Consistent, calm and confident were the three adjectives at the forefront of UCLA gymnastics’ training this week. With the first NCAA meet of the season out of the way, the Bruins are shedding nervous jitters and thoughts of past mistakes.
UCLA has the chance to test its confidence again this week in the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad, which is on deck for Saturday at the Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah. The meet will be broadcast on ABC.
“We don’t get a lot of practice now that season starts,” Bruins coach Janelle McDonald told reporters Wednesday. “It’s really being intentional with what you do while you’re in the gym.”
“If you take five turns and you make three of them, that might not build your confidence,” she continued. “If you take three turns and you make all three of them, that’s going to build your confidence. We really keep trying to reiterate calm, confident and consistent.”
The Bruins are consistent in the level of competition they’re facing early in the season. They’re coming off the Mean Girls Super 16 Gymnastics Championships, where they competed against Alabama, Auburn and Cal Berkeley. UCLA has three of the top programs in the country – LSU, Oklahoma and Utah – in their group for the Collegiate Quad.
Seeing Utah – a Pac-12 rival – at Saturday’s meet is serving as extra motivation for the Bruins.
“Our team is extremely competitive,” senior Sara Ulias said. “Our team actually gets really excited for meets like this when we go against rivals just because we know that they’re gonna push us to be our best, and we’re going to push them too.”
The Super 16 meet presented UCLA with adversity in two events. Frida Esparza recorded a 9.375 in her uneven bars routine after a fall and the Bruins registered a 49.275 despite Selena Harris tying for first in the event with a 9.950.
They struggled on balance beam as well with two falls, although Emily Lee’s leadoff 9.9 tied her for first place. UCLA’s strength in vault and floor exercise brought respective 49.325 and 49.500 scores, but the Bruins’ 196.550 team score placed them fourth behind Auburn’s 196.600.
“You really have to expect the unexpected,” sixth-year Bruin Margzetta Frazier said. “People fall. Gymnastics is so hard and it’s OK. It’s our first meet, but what we really need to do is remember all of the great things we did that competition.”
McDonald said the beam lineup may change heading into this weekend’s quad meet. Frazier could also be added to the floor lineup soon after dedicating time to building up strength and stamina in her ankles. She tumbled for the first time in months during practice Tuesday.
Small reminders and mental cues help gymnasts like Frazier and Ulias build those three things. Frazier hums her favorite song to her bar routine to take her mind off intense situations. Or a specific person will meet a gymnast about to perform for a fist bump right before their routine. Visualizing being in Yates Gym, where the team practices, also helps calm nerves.
“And also not only practicing amazing routines but also knowing how to get through a rough routine even if you’re tired or you make a mistake or something throws your rhythm off,” Ulias said. “It’s about getting back on your rhythm, not necessarily making everything perfect. It’s about finding your pace again.”
UCLA has another quad meet next weekend with Denver, Oklahoma and Stanford in Colorado before beginning Pac-12 competition Jan. 27.
Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
Where: Maverik Center, West Valley City, Utah
TV: ABC