UCLA Defeats Fullerton in Men’s Gymnastics

Cal State Fullerton jumped to an early lead as Li Xiao Ping scored a 9.9 on the pommel horse, but No. 1-ranked UCLA came back with strong showings in the high bar and parallel bars to beat the Titans, 282.20-279.40, in a nonconference gymnastics meet at John Wooden Center Saturday night.

In the pommel horse, Xiao Ping defeated two former NCAA champions--UCLA’s Curtis Holdsworth, the 1986 champion, and Tony Pineda, who won the event in 1985. Both scored 9.65 Saturday.

Fullerton took the lead in the floor exercise, with Andrew Johnson scoring 9.8 for first place and teammates Bill Barham and Eli Rodriguez second at 9.7.

UCLA’s Pineda, Michael Chaplin and David St. Pierre finished in the top three in the all-around competition. UCLA is 22-3. Fullerton is ranked third in the country.