The UCLA gymnastics team bid farewell to its seniors in a 197.850-197.400 win over rival Utah during the Bruins finale at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday night in front of an announced crowd of 13,089, a new school attendance record.
Jordan Chiles, an Olympic gold medalist, brought back a nostalgic floor routine set to ‘90s R&B hits to the delight of fans and won the meet’s all-around crown with a score of 39.800.
Bruins coach Janelle McDonald described the energy in Pauley as “magic.”
“It makes us really proud to represent UCLA and to be out here competing at this level against a really great team,” McDonald said. “There’s nothing like it.”
Tiana Sumanasekera started the night with a 9.750 off the vault. Mika Webster-Longin scored a 9.900 mark and Riley Jenkins followed it a 9.900. Ashley Sullivan scored a 9.975, receiving a 10 from one of the judges and earning her first victory as a Bruin.
“I feel like this was definitely a long time coming,” Sullivan said. “… I was trying to find that sweet spot of what zone do I need to be in mentally and physically to go into it.”
McDonald hyped up fans right before Chiles’ 9.950 to close off the rotation, giving UCLA a slim 0.050 lead over Utah.
On the bars, Ciena Alipio opened the event with a 9.850. Webster-Longin followed it with a 9.875. Despite landing off balance, Matthews added a 9.850. Sullivan followed with a 9.900. And McDonald twirled as Chiles landed on the mat to close her routine, earning a 9.950.
Ashlee Sullivan celebrates after completing a vault that earned a score of 9.975 during a meet against Utah at Pauley Pavilion on Saturday, March 15, 2026.
(Jesus Ramirez / UCLA Athletics)
Utah inched closer off the vault, closing out the second rotation trailing UCLA by 0.025.
Needing a big performance on beam, Barros set the tone with a 9.825. Webster-Longin recovered after losing balance during her performance to score a 9.800.
Sidelined because of an injury, Katelyn Rosen started a “10” chant with the audience after Sumanasekera landed a 9.900. Chiles’ teammates and the crowd cheered for a 10 after her performance, then fans booed when the judges’ score of 9.950 was revealed.
Alipio closed the rotation in tears, finishing with a 9.925 score. McDonald questioned the score with a judge, a sentiment shared by the crowd.
“It’s amazing to have the support of the crowd and just know that they are 100% behind me, but at the end of the day, I did what I could,” Alipio said. “I put up my best routine I had tonight and I honestly couldn’t be more proud of my last beam routine in Pauley.”
After the meet, McDonald said she was curious to see what the judge had seen in the performance.
“We don’t always agree with every score, and that’s the nature of the sport,” McDonald said. “We focus on the things that we can’t control and get feedback with routine summaries to see, ‘OK, what are you guys seeing?’”
UCLA moved to the floor exercise with a 148.300-148.125 lead after Clara Raposo for Utah was unable to finish her routine on floor because of an injury.
Alipio capped her senior night with a 9.800. Webster-Longin followed with a 9.875. Barros delivered a 9.900 score and Sumanasekera finished with a 9.925.
Sullivan, who’s become the set-up for the anchor, earned a 9.900 on floor. Performing her routine from sophomore year, Chiles closed the meet with a 9.950 and held back tears while getting mobbed by her teammates.
The Bruins will next travel to Champaign, Ill., to compete in the Big Ten Conference championship meet.
With every remaining meet on the road this season, Alipio is not worried the team will lose its edge.
“Energy is energy,” Alipio said. “Whether it’s positive or negative, we can flip it around and use it to our advantage.”
Chiles is equally confident in the team’s ability to win anywhere.
“We bring Pauley everywhere. I am Pauley,” Chiles said. “ … The music, the vibes, the everything — we are Pauley and I think that’s why it’s so easy for us to walk into an arena and look at [it] and be like, ‘You know what, this is our house.”
“If we’re the best show in L.A.,” she added, “we can be the best show in the world.”