Despite a strong performance by the Arizona gymnastics team, No. 20 Arizona lost to No. 9 UCLA on Saturday 197.500-196.250.

“[The meet] was something that we needed to get us out of our funk,” head coach Bill Ryden said. “Even though we counted a fall and left some points on the floor, it was good for the team. This shows much more of what we expect of ourselves and how we can score and do routines.”

In the first rotation, the Gymcats scored a 49.125 on vault. Junior Kristin Klarenbach led the Gymcats with a score of 9.875. Sophomore Shelby Edwards had a 9.850, and junior Allison Flores scored a 9.825.

During the second rotation, freshman Selynna Felix-Terrazas led on the uneven parallel bars with a score of 9.900, marking a new career high. Flores also added a score of 9.900, tying her career high.

“It was an awesome feeling,” Flores said. “Getting a 9.9 is always a great feeling.”

The bars started out very poorly for the Gymcats after a fall, but the team was able to come together and pull out a 49.275. Freshman Gabby Laub and sophomore Lexi Mills both earned a 9.825.

The Gymcats then moved to the balance beam and were led by Edwards, who tied her career high with a 9.875.

In the final rotation, Flores and Klarenbach both tied their career highs with scores of 9.9 and 9.925, respectively.

“Honestly, it felt really good,” Klarenbach said. “I know I have been struggling with floor lately, and focusing on landings and being able to put it all together tonight was a great feeling.”

Ryden was very impressed with UCLA’s performance, but felt that the meet went the Gymcats’ way for the most part.

“We haven’t looked this good since our last home meet,” Ryden said. “We are going to have to get our act together on the away trips eventually, but we needed something to knock us out of the three-week slump that we were in. I think, overall, it was bittersweet that we left so many points off the board, but it was better than we have been doing.”

The Gymcats lost, but walked away proud of their performances.

“Overall, I think that it was a better effort than previous meets,” Flores said. “We’re really just trying to come up with a big score. We have two more home meets and being at home is always an advantage, so we have to more weeks to pick it up.”

The Gymcats will continue their three-week home stand on Sunday against the No. 14 Oregon State Beavers.

—Follow Matt Wall @mwall20