Parsons Wins Two Titles in Loss at No. 2 UCLA

Los Angeles, Calif. ? The 19th-ranked Nebraska women’s gymnastics team suffered its second loss of the season at UCLA, as the Huskers were defeated by the No. 2 Bruins, 197.05-192.65, Monday afternoon in front of a Pauley Pavilion crowd of 1,016.

Nebraska freshman Emily Parsons led the Huskers by capturing individual titles on floor exercise (9.90) and vault (9.90), but UCLA still ran away with the competition with two event titles and four of the top all-around scores.

Parsons placed fifth in the all-around with a 38.925.  Along with her floor exercise and vault titles, Parsons tied for sixth on bars (9.80) and fourth on floor (9.725). Sophomore Kristi Esposito followed with fourth- and sixth-place finishes on floor and vault, respectively, to finish sixth in the all-around competition with a 38.425.

Sophomore Michele Zabawa added the final piece of a three-way tie with Parsons and Esposito for sixth on bars. Senior Richelle Simpson earned third-place honors on the balance beam with a 9.900 and tied for sixth (9.750) on vault. NU’s other top performers included sophomore Stephanie Carter, the fourth-place finisher on vault (9.825), and freshman Desire Sniatynski, who placed fifth (9.850) on bars.

UCLA’s Kate Richardson won the all-around competition with a 39.525. Richardson placed in three of four events, including a second-place 9.875 on vault behind Parsons. The Bruins’ Jordan Schwikert also placed in the top three in every event to finish second in the all-around with a 39.475, and her sister, Tasha, captured the uneven bars title with a 10.0 and finished fourth in the all-around (39.200). Third-place in the all-around went to three-time NCAA champion Kristen Maloney, who won the balance beam (9.975) and took third on vault (9.850).

Nebraska began the competition strong on the uneven bars behind Sniatynski's fifth-place finish with a 9.850. Esposito, Zabawa and Parsons followed with a 9.800 to tie for sixth place. In addition, Simpson and freshman Brittney Williams each scored a 9.775 to round out NU's scoring. The Huskers finished with a 49.025 on the event.

The Huskers then moved on to vault, where they found a strong performance from Parsons. The St. Charles, Mo., native captured the individual title with a career-high 9.900. Carter added a 9.825 to finish fourth, and Simpson earned a 9.750 to tie with UCLA’s Jordan Schwikert for sixth place. Williams added a 9.700, while Esposito and Sniatynski both finished with a 9.525 to lift NU to a team score of 48.700.

Parsons led NU with a 9.900 while taking first on the floor exercise, and Esposito earned fourth place with a 9.725. Williams added a 9.350, and senior Jamie Saas was awarded a 9.100. Carter rounded out the Huskers’ floor lineup with a 9.075, and NU finished the event with a 47.150.

The Huskers capped the afternoon on the balance beam. Simpson led the team with a 9.900, which earned her a third-place finish. Saas finished fourth behind Simpson with a 9.825. Despite solid scores from the two seniors, the Huskers managed just a 47.775. Nebraska was forced to count three falls, after Parsons (9.325), Carter (9.350) and Esposito (9.375) completed the event with penalized scores.

"We came out and had a great first half today," Head Coach Dan Kendig said. "We did a lot of great things today, but we could have finished on a stronger note in the second half. It’s uncharacteristic of our team to miss four beam routines. We just need to learn from what happened today and look ahead to improve at Florida."

The Huskers continue a four-meet January road schedule with a dual at No. 10 Florida this Friday, Jan. 21 in Gainesville, Fla., at the O’Connell Center at 6 p.m.