Conquering the Big Ten is no easy feat – but the Bruins pulled it off.

Now, the squad has its sights set on the biggest prize. And lessons learned a year ago taught that the road to the final face-off can be treacherous.

No. 5 UCLA gymnastics will return to the Jon M. Huntsman Center for the second time in three meets, facing off against No. 12 Minnesota, Southern Utah and Boise State in the second round of the NCAA regional championships Thursday in Salt Lake City. It was in the very same round last year that UCLA’s season came to a close following a third-place finish.

However, the Bruins own a 13-3 record in 2025 heading into the postseason and went undefeated in conference play. The squad is also fresh off a March 22 win at the Big Ten Championships, where it scored a season-high mark of 198.450, the highest score at any conference championship that weekend.

“Our goal is to stay hungry and not get complacent,” said senior Emily Lee. “And with spring break and the bye week, it can be easy to let your guard down.”

UCLA will need a top-two finish Thursday to advance to the regional final. There, it’ll face off against three teams – one from UCLA’s session and two others from session two, which includes No. 4 Utah, No. 13 Stanford, Denver and the round-one winner between BYU and Utah State.

The Red Rocks could enjoy a distinct advantage in their home stadium, but the Bruins are no stranger to the area, having dueled with the foe for years in the Pac-12 before they split conferences in 2024.

“In a high-pressure and loud arena that is the Utah arena, I felt the moment I stepped in on bars and raised my hands to compete, I was back in my zone,” said sophomore Katelyn Rosen. “I was thriving under that energy.”

Rosen, who was sidelined for nearly two months in the early half of the season, returned to lineups at the Big Ten championships and posted season-high 9.925 and 9.875 marks on beam and floor, respectively. Her three-event exhibition against Utah the week before had showcased her best marks since the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad on Jan. 11.

Six UCLA gymnasts earned regular season All-American honors March 31 – the most out of any program this year – and tied the school record set by the 2018 and 2019 squads, with the former winning the national title that year.

The six, juniors Jordan Chiles and Ciena Alipio, senior Emma Malabuyo and graduate students Chae Campbell, Brooklyn Moors and Frida Esparza, are all veterans who have helped the team maintain top-eight rankings across all four events.

“When we’re discussing how we can do better as a team between meets, she (Alipio) is always the first one or one of the people that will talk about stuff, point things out and hold people accountable,” Lee said.

Alipio’s spot in the All-American balance beam second team represents her first All-American honor and comes just over a week after her first-ever perfect score on beam at the conference championships. With an NQS of 9.915, Alipio finished the regular season ranked No. 15 on the event – a far cry from her No. 243 ranking last season.

Backing up the veteran core is UCLA’s freshman trio of Riley Jenkins, Macy McGowan and Mika Webster-Longin, who could play prominent roles in UCLA’s postseason run. Jenkins has shown promise with a 9.850 season-high on vault. McGowan has competed on vault, bars and floor in every meet this season, averaging 9.817 or higher and topping at 9.900 or higher on all three.

And with 9.900 or better season-highs in three events, Webster-Longin has already shown glimpses of her potential.

“She (Webster-Longin) is in the picture on all around for us, and she is showing up every single day and is just very steady and hard working,” said coach Janelle McDonald. “For a freshman to have that mentality already is cool to see.”