No. 5 seed UCLA gymnastics clinched a championship berth for the first time since 2023 Saturday after posting a 197.625 at the NCAA Salt Lake City Regional final. The golden ticket to Fort Worth, Texas, comes on the heels of a landmark season where the squad clinched the conference championship and went undefeated in its inaugural Big Ten season. As April 17 inches closer, assistant Sports editor Aaron Doyle breaks down five things the Bruins need to do to be in winning contention.

Stick vault landings

Vault has been UCLA’s weakest event for years.

But coach Janelle McDonald has recently put the squad on an upward trajectory. Bringing in two Level 10 national champion freshmen – Mika Webster-Longin and Macy McGowan – and bringing junior Jordan Chiles back into the roster has made the event’s depth stronger than ever.

That depth proved itself last week when McGowan – who consistently takes a sizable hop on her vault landing – missed both days of regionals April 3 and 5 because of a back injury. In her absence, UCLA still earned consecutive season-highs on the event, posting a 49.475 on the latter day.

While the season-high is something to celebrate, that total would not put UCLA on a 198.000 pace if the squad isn’t equally as strong in its key events. Additional stuck landings will be vital if the Bruins want a ring wrapped around their finger Saturday.

Put all four events together

The top national floor ranking could send a team into a frenzy, but that has simply become the standard for UCLA.

The floor squad held the top spot for three weeks early in the regular season before reclaiming it from Oklahoma to finish first in the season’s final floor party. And barring just three performances, the Bruins have posted at least a 49.500 on the event in every meet this year.

And beam – which was the Bruins’ weakest event by ranking last season – has taken a complete change in direction this year. At the Big Ten championships on March 22, UCLA posted the nation’s highest score on the event with a 49.750 after junior Ciena Alipio notched her first career perfect 10.

Vault and bars have been a different story. The squad has shown potential on the events, but the consistency is nowhere near what it is on beam and floor. And if UCLA wants to win a national title, it can’t rely on big scores on just two events.

UCLA started its season with a 48.200 on bars and ranked No. 30 on the event after the first week of competition. The squad has since climbed to No. 8, which is its lowest national ranking of any event.

Winning a national title almost always requires a strong four-event performance, but the Bruins have yet to put together their full potential this year.

Beat Utah

Utah always seems to get in the way.

And when the former Pac-12 rivals meet for the third time this season in the national semifinal, it will be nothing short of a dogfight.

The Red Rocks have defeated the Bruins in every dual meet since 2019 and have already beat them twice this season. And as the only program to have qualified for every national championship since the NCAA’s inception in 1982, Utah is a fierce competitor.

Grace McCallum – who won a silver medal for Team USA alongside Chiles at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics – will be one of UCLA’s biggest threats. The 2025 Big 12 Gymnast of the Year recorded four perfect scores this year, including back-to-back perfect 10 marks in her last two bar routines.

Utah finished the regular season just one spot above UCLA in the national rankings but arguably have had a more inconsistent season. The Red Rocks scored below a 197.000 four times this year, while the Bruins only did so once during their season opener.

It seems like it’s a given that LSU will qualify for Saturday’s competition, but it’s a toss up for that second ticket.

Find consistent lineups

Right when it mattered the most, UCLA lost one of its lineup regulars in three events.

McGowan was absent from the vault, bars and floor lineups April 3 and 5, respectively, after sustaining a back injury in training the week prior.

In her absence, sophomore Paige Anastasi stepped up in the vault lineup April 3 for her season-debut on the event but posted the rotation’s lowest score with a 9.725. On April 5, Anastasi was replaced by freshman Riley Jenkins, who recorded the second lowest score of the rotation with a 9.800. Katelyn Rosen filled McGowan’s void on bars a rotation later and tied UCLA’s lowest score on the event.

But even without McGowan, the Bruins posted consecutive season-highs on vault – an event long known to be their weakness.

UCLA proved its ability to hit even while shorthanded, but it can’t rely on its backups if it wants to win a national championship. The Bruins will need to find a stable lineup that maximizes their scoring potential.

Any score below a 9.900 will hurt the squad’s chances of winning, and McGowan’s return could be pivotal to UCLA’s chances.

Bring the party to Texas

UCLA is known for its floor parties.

Coined “The Best Show in LA,” the Bruins’ floor rotation rivets the Pauley Pavilion crowd as the fans cheer on the nation’s top ranked floor squad. UCLA has posted the nation’s highest floor total twice this season with a 49.800, each coming against Big Ten rival Michigan State.

And with the Spartans set to meet the Bruins again in the national semifinal, history could be on the verge of repeating itself. If UCLA wants to advance, a solid floor rotation could seal the deal.

It did when the Bruins won the Big Ten championship and when they upset Michigan State on Feb. 1 after trailing by .700 heading into the final rotation.

Graduate student Brooklyn Moors and Chiles are known for putting on a performance, and a stage like the national championship could send them to another pair of perfect 10s like those they put up at the conference championships.

While UCLA may not enter as the outright favorites, its ability to put up an out-of-this-world floor rotation is what sets the squad apart from the competition.