Lansing Sun

Michigan State gymnastics faced a narrow defeat against UCLA, with the Bruins securing a win by a margin of 0.100 in Los Angeles. The final score stood at 197.300-197.200 in favor of UCLA.

Michigan State's current record is now 5-2 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten Conference, while UCLA improved to 6-2 overall and remains undefeated in the conference at 3-0. The Spartans achieved their second-highest score of the season during this meet.

The Spartans excelled in vault and bars events, with junior Nikki Smith winning her third all-around title of the season, scoring 39.475. The team set a program-record on vault with a score of 49.600.

In the first rotation, UCLA led narrowly after both teams performed on bars and vault respectively. MSU's Kellerman achieved a season-high tying score of 9.925 on bars, earning her second event title this season.

MSU gained an advantage after an impressive vault rotation, leading by 98.900-98.500 halfway through the meet. Kellerman, Smith, and Zsarmani each scored 9.950 on vault, marking Smith's fourth such score this season.

During the floor routine in the third rotation, MSU extended its lead further with Smith achieving a top score of 9.900 for Michigan State on this event.

However, the competition remained intense until the end as UCLA's Jordan Chiles scored a perfect 10.000 in her floor routine to edge out Michigan State by just one-tenth of a point.

Gabrielle Stephen placed third in the all-around competition behind teammate Nikki Smith and UCLA’s Chae Campbell with a total score of 39.325.

Michigan State will host Minnesota next Saturday at Jenison Field House with coverage available on B1G+.