Utah’s first showdown in gymnastics with rival UCLA went as expected, with the two Pac-12 teams going back and forth in their first meeting of the season on Sunday in Reno, Nev.
In the end the fourth-ranked Bruins came out on top, winning the Elevate the Stage meet in Reno with a 197.2 while the second-ranked Utes were second with a 196.975. Washington took third with a 195.725 and Stanford was fourth with a 195.25.
Utah sophomore MyKayla Skinner won the all-around with a 39.7, scoring 9.95s on the vault and uneven bars, 9.975 on the floor and 9.825 on the balance beam.
Even though the Utes didn’t win, co-coach Tom Farden was happy with the team’s efforts.
“To come out this early in the season and compete on a podium and hit 24-for-24 routines was good,” he said. “It’s another step in the process. We know we have to go full force on all four events.”
The one event in which the Utes didn’t do that on Sunday was the balance beam.
The Utes scored just 48.8 because the judges gave several routines 9.9 start values for apparent missed connections. The only gymnasts to break the 9.8 mark were Skinner (9.825) and Kari Lee (9.8).
“That is something we’ll have to go back and look at,” Farden said of the deductions.
What made him happy, though, was the way the Utes battled after the beam rotation.
At that point the Utes were in third with a 98.1 while UCLA led with a 98.425 and Stanford was second with 98.25. The Utes responded with a 49.45 on floor as all five five counting scores were 9.825 or higher, topped by a 9.95 from MaKenna Merrell-Giles and a 9.975 from Skinner.
The Utes trailed UCLA by .275 going into the final rotation where Utah would finish on the vault and the Bruins on the uneven bars.
Utah posted a 49.425 on the vault, led by Merrell-Giles’ 9.9 and Skinner’s 9.95, but the effort just wasn’t good enough to overcome the Bruins.
The Utes will get another shot at the Bruins on Feb. 18 in Los Angeles.
“We match up with them well,” Farden said. “It’s a battle. We hung with them the whole meet so we will go back to the gym, get some work in and see them in a few weeks.”
The Utes will have a short week since they host Oregon State on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Huntsman Center.
Individual results<br>Vault: MyKayla Skinner (Utah) and Elizabeth Price(Stanford) 9.95<br>Uneven bars: MyKayla Skinner (Utah) and Kyla Ross (UCLA) 9.95<br>Balance beam: Elizabeth Price (Stanford) 9.85<br>Floor: MyKayla Skinner (Utah) 9.975<br>All-Around: MyKayla Skinner (Utah) 39.7
