawson21 leads us off.#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/t3wIkl7HdH
— Stanford Gymnastics (@StanfordWGym) March 10, 2019
ROTATION 1: UCLA VAULT, STANFORD BARS
DENNIS – UCLA: Beautiful full, massive in the air, tiny scoot back that could be mistaken for pulling her heels together. 9.9
LAWSON – STANFORD: It’s already loud in here. Shy on first handstand, Maloney with leg sep to good bail to toe shoot. Toe full double back with a hop. 9.775
HANO – UCLA: One and a half, her leg form has improved SO much this year. Big step forward. 9.85
WAGUESPACK – STANFORD: Toe on to Maloney, pikey on the catch, to Pak wit hleg sep. Double lay deep with a lunge forward. 9.725
WRIGHT – UCLA: One and a half, bigger step forward but a little more amplitude than Hano to my eye. 9.85
YU – STANFORD: Maloney to bail, couple of tiny leg flickers but the cleanest of the three so far. Stalder to double back with a hop. 9.875
TRATZ – UCLA: Someone keeps playing with the music volume in the arena. Nice full, flared out, little hop. 9.9
BRUNETTE – STANFORD: Half turn to Deltchev to overshoot, leg flicker on the catch but really impressive. Missed a handstand, double lay with a hop back.
ROSS – UCLA: One and a half, the usual, hop forward today. 9.95
BRYANT – STANFORD: Toe on to Tkachev, low but turns it over, really nice Pak. Double lay with a small hop back. 9.85
KRAMER – UCLA: One and a half, OWW KNEES. Lands that twisting, knees go the opposite direction to her upper body. Lands it, deep with a side step, but that’s dangerous. Soft knees too but not enough to justify calling it tucked. 9.75
ROGERS – STANFORD: Last minute change from Flam! Nice Tkachev, Pak with a bit of leg sep. Handstands not quite here today. Blind full double back with a step. In the long term she’s definitely the right choice for this spot. 9.725
UCLA 49.450 – STANFORD 49.025
Not representative of what each team is capable of but not aggressively problematic either. Expecting things to clean up from here.
ROTATION 2: STANFORD VAULT, UCLA BARS
COLE – STANFORD: Twisting on on her full, pikey but solid landing with a hop. 9.725
FRAZIER – UCLA: Maloney to Pak, gorgeous, van Leeuwen. Double lay stuck. All I saw was a little leg split on the DLO. 9.875
FITZGERALD – STANFORD: Best full I’ve seen from her, not huge but fully laid out with a step back. 9.8
HANO – UCLA: Ray, normal messy legs on the catch, overshoot solid. Blind full double back with a hop back. 9.875
BRYANT – STANFORD: Really nice full, love how distinctly she uses her arms to wrap it in, big hop back and to one side. 9.825
DENNIS – UCLA: Maloney to bail, sits in it for a while Zamarripa-style, double layout stuck-ish. 9.925
Grace Glenn was rostered for that spot. Interesting switch.
FLAM – STANFORD: Big bound forward out of the Omelianchik. 9.725
FLATLEY – UCLA: Jaeger good, toe on to bail, toes apart but not a big deal. A couple handstands borderline, double lay, hop forward. 9.85
YU – STANFORD: Yurchenko full, huge, hop back and almost off the mat. She’s getting better every week. 9.825
KOCIAN – UCLA: Chow to Pak, FTDB dismount with a hop back. Biggest crowd response so far. 9.9
BRUNETTE – STANFORD: Twisting on hard, piked in the air, lands deep and immediately puts her hands down. Limping a little as she walks away – think she’s fine but that would sting.
ROSS – UCLA: Maloney to bail to toe shoot, nailing handstands, Randy’s screaming already, DLO stuck with an arm swing. 9.9
Toronjo in the exo with the usual iffy handstands and close catch on the Ray but stuck her DLO.
UCLA 98.925 – STANFORD 97.950
Pretty average day for both so far. It’s good that UCLA’s average day is 198 pace, but we need to see things cleaning up. Stanford’s technique is
ROTATION 3: UCLA BEAM, STANFORD FLOOR
G. GLENN – UCLA: BHS LOSO, one leg out to the side and needs a quick arm swing to keep it in line. Switch split also tentative, full turn, BHS gainer full stuck-ish. 9.9
COLE – STANFORD: 2.5 twist punch front, off direction the whole way and punches almost directly sideways, maybe to keep it in bounds. Rudi to close. 9.825
NGUYEN – UCLA: Switch split beat, front aerial with a small check. Smooth enough that I forgot that was meant to be her acro series until she repeated it. Front aerial to LOSO. Sideways split half, punch front full stuck. 9.9. One judge went 9.95 LOL ok
H. HOFFMAN – STANFORD: Front thru Rudi, solid, switch ring tour jete half. Double back looks short but lunges out okay, Rudi to double stag. 9.85
KOCIAN – UCLA: BHS LOSO, slightly off line, makes it work. Front aerial to split, full turn, switch split. One and a half dismount with a big hop forward. 9.85
FLAM – STANFORD: Little stumble in place on her double Arabian, gets it under control. Front full front pike is good, her tumbling is so dynamic in person. Double pike. 9.9
FLATLEY – UCLA: Front aerial BHS tentative with the usual knees, side aerial, L turn to split to beat. Punch front full with another big hop. 9.925 what?
LAWSON – STANFORD: Front thru double back stuck, crowd likes that. Tour jete half split full, double pike with a hop back. Really solid. 9.875
ROSS – UCLA: BHS LOSO, frot aerial to sissone, arabesque turn. Switch to split, tons of height, side aerial back full, couldn’t see the landing. 10.
HOANG – STANFORD: Looks like she did a good job ignoring it… Double layout, a little off lune with a cross step back, tour jete full. Hilariously a coach and Stephenson were holding a sting mat rolled up on the corner where she started, so that she didn’t have to run on it but it could be placed quickly for her third pass. Double pike, close to the line but stays in. 9.85
OHASHI – UCLA: Front aerial split. BHS LOSO great. I’ve given up trying to keep track of her composition. Switch split, BHS LOSO back full, missed the landing again because a billion people are in the way but 10 signs are up. 9.975.
BRYANT – STANFORD: Full in, step OOB. Under on second pass, step forward, switch side Popa great. Open double back spectacular.
Looks like Dennis in the exhibition for UCLA. Hano and Kocian both on pep talk duty. Full turn, N-I-A, front aerial LOSO nailed. Switch split, did she wobble on her choreo? Laughing it off, double full slightly under with the usual hop forward.
UCLA 148.625 – STANFORD 147.250
CRAAAaaaAAAaaaAAACK. At least Stanford got some of the benefit there—I wouldn’t have gone as high on Flam, for sure—but Flatley and Nguyen’s scores were egregious.
ROTATION 4: STANFORD BEAM, UCLA FLOOR
FITZGERALD – STANFORD: Got distracted by Randy for a hot second. Check on the two foot aerial, solid dismount. 9.725
FRAZIER – UCLA: Full in, I forgot to write but nailing the landings. Getting ten hands… I doubt it in the lead but it was a very good floor routine. 9.95
STEPHENSON – STANFORD: Front aerial, BHS LOSO great. Switch to sheep, gainer full off the side. One of her best in college. 9.875
KRAMER – UCLA: Front double full punch pike, riiiight on the line, I didn’t see a flag but it was borderline. One and a half front lay, Rudi to arch jump sideways. Not her day on the landings. 9.925
LAWSON – STANFORD: Arabian, leg up check, gets it back. It’s just so freaking cool. Cat leap switch half, full turn, BHS LOSO with an arm swing. Gainer pike. 9.8
Nicole Hoffman is pacing anxiously in front of me so I’m going to guess she’s the exhibition.
TRATZ – UCLA: RIGHT on the full in. Okay. One and a half front lay, lunge maybe a little big, switch ring tour jete half. Double back to close. Going high. 9.9
COLE – STANFORD: BHS LOSO, hip break… hanging onto her own heel, that’s never going to end well, and off. Switch double stag, front aerial with a check that she pretends is choreography, full turn, double full dismount stuck-ish. 9.325
DENNIS – UCLA: Been a second since she’s been in this lineup. PFI, great, loses the front foot a bit. Front full front lay almost stuck. I’m coming to respect the jump into choreography out of that pass. Double back, lunges onto her toe to keep it in bounds. Not perfect but solid. 9.925
NAVARRO – STANFORD: Pressure on the soph, she doesn’t have the numbers that the rest of this lineup does. Jump to split and the audience LOVES it. BHS LOSO, steady. Full turn, a little over, front aerial. Switch… breaks the connection. Sissone switch side, very tentative but makes it, one and a half twist with a hop back. Okay. 9.725
HANO – UCLA: DLO, fantastic. Front full Barani running jump. This routine’s grown on me a lot this year. Gets a cheer for the swimming choreo, tour jete half wolf full. Nailed the double pike. Ten hands from the student section. She might just get it too. 9.95
BRYANT – STANFORD: BHS LOSO, small hip break, beat to standing switch. Question mark on the split there. Double back, chest down but holds the stick. So cool! 9.9
UCLA’s got the 198 locked down already.
OHASHI – UCLA: Okay, usually I make some comment about how Frazier gets the loudest crowd response. Not today. Split leg DLO, step forward and to one side, combo pass good. Switch ring switch half. Front full Barani split drop. It’s so loud in here… shouldn’t be a 10 after the first pass, probably will be. No! 9.95. I’ll take it.
Nicole Hoffman in the exhibition for the Card. Front aerial, not enough gas, lands with her chest back and falls.
UCLA 198.325 – STANFORD 196.275
What a ride. Great RQS score for both teams! Scores were pretty uhh yeah but it’s fine.
Tabitha’s coming over to make a fuss of Miss Val. Apparently through some complicated series of events, Tabitha changed her girls’ home schedule and made senior night on a Monday so that Val could have her last home meet on a weekend.
VAULT: Ross 9.950
BARS: Dennis 9.925
BEAM: Ross 10.000
FLOOR: Frazier, Hano, Ohashi 9.950
AA: Bryant 39.300
Live blog by Rebecca Scally
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