Unbeaten UCLA Women Gymnasts Take On Washington

Trying to maintain its unbeaten string, the top-ranked UCLA women’s gymnastics team (9-0 overall, 6-0 in the Pacific 10 Conference) will play host to No. 11 Washington (11-6, 3-4) at 7 p.m. Sunday at John Wooden Center.

Last week the Bruins defeated Stanford, 186.35 to 183.5. Bruin sophomore Jill Andrews won the vault with a 9.7 and posted a 9.5 in the all-around to tie Stanford’s Dina Amoroso for first place. UCLA junior Tanya Service had a 9.6 to win the bars.

In 1976 Peter Fleming and Brian Teacher were the last from UCLA to win a tennis title in the Pacific Coast Open Doubles Championships.

This year’s tournament will be played Friday through Sunday at La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club, and UCLA Coach Glenn Bassett will have three teams in contention: Patrick Galbraith-Brian Garrow, Robert Bierens-Jason Netter and Giora Payes-Paul Scholtz. Bierens will play without his usual partner, Buff Farrow, who has a pulled groin muscle.

Last week Galbraith and Garrow defeated Pepperdine’s top doubles team of Andrew Sznadjer and Robbie Weiss as the No. 6 Bruins upset the No. 5 Waves, 6-3. Pepperdine had to default the No. 6 singles and the No. 3 doubles matches because several players had the flu. The Waves swept the top three singles matches, but the Bruins won the No. 4 and 5 singles and the first and second doubles matches.

The Bruins, 10-2 in dual matches, will play host to West Virginia at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Los Angeles Tennis Center on campus.

The top-ranked UCLA women’s softball team, 11-1 overall and 2-0 in Pac-10 play, will entertain No. 14 Cal Poly Pomona at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Sunset Canyon diamond on campus.

Last week the Bruins swept three straight double-headers, defeating UC Santa Barbara, Cal and the University of San Francisco. In the second game against USF, UCLA sophomore All-American Lisa Longaker pitched her third shutout of the season and struck out a career-high 14 batters as the Bruins won, 8-0.

Allen Sarlo and Randy Wright are among six professional surfers from Venice who will compete in this weekend’s $15,000 B. A. Pro-Am Surfing Championships. Events will begin at 7 a.m. Friday and end with championships in surfing and body-boarding at 1 p.m. Sunday at Manhattan Beach Pier.

Sarlo, 30, is seeded 13th in surfing. Wright, 25, is 16th. Other Venice competitors among the field of 144 are Solo Scott, Rafael Lunetta and brothers John and Dan McClure.

The No. 6 UCLA men’s swim team (8-2 overall, 3-2 in Pac-10 meets) will compete in the conference championships Wednesday through March 11 at Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach.

After entering last week’s meet with USC with a 14-4 lead in diving, the Bruins lost, 72-41. The only winning swimmers for UCLA were the 400-yard medley relay team of Darren Ward, Giovanni Minervini, Craig Oppel and Rob Graner and Graner in the 100 freestyle. Minervini qualified for the NCAA meet with a 55.62 in the 100 breaststroke.

The UCLA women’s basketball team (16-10 overall, 9-5 in Pac-10 action) will play host to No. 8 Stanford (23-1, 13-1) at 7 p.m. Friday and to California (14-12, 5-9) at 7 p.m. Saturday at Pauley Pavilion.

Last week the Bruins lost to Washington and defeated Washington State. Against the Cougars, UCLA center Althea Ford scored a career-high 18 points and had 14 rebounds to tie a career-high mark. Bruin forward Dora Dome had 30 points against Washington and a career-high 15 rebounds against WSU.

The No. 5 UCLA men’s volleyball team, 18-3 overall, will play at Stanford on Friday and UC Davis on Saturday.

The Bruins defeated Pepperdine in a five-game match in the opening round of last week’s Reebok tournament and lost the three-game final to top-ranked USC. Earlier, the Bruins defeated Cal State Northridge in five games without senior All-American Don Dendinger, who had a sprained ankle.

In the Pepperdine match, UCLA sophomore J. B. Saunders had a career-high 30 kills, and freshman Mike Whitcomb had 21 kills and 9 blocks. Against Northridge, sophomore Mike Garcia had 26 kills.

Among those named to the all-tournament team at the Reebok were Pepperdine’s Randy Bergstedt and UCLA’s Matt Sonnichsen and Saunders.

The No. 8 UCLA women’s swim team finished third last week in the Pac-10 championships as Stanford won its second straight crown. But the Bruins qualified several individuals and relay teams for the NCAA championships.

Qualifiers are Jenny Susser, 50-yard freestyle (23.51) and 100 free (50.61), Micki Ward, 200 butterfly (2:01.2), Jean Badding, 200 breaststroke (2:20.82), freshman Melissa Skinner, 100 breaststroke (1:05.15), 200 medley relay team of Catherine Capriles, Skinner, Jeannette Beitz, Susser (1:44.72), 400 medley relay team of Sue Potrepka, Skinner, Ward, Beitz (3:49.89) and diver Karla Goltman, who finished second in the 1 and 3-meter events.

Gail Devers won three events as UCLA opened its track season by winning a double dual meet, beating UC Riverside, 131-11, and Cal State Los Angeles, 119-26. Devers took firsts in the 100-meter hurdles in 13.4, the 200 in 23.66 and the long jump in 20-2 1/2. Freshman Tracie Millet won the shot and was second in the javelin.

The Bruins will compete Saturday in the Aztec Invitational at San Diego State.

The UCLA women’s golf team tied for seventh place last week as Tulsa won the San Jose Invitational. Top finishers for the Bruins were freshman Debbi Koyama at 233 for 13th place and sophomore Jean Zedlitz, who finished 17th with a 234.