GYMNASTICS / WOMEN’S WEST REGIONAL : Andrews Leads UCLA Into the NCAA Finals

From the beginning of the meet, there was pressure on Jill Andrews. With two of UCLA’s three All-American gymnasts injured, Andrews said she felt responsible for carrying her team in the NCAA West Regional Saturday night at the John Wooden Center.

So while her teammates chatted and laughed as they waited to perform, Andrews, the only senior, stood back. She paced, stretched and stared at the gym floor, mentally rehearsing her routines.

And when it was her turn, she jumped and danced and vaulted the Bruins to the NCAA championships, which begin April 20 at Corvallis, Ore.

UCLA held the lead from the beginning and scored 192.05 points. Cal State Fullerton was second with 191.6, followed by Oregon State at 189.7 and Washington at 187.475. California and Stanford tied for fifth with 185.9 points, followed by Boise State at 185.375.

This was one of five regionals held Saturday. Twelve teams will be selected to compete in the NCAA championships. Cal State Fullerton Coach Lynn Rogers said he expected to know whether his team made the finals late Saturday night.

This was Andrews’ last chance at an NCAA championship, a title the Bruins have flirted with her entire college career. UCLA has finished in the top three the past three years. Last year it lost the championship to Georgia by .05.

Andrews scored a 9.8 on the vault and tied her season best on the uneven bars with another 9.8. She scored 9.7 on the beam by executing a perfect dismount--two one-arm handsprings with a full twist. On her final event, the floor, she tied two teammates with a 9.825. She won the all-around title and scored her highest point total in a meet this season--39.225.

She did it all with an injured elbow.

“She ran into a yucca tree and the blade went into her elbow,” UCLA Coach Jerry Tomlinson said. “When she came in this week with it wrapped, it was like the straw that broke the camel’s back. We already had enough injuries. But she is the world’s best competitor.”

UCLA competed without All-Americans Kim Hamilton and Shawn McGinnis, both out with ruptured foot tendons.

Andrews said she was more nervous than normal.

“I missed a couple practices this week because of the elbow, and then today I woke up with a cold, but I’m pleased with my performance tonight,” she said.

Fullerton gymnasts delighted the crowd with their floor routines. Lisa Dolan, Stacey Harris and Heather Thomas each scored a 9.7. Margot Gumerlock, executing a perfect double back with a one-and-a-half twist, scored a 9.8, to tie the school record set by Dolan earlier this year.

Joy Selig of Oregon State was second in the all-around with 38.75 points; Carol Ulrich, a freshman at UCLA, and Heather Thomas, a senior at Fullerton, tied for third at 38.35, followed by Stacy Fowlkes, Harris and Dolan.

The highest score was a 9.9 on the bars by Cal freshman Cindy Tom of West Covina.