Senior pitcher Anjelica Selden fell behind the first batter she faced, 3-0.
From that point on, she dominated.
Selden proceeded to strike out the leadoff batter along with 12 other UNLV players, and the No. 2 UCLA softball team claimed a 1-0 shutout victory over the Rebels Wednesday at Easton Stadium.
Selden gave up just one hit in the win.
“It feels good to feel like I’m improving every game,” Selden said. “It’s really good to see myself do well. I’ve been feeling really confident every game and I felt the same way today.”
Coach Kelly Inouye-Perez attributed the win to solid pitching and defense.
“I think that we set a tone in the circle,” Inouye-Perez said. “(Selden) showed that she was going to dominate, and she did a great job of being consistent throughout the entire game. She started out 3-0 and I’m very proud that she turned that into a strikeout and finished very strong in the end.”
The Bruins’ only run of the contest came in the bottom of the fifth. Freshman Samantha Camuso opened the inning with a double over the center fielder’s head. Junior Jennifer Schroeder then laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Camuso from second to third. Sophomore Julie Burney knocked in Camuso with a ground-ball single that squeaked through the gap between short and third for what became the game-winning RBI. Burney said she approached the at-bat focused on producing a groundball that would get Camuso home. She said she was looking for a first-pitch strike, and she got one.
“I went up there and I knew there was a runner at third, and I knew that I needed to hit her in because that was our chance,” Burney said.
Inouye-Perez said she was most impressed by the sacrifice bunt that put Camuso in better scoring position.
“The biggest thing I’m really proud of is the sac-bunt,” she said. “Pitching, defense, and the sac-bunt are directly related to championship softball. Hitting will come and go, but you have to give yourself an opportunity to have someone be the one to clutch up. If you don’t do that it’s going to be a long ball game.”
While Camuso acknowledged that the team’s bats were quiet, she said a win’s a win.
“It was an average day for us, but with our talent we were able to get the win and that’s all that really matters,” Camuso said. “With (Selden) pitching, we only need to score a run or two.”
The victory extends the Bruins’ win-streak to 14 heading into the Long Beach State Invitational this weekend.
The Bruins will face two ranked teams in the weekend tournament, No. 25 Virginia Tech Friday and No. 8 Northwestern Sunday. The Bruins defeated Northwestern on Feb. 24 at the Palm Springs Classic in what was one of the biggest wins of their season.
UCLA will also face Notre Dame Friday, Rutgers Saturday and Long Beach State Sunday at the tournament.