February 21, 2025/Midnight
Erie, PA- After what seemed like a lull for a once dominating national and PAC 12 program, it has been officially rejuvenated back to life. Conference realignment and its impact on sports beyond the typical football and basketball bandwidth, seemed like it would leave uncertainty or even competitive strain on programs that once thrived and made names for themselves in old “home” conferences.
This was certainly the case for UCLA and its women’s gymnastics team. UCLA under the coach “Miss Val Era” swept PAC 12 honors and titles, was a consistent national final four contender, and even won the 2018 national title. However, after Miss Val retired, UCLA halted its immense and viral reign over the college gymnastics world. After the 2024 season, UCLA dropped to 9th in the Road To Nationals rankings.
Compared to the PAC 12 and SEC, the BIG 10 was not considered a “gymnastics” conference. This has now started to shift. Pieces are beginning to fall “perfectly” for UCLA. Having Jordan Chiles return for her senior year, along with other powerhouse gymnasts like Brooklyn Moors, Chae Campbell, Emma Malabuyo, and Emily Lee bolsters a strong returning lineup, and entices high-level recruits back to UCLA over other top programs like Oklahoma, LSU, and Georgia. Going against “lower” ranked teams in the BIG 10 allows for UCLA to showcase higher scores, and a higher winning percentage overall. Michigan State, another BIG 10 opponent, has skyrocketed to the national rankings and won the 2024 BIG 10 title. The two teams met for the first time in BIG 10 play on February 1, 2025.
This was a must-win meet for both teams. Michigan State was ranked No. 5, and UCLA at No. 6. By winning this meet, UCLA not only secured their spot in BIG 10 gymnastics but broke through the national top 5 and claimed their “dynasty” back from the “Miss Val Era”.
As someone who has been involved in the college gymnastics space for over a decade, and from the previous PAC 12 region, this resurgence of UCLA’s program has honestly shocked me. The meet against Michigan State seemed like a certain loss. Although UCLA hasn’t lost its “floor party” and stunningly locked-in floor lineup over the years, this simply cannot win an entire meet. Yet it did. UCLA came back to win, at home in Pauley Pavillion, and shook Michigan State’s bulletproof confidence in its beam rotation to snatch the win away.
UCLA has since recorded an 8-2 record, 5-0 in conference. February 17, 2025, new college gymnastics Road to Nationals rankings dropped, and UCLA rose to 2nd, climbing over the 2024 reigning national champions LSU.
