LOS ANGELES — The UCLA gymnastics team advanced to the finals of the NCAA Los Angeles Regional after placing first in the second four-team semifinal session on Thursday night at Pauley Pavilion with a 198.275 score.
UCLA returns to Pauley Pavilion on Saturday at 5 p.m. for the regional finals. Utah and Washington, the top two finishers from Thursday’s first session, will compete, along with Missouri, which finished second to UCLA in the second session.
The top two teams from Saturday’s meet advance to the NCAA Championships on April 13-15 in Fort Worth, Texas. The top individual event finishers and the best all-around competitor who is not on a qualifying team will also advance.
The Bruins, the No. 4 national seed and the top seed in the regional, are vying for their first appearance as a team in the NCAA championships since 2019 (there were no 2020 championships due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
UCLA’s Jordan Chiles won the all-around with a 39.750 on Thursday, followed by Selena Harris at 39.650. Chiles also took first in the uneven bars and the floor exercise, while Harris was the top finisher on the balance beam among the second-session competitors.
The Bruins started the evening with a season-high 49.675 score on the balance beam, the fourth-best score in the event in program history. Selena Harris and Ciena Alipio, both freshmen, scored season-highs on the beam with a 9.975 and 9.925, respectively.
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Brooklyn Moors made her season debut in floor exercise after two exhibition routines earlier this season. She scored a 9.925 while subbing in for Emma Malabuyo, who was originally in the floor lineup.
The Bruins were in first place with a 99.175 at the midway point of the meet, then posted another season-high event score on the vault (49.575), the sixth-highest event score in program history. Moors made her competitive season debut in that event as well and received a 9.85.
UCLA added a 49.525 on uneven bars to round out the scores. Emily Lee filled in for Kalyany Steele at the last minute and recorded a 9.800 in the No. 2 spot.
More to come on this story.