Jordan Chiles scores perfect 10 in UCLA gymnastics’ comeback win over Michigan State – Daily News

LOS ANGELES — The No. 6 UCLA gymnastics team keyed in on the intensity of floor exercise in the fourth and final rotation of the meet to pull off a comeback win over No. 5 Michigan State on Saturday afternoon.

Chiles was battling illness all week and had a 104-degree fever on Wednesday but still managed to score a perfect 10.0 with her Prince-themed routine that allowed UCLA to edge Michigan State 197.300-197.200.

The 197.300 extends UCLA’s streak of scoring 197 or higher to four meets.

“I’ve done the flu game once before,” Chiles said. “If you take it back to 2017. It’s not fun but I knew in that moment that no matter what, how strong I am and I have people around me that can help me and support me. At the end of the day, we’re going to just keep pushing forward and I knew what my role was.”

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UCLA gymnast Jordan Chiles scores UCLA’s first perfect 10 of the season with her Prince-themed floor routine. #sportsreporter #sports #reporter #journalism #ucla #gymnastics #ncaagymnastics #bigten #olympian

♬ On Go – Bill Grippin’

Emma Malabuyo finished first on balance beam and UCLA claimed the top four spots in floor exercise to hand Michigan State its first Big Ten loss of the season.

UCLA (6-2 overall, 3-0 Big Ten) was trailing by roughly one point heading into floor — an event that it ranked second nationally in. Emily Lee made her season debut in the event and kicked off the team’s signature “floor party” with a 9.875.

The individual scores steadily climbed after that and each gymnast scored 9.900 or above. Brooklyn Moors and Chae Campbell each hit 9.975, which marked a career-high for Moors, to help boost UCLA to a nation-high 49.800 event score.

“We literally had no words after that,” Moors said. “We put everything we had and more into that last rotation. I think it’s just knowing that the work we’re doing is paying off and we’ll see more tens soon.”

UCLA led early on but fell behind at the midway point of the meet, which was the first gymnastics meet to ever be televised nationally on FOX.

The fourth-ranked vault squad in the nation allowed Michigan State (5-2, 2-1) to take a 98.900-98.500 lead. Three out of six gymnasts recorded a 9.950 on vault for a 49.600 team score — which outdid the Bruins’ 49.350.

Chiles scored a team-best 9.925 on vault but had a major deduction on uneven bars that hurt UCLA’s overall event score. No gymnasts surpassed a 9.850, which resulted in a season-low team score of 49.150.

Chiles recovered from the uncharacteristic performance and an impromptu dismount change on bars to hit a sharp routine on balance beam. She scored a 9.850 in her second competitive appearance of the season in the event.

“One thing about me when I’m sick is I forget how my brain works on bars,” Chiles said. “I just got frustrated and was like, I already forgot to do my pirouette, I forgot to do a while skill so I might as well do a double layout. I just need to get off of bars.”

Ciena Alipio’s score suffered a deduction when she fell on beam before calmly resuming the choreography with a side leg extension. Malabuyo was the next and final competitor on the apparatus, and her experience showed.

The Philippines Olympian danced next to the beam while waiting for her cue to perform, then delivered a 9.925 score to anchor the Bruins and get them to a 49.00 event score.

“Her getting up and nailing that beam routine was critical in resetting the tone,” head coach Janelle McDonald said. “It allowed us to go to floor and compete freely and aggressively. Emma has an incredible energy about her.”

UCLA secured the win on national television and in front of a Pauley Pavilion crowd of 10,681 during its annual alumni meet.

“Everyone really rallied behind us and we could feel that when we were coming from behind,” Campbell said. “It’s always special. We love drama, apparently.”

Originally Published: February 1, 2025 at 5:36 PM PST