For the first time all season, the UCLA softball team is
entering a weekend on a winning streak. For the first time all
season, the Bruins don’t have to worry about getting out of
any kind of slump. And for the first time all season, UCLA is
entering a weekend having moved up in the national rankings. Yet
when the Bruins host No. 25 Washington for a two-game series today
and Saturday, their attitude and mind-set will remain the same.
“These games are very important,” UCLA first baseman
and pitcher Lisa Dodd said. “We have to prove last week
wasn’t a fluke.” So instead of mentally relaxing while
on a winning streak, the Bruins say they’re working just as
hard, if not harder. “We have to just keep the same
attitude,” Dodd said. “We have to find ways to get it
done, even if we have to win ugly. All season, we kept trusting our
approach and clawed our way through it. We have to hold on to
that.” The No. 10 Bruins (23-10, 4-4 Pac-10) are on a
four-game winning streak and are coming off of a weekend in which
they swept No. 3 Arizona. The winning streak is a 180-degree turn
from the 0-4 start UCLA had to its conference season. “The
wins over Arizona were a huge confidence boost,” third
baseman Andrea Duran said. “It shows us the talent that
we’ve always had. It was just kind of hiding, but we got to
see it.” Even though Washington is one of the
conference’s weaker teams, the Huskies have been nationally
ranked for most of the season and beat the Bruins in all three
conference meetings between the two teams a year ago.
“Washington’s very interesting,” UCLA coach Sue
Enquist said. “I want this team to go out there not knowing
which Washington team will show up.” The Huskies (21-14, 3-5)
have been inconsistent throughout the season, but most recently,
crushed No. 21 Arizona State in two games over the weekend, beating
the Sun Devils 8-0 and 12-4. “They’ve put up some big
numbers this year,” Enquist said. “I’d love to
have the numbers they just put up against ASU.” Enquist
pointed out that her team only beat Arizona State by four runs when
the two teams played a week ago. “It would be really immature
to look at these like gimme games,” Enquist said. And from
the looks of things, her team isn’t taking the Washington
games for granted. “We’ve been approaching every game
the same all year long,” Duran said. “It’s just
that now we are able to see us produce on the field. Hopefully, we
get the same outcome this weekend.” To try to get the same
results this weekend, Enquist challenged her team to work even
harder this week ““ a challenge she thinks her team has met.
“I’m very pleased with our work ethic,” she said.
“I don’t sense any complacency.”
SHORT HOPS: Dodd, who had been having a down year in the circle,
pitched four innings on Sunday and allowed only one run to an
Arizona team that boasts one of the best lineups in the country.
… Duran has been on fire of late, hitting .500 in Pac-10 games.
… Despite her three-home run, nine-RBI series against Arizona,
UCLA catcher Emily Zaplatosch did not win the Pac-10 Player of the
Week honors, which instead went to Stanford’s Michelle Smith.
… Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week Honors were given to UCLA’s
Anjelica Selden. … Today’s game at Easton Stadium is a 1
p.m. start, while Saturday’s game is a 2 p.m. start.