The No. 2 seeded UCLA softball team (44-9) was without key junior pitcher/first baseman Megan Langenfeld during last weekend’s final regional game versus Fresno State.
Her hiatus from the diamond will not last long.
Langenfeld, who won her second UCLA/Muscle Milk Student-Athlete of the Week honor this past week, will return to play in time for the Super Regionals competition this weekend after bruising her left ankle.
“It’s always good to have the time off in between the weekends,” coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said. “She’ll be rested, and she’ll be ready to go for the weekend both offensively and defensively.”
Perhaps it was just fatigue that got to her. Over back-to-back outings last weekend against Long Beach State and Fresno State, Langenfeld threw a combined 265 pitches.
Nonetheless, she gave up just 10 hits in 14 innings of work and allowed three earned runs while striking out 12 and conceding three walks. At the plate, Langenfeld was a combined four-for-five over Friday and Saturday, including a home run and three runs batted in.
The Bruins did prove that they could still manufacture runs in her absence, scoring nine on Sunday against Fresno State. It gave sophomore pitcher Donna Kerr plenty of space to work with after the Bruins rallied from an early first inning 3-1 deficit by amassing seven runs in the top of the second.
“If something happens, then the next player has to have their back and make the next play, and we did a good job of that,” Inouye-Perez said.
On the season, Langenfeld now carries a microscopic 0.99 ERA and a 16-1 record while hitting .358 with seven home runs and 29 runs batted in.
Defensively, the Bruins committed four errors over the weekend and slipped to second in fielding percentage at .978 behind Georgia.
“Defense wins championships, and it’s always our goal to play solid defense,” Inouye-Perez said. “What this team has learned throughout this year is to be resilient, meaning that you’re not always going to make every play, but it’s what you do (in response) that is most important.”
The team did respond with three victories, but the mistakes didn’t go unnoticed.
“I think we just need to take our time more and just keep on playing our game,” senior Amanda Kamekona said. “Our defense is strong, and I’m really confident in it. I really do feel that we have the best defense in the country, and as long as we execute, we’ll be OK.”