Full Results
LOS ANGELES - The Fighting Illini were defeated 197.200-194.700 by the No. 8 UCLA Bruins on Saturday (Jan. 25) in their first Big Ten match up at Pauley Pavilion.
The Orange and Blue started the night on uneven bars, where Chloe Cho earned a 9.850, tying a career high. Senior Makayla Green and fifth year Amelia Knight followed closely behind with a 9.825 and 9.800 respectively.
Illinois turned up the heat on vault, with Olivia Coppola setting a new season high (9.800) on vault in the lead-off spot. Cho again worked some magic, earning a career-high 9.875 before Mareli Muller tied her career high (9.800). "As a team, the vaulters really stepped up," said head coach Nadalie Walsh. "They stuck over half the landings, which was a great improvement."
The Illini were back 0.575 of the Bruins as they headed into the third rotation: floor exercise. Emmalise Nock earned a season-high 9.875 to lead the Illini. Arielle Ward (9.750) had her sass and style on full display, entertaining the crowd of over 7,000.
The final rotation would be where Illinois' night stalled. After two routines with large deductions, Knight (9.775) and Coppola (9.800) were able to right the course. Cho continued her strong showing with another career high on beam (9.925), earning her the event title. "She's been handling competition like a veteran," Walsh said of the freshman.
Kentucky transfer Megan Sapp made her Illini debut as a beam exhibitionist with a 9.775.Â
In her return to her home state of California, Cho finished third in the all-around competition with a score of 39.350, just shy of the career best that she set last week vs. Nebraska (Jan. 18). Muller finished fourth with a 37.825, her second-best score.
"We had a lot of individual highlights during this competition that I am proud of and excited about," said Walsh. "Chloe winning beam is top of the list, and Olivia rocked vault as our lead off and has truly grown comfortable and confident on beam, which has been great to see. I'm confident that these women are eager to get back to the gym and fix the errors they made. They are a talented and dedicated team who will make the adjustments they need to make for next weekend at Penn State."
The Illini will be back in action on Friday, Jan. 31 in University Park, Pa. facing the No. 19 Nittany Lions beginning at 5 p.m. CT.
Event Titles
Chloe Cho - Balance Beam (9.925)
Career Highs
Chloe Cho - Vault (9.875), Uneven Bars (9.850), Balance Beam (9.925)
Mareli Muller - Vault (9.800)
