The No. 5 University of Utah gymnastics team was back in the Huntsman Center on Saturday, Feb. 18, to take on No. 4 UCLA. With strong performances from both sides, the Red Rocks came out on top over the Bruins, and they took a 197.875-197.5 victory.

“We had a blast tonight,” said senior Baely Rowe. “We worked well as a team, staying in our Utah bubble, and we built off of each and every routine. We kept building off of each other and building off of the energy each and everyone of us had.”

In all-around, freshman MyKayla Skinner led the pack as she finished the meet with a total score of 39.675. UCLA’s Madison Kocian followed with a 39.550. Rowe didn’t trail too far behind in all-around as she trailed .025 behind.

“MyKayla was in a good place tonight,” said co-head coach Tom Farden. “I thought she did a really nice job, and she didn’t let some of the external stuff that come into play really affect her. She just went out there and did gymnastics and that is the gymnastics we see daily in the gym [from her] — just consistent.”

Skinner dominated the vault in the first rotation of the meet as she finished with a 9.925 score. Sophomore Kari Lee also had a strong vault routine following Skinner with a 9.9. UCLA started off strong on bars, featuring a perfect 10 performance. By the end of the rotation the Red Rocks and Bruins were tied 49.4.

On bars, the Red Rocks managed to take the lead over the Bruins with a running score of 98.8, leaving the Bruins trailing by two-tenths. The second rotation featured two 9.925 performances by Skinner and Rowe, and a 9.9 performance from junior tiffani Lewis.

In the third rotation of the meet, Rowe rocked the beam as she finished with another score of 9.925. Skinner, freshman Missy Reinstadtler and sophomore MaKenna Merrell tied for second following Rowe, and they all scored a 9.875. After the Bruins struggled on the floor exercise, the Red Rocks extended their lead.

In the final rotation of the meet, five out of the six Red Rocks on the floor received a score of 9.9 or higher. Merrell, Rowe and Skinner all finished their performances with a 9.95. Reinstadtler followed with a 9.925 and Lewis had a 9.9. In the end, the Red Rocks were the victors.

“We finally competed exactly how we train,” Lewis said. “On Tuesday, Tom had us do a mock meet. We warmed up and we competed, and I felt like today was exactly like Tuesday and that was our mission.”

Up next for the Red Rocks, they will be back on the road on Saturday, Feb. 25 as they head to Tempe, Ariz. to compete against Arizona State. The meet is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. MT.

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