Frazier faceoff: Sisters Margzetta and eMjae Frazier go head-to-head for first time in UCLA-Cal showdown

There’s more than meets the eye when you initially size up this weekend’s annual UCLA-Cal Pac-12 matchup. In an unexpected turn of events, sisters Margzetta and eMjae Frazier will have the opportunity to compete against each other, head-to-head, for the first, and possibly last, time.

Gymnastics Now spoke to both Margzetta and eMjae ahead of Saturday’s matchup between the No. 7 Golden Bears and No. 6 Bruins.

“eMjae better beat me because I’m old, so she has no excuse,” Margzetta laughed. “That’s all I’m gonna say. I’m just gonna keep it there. But you know, I coached her, so she better prove my coaching top tier and kick my butt. That’s what I’m expecting.”

The Frazier family never thought the sisters would get the chance to go head-to-head in college, with Margzetta being almost four years older than eMjae. It wasn’t until Margzetta decided to come back for a fifth year that this battle of the Frazier sisters became a possibility.

“Oh, my parents would joke about it, but we were joking,” Margzetta said. “It was a joke… but now it’s actually happening.”

While eMjae’s big sister said she’s expecting the freshman to beat her, she also said the two will keep it strictly business during Saturday’s matchup, staying focused on their teams’ goals. The California rivals sit side by side in the rankings heading into the meet.

The teams have technically faced off against one other in two multi-session mega-meets earlier this season at the Super 16 meet in Week 1 and the Wasatch Classic in Week 2, but UCLA and Cal were never in the same session. At the Super 16, Cal was second overall (197.475) while UCLA was fifth (197.275). A week later at Wasatch, the Bruins topped the Golden Bears 197.850-197.525.

“At the end of the day, I’m there to compete for my team and to be a rock for my team, which means, mentally, I have to be very consistent,” Margzetta said. “I just have to be a professional in this situation.”

Professional and competitive is what came to mind when little sis was asked about facing Margzetta on Saturday.

“We’re very competitive, so it’s probably going to make it even more competitive with us,” eMjae said. “We’ll probably say our [hellos] or whatever in the beginning, and then once the meet comes, it’ll be us in our own zones like, yeah, we’re sisters, but right now, we’re going against each other.”

While there is an apparent difference in age – eMjae just turned 19 while Margzetta turns 23 on February 25 – and where they are in their gymnastics careers – the start of a collegiate journey vs. the end – eMjae says there are still clear similarities. She explained that, while their styles of gymnastics are different, she doesn’t think those differences are all that noticeable to most.

“I don’t know if I can say that we will be able to show that we’re very different gymnasts because we grew up in the same environment almost, so it’s kind of hard to have big differences,” eMjae explained. “She’s graceful and powerful, and so am I. I’m definitely excited to go out there and showcase that I am my own person, of course.”

Margzetta disagrees with eMjae’s assessment though.

“She’s always been very accurate and technical and able to do these big tricks and skills that I still can’t even process,” Margzetta said. “Like a double layout, still doing a double on vault, or double-doubles on floor – skills I’ve never been able to do before. So that, and I think she’s way more flexible than me. And I think our thought processes are very different.”

eMjae says another similarity they share is their personalities.

“It’s funny because she’s very outgoing, but so am I,” eMjae said. “We’re completely different gymnasts, but a lot of our personality is very similar.”

It’s another statement that big sis will agree to disagree on.

“I think we’re like that in personalities, too,” Margzetta said. “eMjae is way more anal and I’m just like, whatever. You know, I think that’s us.”

Either way, Margzetta shared how proud she is of eMjae and her career thus far.

“I’m so proud of her. My parents and I learned about gymnastics together,” Margzetta said. “We both knew nothing, and I always felt kind of bad because we dragged eMjae into this world.”

It’s a world that the Frazier sisters have taken by storm, each in their own way, and not just at the collegiate level.

Before Margzetta stole the show at UCLA with more than 100-straight hit NCAA routines, she was a U.S. National Team member. She is also the 2021 Pac-12 uneven bars champion, an All-American three times over, and a four-time All-Pac-12 honoree.

eMjae is an accomplished elite gymnast as well. She’s been a member of the U.S. National Team and is the 2022 Winter Cup champion on floor, silver medalist on beam, and all-around bronze medalist. She was also a member of the 2021 world team.

The Frazier sister star power is alive and well, with both young women thriving on the NCAA stage now and for at least a few more years, as Margzetta passes the torch to her built-in best friend.