UCLA’s Dantzscher Wins All-Around

Jamie Dantzscher didn’t know she needed to score a 9.85 on the uneven bars, UCLA’s final event, to take the lead in the tense competition for the NCAA women’s all-around gymnastics title.

The sophomore from San Dimas got a 9.90 for her strong, assertive routine Thursday night, but she knew Alabama’s Andree Pickens was capable of scoring a 10 on the balance beam and forging a tie.

“She could have done it easily,” Dantzscher said. “Her beam routine is gorgeous.”

Pickens came close, with a 9.95. But the crowd of 5,656 left Coleman Coliseum happy on the first night of the NCAA women’s gymnastics championships because even though Dantzscher won the all-around title, the Crimson Tide edged the Bruins for the highest point total in the second session of the preliminary team competition.

Alabama (197.300), two-time defending team champion UCLA (197.100) and Stanford (196.050) advanced to tonight’s “Super Six” team final. They joined afternoon winners Utah (196.775), Georgia (196.650) and Nebraska (196.575).

“I was very pleased with the poise of our team,” UCLA Coach Valorie Kondos Field said. “We came out a little flat. We started on the balance beam, and that’s tough to start on. We all had a few minor mistakes, but I’m always interested in seeing how we come back from mistakes. They did it with poise and confidence.”

Dantzscher recovered from an almost imperceptible bobble on the beam to score a 9.875. Her total for the four events was 39.675, just ahead of Pickens (39.625) and Theresa Kulikowski of Utah (39.600). UCLA junior Onnie Willis, who shared last year’s all-around title with Elise Ray of Michigan, finished eighth (39.425), and Bruin sophomore Yvonne Tousek was 13th (39.275).

Dantzscher downplayed her achievement. “It’s not what’s most important to me,” she said. “I’m more focused on the team. I think we did well, but we didn’t do our best.”

Dantzscher also qualified for Saturday’s individual event finals in all four events. She will be UCLA’s lone representative in the vault, but will be joined by Alyssa Beckerman in the balance beam final, by Willis on floor exercise and by Doni Thompson, Tousek and Willis in the uneven bars final.

Georgia Coach Suzanne Yoculan predicted tonight’s team final will be tight. “I personally think Utah is as strong as UCLA and Alabama,” she said.