Janelle McDonald came to Westwood with a dream.

While most head coaches aspire to win a national title, McDonald knew there was something else she had to do first – revive the unity of the squad.

She may achieve both dreams this season, as No. 5 seed UCLA gymnastics (29-4, 9-0 Big Ten) prepares to face No. 1 seed LSU, No. 4 seed Utah and No. 8 seed Michigan State on Thursday in Session II of the NCAA national semifinals. Although this is McDonald’s second nationals trip since taking the reins of the program in 2022, the third-year coach said she is confident that this time, with a renovated mindset, the squad has what it takes to go all the way.

“When the team is in it together – working together, pushing each other – then the gymnastics starts to fall into place really strong, too,” McDonald said. “They’re able to push each other to truly bring out the best in one another, and that’s what we need to be able to compete at the highest level.”

On Thursday, the top eight teams will vie for a spot in Sunday’s national final, popularly dubbed “Four on the Floor.” Rotating alongside the Bruins are California’s Mya Lauzon and Maddie Williams and Michigan’s Sophia Diaz, who all qualified as individuals from their respective teams.

UCLA will have a third chance to take down Utah, already falling to the squad 198.100-197.425 in its dual meet March 15 and again April 5 in the regional final.

“The hardest part (of the postseason) was regionals, and I know we got all of our nerves out,” said senior Emma Malabuyo. “This is the last meet to go big, take a risk and rise to the occasion, because we’re so ready, and we can lean on all of our experiences we’ve been through throughout the season.”

UCLA will also fan the flames of a burgeoning new rivalry at the semifinals, facing Michigan State also for the third time this season. In the Bruins’ Feb. 1 meeting, they came back from a .700 deficit in the final rotation, notching a nation-high 49.800 on floor and beating the Spartans in their first Big Ten matchup.

LSU may not be a frequent opponent, but the two squads went toe-to-toe last season at the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad, where the Bruins succumbed by just half a tenth. The Tigers went on to win their first-ever national championship, and Tiger coach Jay Clark’s crew hasn’t fallen to the Bruins since 2018.

Since former UCLA head coach Valorie Kondos Field’s departure in 2019, the squad has had difficulty going the distance in the postseason, reaching nationals just once in 2023. After taking third in the regional semifinal last year and falling short of nationals qualification, this season will mark the first nationals appearance for half of the squad.

“The conversation is really to not make it bigger than any other competition,” McDonald said. “They’re really prepared. And if they go in with the mentality of just focusing on the things that are in their control, then they’re going to be able to go out and just crush it.”

After a back flare-up kept her out of regionals, freshman Macy McGowan remains a question mark after being pictured in a boot Tuesday. However, even with the potential of losing a mainstay on floor, bars and vault, McDonald said she is confident the squad has the depth to persevere.

After a long season that started with UCLA’s lowest team score since 2022, Malabuyo said the team still has gas left in the tank.

“It was like a wake-up call,” Malabuyo said. “I think that experience, alongside other times when we’ve had little bumps in the road or not the best competitions, built a fire inside of us, and that makes us hungry for more.”

The Bruins will open Thursday on floor and finish on beam.

While they typically end with a bang on floor in Pauley Pavilion, they’ll begin there this time – following the same event order as in 2018, when the Bruins last captured the national title.

“I think that if we’re just focused on what we’re doing and focused on what we’ve been working on all week, we’re going to take the whole thing,” said graduate student Chae Campbell.