It could have been better.

Those were the sentiments of the UW gymnastics team and coach Joanne Bowers following the Huskies 194.000-188.175 loss to fifth-ranked UCLA at Pauley Pavilion Saturday night.

“We did not have a very good meet,” Bowers said. “We had hoped to do a lot better.”

The Huskies, on the rebound from a poor 2006 season, had gone into the meet hoping to show opponents — not to mention judges — that they were a new team with a fresh outlook.

As is often the case in a sport where one slip up can spoil an entire routine, things did not go according to plan.

The Huskies began on bars, an event that has been strong in intrasquad competition. Low scores from specialist Raimey Iselin and Nicole Waiss put the team into a hole from the beginning.

“We struggled,” Bowers said. “We struggled from the get-go.”

The UW fought back on vault, where junior Natalie Gillan’s 1.5-twisting Tsukahara vault earned a 9.775, the team’s highest score on the event, tying her for fourth place with UCLA’s Natalie Padilla.

On beam, sophomore Ashley Houghting nailed her set, scoring a 9.725 and tying for top honors with UCLA’s Kristina Comforte. Houghting also turned in the Huskies’ highest score on floor with a 9.725.

UCLA wasn’t without its problems either, but they were few and far between. Junior Tasha Schwikert proved why she was good enough to represent the United States at the 2000 Olympics, placing second in the all-around to teammate Anna Li, despite small errors on uneven bars and balance beam. Gillan was third with a 37.825 combined score, and Washington senior Chelsea Bakken was fourth with a 37.025.

“We felt we did fairly well, but we were shaky,” senior Tori Quandt said after the meet. “I think we sort of got psyched out by UCLA, which is an amazing team.”

Despite the struggles, Bowers is confident the team will continue to improve. Washington felt it had something to prove at UCLA, she said, and sometimes mistakes are made when a team tries too hard.

“I think we were a little bit intimidated,” Bowers said. “We’ve got a long road back.”

Bakken said she felt the scoring at UCLA was a little lower than it has been in previous years, but that the team had ample room for improvement.

“I think we tried a little too hard, fought a little too hard,” she said. “We have a lot of room for improvement.”

Husky gymnasts have a week to polish their routines before taking on Utah State Friday at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. The team will be working on its consistency in preparation for the Aggies, Bakken said.

“I think pretty much everyone got their nerves out this week,” she said. “I think we can go in and be more consistent.”

Reach reporter Blythe Lawrence at blythelawrence@thedaily.washington.edu.