Well, well, well this could be very interesting. UCLA is, on paper, absolutely the stronger team and should walk out of Pauley with a fairly easy win. However, the Bruins’ injury struggles and shaky mental game—for entirely understandable reasons—have led to some struggles. While UCLA has a huge 197.650 at home on the books, it only notched a mid-195 in its loss at Arizona State last week. Chae Campbell only competed bars, Jordan Chiles had an uncharacteristic mistake, Frida Esparza sat out for precautionary reasons after a fall in warmups, Brooklyn Moors Mustafina’ed her beam series and it all piled up with mistakes from Ana Padurariu, Samantha Sakti, Sara Taubman and Sekai Wright. It’s a long list of gymnasts who struggled, which to me, on a team with this kind of talent, tells a story about systemic issues and not the athletes themselves simply having a bad day. A lot of this meet hinges on which UCLA shows up to Pauley.
Washington, on the other hand, is on an upswing. It started the year slow and built to a 197.275 last week versus Utah. Rookie head coach Jen Llewelyn has seemingly turned things around over the past two weeks. The Huskies hit that number despite a major mistake on every event. In a mistake-free meet, the ceiling is even higher. That success puts Washington in a good place to capitalize on mistakes from the home team, if they happen.
UCLA owns the all-time record versus Washington 69-4-1. The Bruins most recent loss to the Huskies came in 2020.
With the UCLA lineups out, looks like Campbell is back in the AA and we’ll see Tratz on floor, good news for the Bruins.
Janay Honest and Jim Watson are on the call, so get your Twitter fingers ready if that’s your style.
We’re hearing that Skylar Killough-Wilhelm has some nagging injuries, but you would’t know it based on last week’s performance.
New leos for both Washington and UCLA tonight. Stay tuned for our leotard rankings this week to hear what our editors have to say!
Rotation 1: UCLA vault, Washington bars
Flatley (UCLA): Yfull, hop back. 9.8
Moody (UW): Toe hand Maloney, leg sep on the back swing. Legs on Pak. Oh wow really missed a hand on her low bar pirouette, fell hard to the side onto the equipment, looks like she scraped up her shin pretty badly, she’s getting medical attention. She’s going to be down to long to remount, I think. Yep she’s heading back to the locker room. 8.3
Malabuyo (UCLA): Yfull, pretty toes, really noticeable. Raised up on her toes on the landing but didn’t move her feet. 9.825
Russon (UW): Huskies have to go five for five now. Moody is set for more events, too, so that could be an issue in later rotations. We’ll see. Hmmm bars are being reset. Russon pointed it out to the coaches. Not sure if they were wonky for Moody or if her fall onto the cable threw off the setting. Judges are conferencing, which isn’t surprising given the incomplete Moody set. Here we go! Blind to Jaeger, pretty! Immediate bail. Great last handstand. Blind full late to double tuck, two steps back. What a set after all that waiting! 9.65. That seems harsh.
Wright (UCLA): Yfull, soft knees and a small hop. 9.8
Brooks (UW): True shaposh, leg sep. Clear hip hand to bail hand, clean there. Blind full late to double tuck, holds the landing. 9.775
Moors (UCLA): FHS pike half, big but knees throughout, hop back. 9.725
Killhough-Wilhelm (UW): Hop change to pike Jaeger immediate bail, clean. Blind front giant pirouette double tuck, stuck. Little late on the blind. 9.85
Chiles (UCLA): Tsuk full, small hop. 9.9, just the hop.
Thompson (UW): Hect mount. Blind to Jeager, foot form. Bail hand, maybe a touch short. Great last handstand. DLO just a hope right in place.
Campbell (UCLA): Yfull, SO HIGH, just in the absolute rafters, stuck cold, just pulled her heels together. That’s a 9.95 full if I’ve ever seen one. 9.925, mmm one judge took the heel snap as a little hop I think.
Bowles (UW): Blind full to Deltchev, takes it too far out and falls, looked like a hard hit but she seems fine. She fell forward off the landing mat. Bail, good. DLO, deep knees, step forward. 8.725
AFTER 1: UCLA 49.250, UW 47.725
Ah well, the bar curse continues in the Pac. We haven’t seen Moody come back out of the locker room, hopefully she’s alright and just a bit bruised. Shin stuff hurts, though! Tough start for the Huskies but this is a perfect opportunity to practice focus and mental strength. UCLA had a great start and looks quite relaxed, good indication going forward.
Jen Llewellyn just said Moody is doing alight, good news for UW!
Rotation 2: UCLA bars, Washington vault
Thompson just led the UW vault huddle, she has such a calm way about her. UW looks like it’s ready to come back fine after that rotation. 9.7
Blum (UW): Yfull, pike down and a hop.
Campbell (UCLA): Speak of having a calm way about you, Campbell never seems stressed. Cool and collected. Maloney to bail hand, just a little leg sep on the release in the Maloney. Blind double front, cowboyed and foot form, hop forward. 9.825
Brooks (UW): Yhalf, quite low but stuck. Oops, jk on replay she did slide her feet back. 9.75
Steele (UCLA): She’s back! Maloney leg sep on release, pretty Pak. Pirouette. Great handstand. DLO, hop forward. 9.675, oh! I’m not sure on that number. Some of these UB scores are perplexing to me, on both sides.
Navarro (UW): Y1.5, soft knees and a hop forward. Jeffrey Langenstein JUMPED straight into the air, fantastic. 9.825
Malabuyo (UCLA): Malone leg sep on backswing to Pak with leg set. Excellent pirouette. Good last handstand. DLO, tiny hop, announcers calling it a stick but I’m not so sure. 9.875, that one I get!
Killough-Wilhelm (UW): Yfull, some knee form on her block. 9.825
Padurariu (UCLA): Toe hand to Maloney, leg sep on back swing. Good bail hand. Blind full touch late, double tuck hop. 9.85
Thompson (UW): HUGE Yfull, I’d call it a stick, that same heel pull we saw from Campbell. 9.825, judges are not calling it a stick.
Chiles (UCLA): Pike Tkatchev to Pak, ooo caught it close, had to do a clear hip, decent cover. Inbar Gienger. FTDB true stick. It’ll be interesting to see what happens there. She’ll definitely be deducted for catching close on the Pak, very closed shoulder angle. We’ll see. 9.75
Cunningham (UW): Yfull, just so lovely. Another heel pull there, her feet were a bit far apart, didn’t quick get them to come together. 9.9
Flatley (UCLA): Great first handstand. Higgins to Eagle grip into to straddle Jaeger, clean, just some foot form on the release. Bail hand. DLO, hop back. 9.875
AFTER 2: UCLA 98.225, UW 96.850
Hmmmm scores are funky. We’re not having a home-team situation, it’s on both sides. I think vault judges were hitting distance pretty hard, which we don’t see super often in NCAA. That’s the difference between the Thompson and Cunningham vaults, if you ask me. Bars, I just do not know. It could be that one judge was harping on amplitude on releases? That’s not really something I even watch for unless it’s particularly bad or particularly good, since it’s not that common a deduction as far as I know. I don’t think anything was ridiculously out of line, just a bit lower than I would’ve guessed. I’m pro-take all the deductions, so I’m not complaining, to be clear. Just surprised.
Rotation 3: UCLA beam, Washington floor
Padurariu (UCLA): Candle mount, caught pretty close to vertical. Side aerial bhs, clean there. Sissone into her full turn, dropped one shoulder. Beat to sheep, no movement. Side aerial to 1/1, holds the stick. 9.875
Killough-Wilhelm (UW): FHS 2/1, little hoppy in the landing but nothing extreme. Switch to switch ring 1/2, low front leg by a decent bit. RO 3/2 front lay, hops forward and OOB. Slid a bit too, after the first hop. 9.675
Moors (UCLA): Valdez, a personal fave. Switch to split, little balance correction in between, but kept moving. Hit her series this week! Side aerial, check. She’s a pinch nervy on just about everything. FHS rudi, big hop back. 9.75
Navarro (UW): Double tuck, slid her front foot back in her lunge, she was just a touch off balance. Switch side Popa, clean there. RO 3/2 front lay, much better landing. She was a little low on the layout. Double pike, that’s the landing she wanted. 9.8
Chiles (UCLA): Planche mount, another fave. Side aerial, clean. Beat to loso, soft knees. Switch to straddle, a micro adjustment in her feet, didn’t bring it up to her shoulders at all. Front aerial bhs balance check. RO double pike, foot form and a hop back. 9.775
Blum (UW): Front through double tuck, little hoppy in the lunge. Switch half Popa Popa, short of 180 on both popas. Double pike, didn’t lunge but kind of fell out of the stick into her dance. She’s one whose performance is iffy enough that judges could take a rhythm deduction. 9.675
Campbell (UCLA): Bhs loso, check but she covered pretty well, just a shoulder down a little. Split to switch half beat, low front leg in the half. Split to straddle 1/4, chest forward a smidge but no balance issues. Cartwheel gainer 1/1 off the side, stuck. 9.825
Thompson (UW): We love a Kendrick Lamar routine opening. Whip to double tuck, pretty big bounce. Straddle to punch front, good. Switch to tour jete 1/1, little short of the rotation on the tour jete. Double pike, opened early and lunged forward. 9.75
Malabuyo (UCLA): Wolf turn 1/1, clean. Bhs loso, small check. Front aerial to beat, no issues that time. Split to ring, great, good head release. Bhs loso 1/1 stuck. Bruins will be happy to have that one. 9.9, agree, just the series check.
Cunningham (UW): Front through double tuck, great landing, hopped right into the lunge. Switch half wolf 1/1 wolf 1/1, imprecise throughout all three on rotation but good shapes. Double pike, another good landing. 9.85
Flatley (UCLA): Front aerial bhs loso, knees on the aerial and chcek on the landing. L turn, overrotates and swings an arm. Clean switch to split. Bhs 3/2, soft knees and a small shuffle. 9.775
Weiss (UW): Double pike, lunges forward but she had control. RO 3/2 front lay, arched it quite a bit and some knee form. Cleanly through tour jete 1/2 to split 1/1. Double tuck, adjusted her front foot.
AFTER 3: UCLA 147.575, UW
Okay, these scores I get now. I feel like we’re back on Earth. UCLA is have a just fine meet, which is what it needed. Just getting back in the groove, back on track. There have been some medium to big mistakes, but the rest of lineups have come through. The Bruins needed to know they could do that. UW has been fine through bars and floor, proving it can rally after a tough road rotation. Llewellyn will be glad to know that about her squad.
Rotation 4: UCLA floor, Washington beam
Brooks (UW): Front toss bhs, super solid, soft knees on the bhs. Switch to split, great there. Floaty front aerial to beat. Stag to gainer 1/1, little off balance, didn’t move her feet but did swing an arm. 9.775
Wright (UCLA): You already know. HUGE RO 5/2, in the rafters. Front full to barani, bit low on the barani, she hopped after, does she usually jump out? Clean leaps. Little buckled in her knees on her 3/2 front tuck landing, it was meant to be a layout but she tucked to pull it around. Her performance is truly just spectacular. 9.725
Thomas (UW): Front toss bhs, wow, she was off line on the toss and had a big check and knees on the bhs but stayed on. Clean switch to straddle 1/4. RO 3/2, hop. 9.675
Moors (UCLA): Long, long wait, not sure why since the Wright score has been in for awhile. Aaaand we’re conferencing of course! Hopped out of her opening pass, just .1. RO loso, getting that back tumbling in. Clean in her leaps, save a slightly low front let on the switch ring. FHS rudi to close. 9.9
Bowles (UW): Medium check on her choreo. Side aerial to side aerial, adjustments on both and she may lose the connection. Split to wolf 1/1, not 180 and short of the rotation on the wolf by a touch. Hitch kick to gainer front 1/1, good landing. 9.65
Tratz (UCLA): She’s baaaaaack. Double pike, good lunge. Tour jete 1/2 split 1/1, clean. RO 3/2 front lay, tiny skid on that landing. Double tuck, another excellent lunge. 9.925
Navarro (UW): Bhs bhs loso, check, she picked one foot up but got it under control quickly. Beat to switch side, great. Chest down check on her full turn. RO 2/1, underrotated and hopped. 9.625
Malabuyo (UCLA): DLO, low, she really slung it back, stays up on a toe int he lunge to stay in bounds. RO 3/2 front lay straight into her dance. Switch ring low front leg to switch half. Double pike, short, lands with a low chest and steps forward. 9.775
Davis (UW): Another injury return! Bhs bhs loso, steady, just foot form. Beat to straddle 3/4, swings her arms a few times. Front aerial, lovely. Small check on her full turn. RO 3/2 true stick. 9.65
Chiles (UCLA): DLO, textbook landing. Front through double tuck, big lunge but she kept it under control. Tour jete 1/2 wolf 3/2, REALLY high on the wolf, had to really pull it around but made the rotation. Double pike, bit too much juice and slides her front foot in the lunge. 9.95
Killough-Wilhelm (UW): Front aerial bhs loso, lovely, she has excellent toes through the series which is a rarity. Piked front toss to beat, good. Switch to split, clean. Side aerial 3/2, has to lean forward some but doesn’t move her feet. Team is chanting for a 10, which I don’t think we’ll see, but it should be a great score. 9.9
Campbell (UCLA): Full-in, great landing, just foot form in the air. Tour jete 1/2 popa, great, her splits are truly some of the best. FHS front lay front 1/1, foot slid a little on the lunge out. Double tuck, good lunge. 10. Seeing the UCLA gymnasts have a moment of big joy is a special treat right now.
FINAL: UCLA 197.125, UW 194.300
Well, not the away number UW wanted. This is exactly the meet UCLA needed, though, and what a way to cap it off! UCLA has regular season champs Cal next week, and this is the kind of momentum it needed going into that contest.
EVENT WINNERS:
AA: Campbell 39.575
VT: Campbell 9.925
UB: Malabuyo 9.875
BB: Malabuyo, Killough-Wilhelm 9.900
FX: Campbell 10
Live blog by Emily Minehart
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