The true character of a team is revealed when it is put under intense pressure, when its back is against the wall with nowhere to go. Under these strenuous conditions, a team will either rise up to the occasion or wilt under the pressure and fall to mediocrity.
This weekend against Washington State (25-23, 8-13 Pac-10) is such a moment for the Bruins.
UCLA has been successful thus far in Pac-10 play, amassing a conference record of 12-6, an overall record of 28-22, and five conference series victories. But the Bruins are in uncharted territory: They are coming off three consecutive conference losses at the hands of Arizona State, all of which the Bruins had an opportunity to win. The baseball team hopes to erase the bitter taste of defeat from last weekend when it travels to Pullman, Wash., to face the Cougars.
With the knowledge that they were in each game and had an opportunity to win all three games last weekend, Bruin players and coaches emphasized that they are not going to change their approach to the game.
“I don’t think that we have to change a lot,” coach John Savage said. “We are confident in our ability to play well and competitively in this league, and have shown that ability the last few weeks. But we need to rebound. The good teams rebound and come back after tough losses. So far we have had a good week of practice. This weekend we just need to have that sense of urgency and to play within ourselves.”
The players believed that despite coming off their first conference series defeat, their mentality has not changed and their preparation is the same as it has been all year.
“This week, we are preparing for Washington State like any other series we have played this season,” sophomore shortstop Brandon Crawford said. “Last weekend, we played well even though we lost all three of the games. We know we could have won all three of those games. So, we are not going to change anything in terms of our preparation or what we are going to do.”
While the weekend sweep in the desert at the hands of the Sun Devils dropped the Bruins out of first and into second place in the conference standings, the team believes that, in a way, last weekend helped the team in the long run.
“I think that in some way, last weekend was what we needed,” third baseman Jermaine Curtis said. “We still have a long way to go before the season ends, and last weekend showed us that we need to work harder and get better. In two of those games, we had seven-run leads yet were unable to close the deal. It helps us because it showed us that we need to develop and have that killer instinct. We need to realize that we can never be enough.”
Despite the Cougars’ conference record of 8-13, players and coaches were adamant about not overlooking the challenge they present in order to look ahead to Memorial Day weekend’s showdown with the Oregon State Beavers.
“They are a good team,” Savage said. “They went into a tough environment in Oregon State and won two of three. They also beat Arizona two of three. So we know that they are playing well in a tough conference like the Pac-10. They have good pitchers and good position players that we need to be aware of. We need to be ready to play this weekend, come with the intensity that is needed, and need to get after it.”