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Senior Malia Jones earned season-highs on the bars and the floor last week against Arkansas. UCLA fa

Gymnasts beaming early in season

Marcus Anderson
Published: Friday, February 7, 2003

Freshman Kate Richardson insists that a tough preseason and a disciplined mind-set are two factors that have led the No. 3 Bruins (7-1) to their success thus far this season as they take on No. 8 Stanford today.

Richardson was recently named Pac-10 Gymnast of the Week – an honor also bestowed upon senior teammate Onnie Willis earlier this year. Richardson has made it clear that every individual success is celebrated as a team.

“The team is so awesome and supportive,” Richardson said. “The coaching has been great too – they know exactly what we need to do and when.”

Richardson will be asked to contribute this weekend as the Bruins open their Pac-10 season against two top 15 teams. They will face Stanford (7-1) Friday in Palo Alto before hosting No. 13 Washington (4-2) in Pauley Pavilion on Sunday. In the past 10 years, UCLA has earned the Pac-10 championship six times.

Coach Valorie Kondos Field recognizes Stanford as the Bruins’ biggest rival in the Pac-10, but has maintained all year long that her team is the best gymnastics team assembled in the history of the NCAA.

“They recruit a lot of the same talent, but our team has more experience in bigger meets,” she said.

Kondos Field also recognizes Washington as a potential challenge. The Huskies are the No. 1 team in the nation on vault, averaging a 49.342, just above the Bruins’ 49.333.

“Washington has always been a good team. They have strong team unity, but have been having issues of consistency,” Kondos Field said. “If they are able to hit, it could be a tough meet. Both meets should be good.”

Last weekend, the Bruins scored a 198.175 against a nationally-ranked Arkansas program. They achieved the second highest team score in the nation this year without junior all-American Jamie Dantzscher, who sat out with a sore ankle. Dantzscher is expected to compete in one or two events Friday and the all-around Sunday.

The third-ranked Bruins seem confident that they belong at No. 1, where they started.

Kondos Field enthusiastically asserts the depth of her team.

“This team has been an example of what happens when you combine talent and leadership.”