Bruins injured but confident after Michigan win

Marcus Anderson
Published: Monday, March 10, 2003

Simply put, the Bruins (11-1-1) are on fire. The team’s 197.250-196.775 win at No. 10 Michigan last Friday showed UCLA in championship form and prepared for the postseason. Through superior talent, experience and confidence, No. 1 UCLA got the job done and continued to leave no doubt that it is the nation’s top team.

Undergraduate assistant coach Carly Raab explained the Bruins’ purpose as the team gears up for the postseason: “We’re in there to get the job done and achieve what we’ve set out to do all year,” she said.

Despite claiming the victory by less than a half a point, the No. 1 Bruins managed to beat the Wolverines on every event – a fitting outcome since the Bruins are also rated No. 1 in the country on all four events: bars, vault, floor and beam.

At Ann Arbor, the team finished the meet with a strong performance on beam, earning a 39.35. Freshman Kate Richardson contributed a 9.95 and helped put Michigan at a distance.

The Bruins’ performance on floor also earned a 39.35, just above the Wolverines’ 39.30. Unfortunately, the Bruins suffered a setback with an injury to Alyssa Beckerman. The junior dislocated her knee while competing on floor and is expected to be out for four to six weeks. She joins injured teammates Onnie Willis and Jamie Dantzscher on the list of ineligible players for the UCLA Invitational – the Bruins' final home meet against No. 14 Oklahoma, North Carolina and Rhode Island – on March 16.

“Hopefully giving some of our key people a rest will give us a break,” head coach Valorie Kondos Field said. “It’s always nice to see what your second string can do and I feel very confident that we’ll be able to go out there and get the job done.”

This far into a successful season, Raab acknowledges that injuries are a reality, a natural setback to the team.

“It’s always a concern that your main people are going to get hurt late in the season, because you need those people,” said Raab. “But, at the same time, we have a lot of depth and a lot of character. I’m not too concerned that any injury will really hold us back. We’ve got a lot of fight in us.”