Mild temperatures and rainy conditions in Berkeley couldn’t put a damper on the UCLA softball team’s torrid offense this weekend.
After the first game was cancelled due to a rain-out, the No. 2 Bruins (44-4, 15-3 Pac 12) scored 23 runs in the span of two days to capture a three-game sweep of the California Golden Bears (23-23, 4-12).
Entering the series, the UCLA offense had been on fire, scoring eight or more runs in each of its last six games. The rain-out temporarily cooled down the Bruin bats on Friday, but they came out firing in a doubleheader on Saturday.
In the first game of the Saturday doubleheader, the Bruins blitzed the Golden Bears with 11 runs en route to a five-inning mercy-rule victory. The mercy-rule win relieved the Bruins from playing an additional two innings on a day they were already playing one more game than they initially expected.
“I mean (the doubleheader is) definitely different,” said junior pitcher Ally Carda. “It’s hard to stay present each pitch with that many innings in one day.”
In the second game of the doubleheader, Carda and the Bruins stayed present and maintained their hot streak at the plate. After Cal took a 2-0 lead in the first inning, UCLA’s bats responded by scoring seven runs over the next two innings to build a 7-2 lead.
“It’s just really, mainly, just about making adjustments throughout the game,” said freshman shortstop Delaney Spaulding about the Bruins’ offensive success.
Cal came back in the later innings, cutting UCLA’s lead to 9-7 with one out in the sixth inning. But Carda came in and finished off a day highlighted by offense with some dominant pitching, as she held Cal scoreless for the remainder of the game.
On Sunday afternoon, UCLA had its most closely contested game of the series. After Carda led off the game with a solo home run, the UCLA offense finally cooled off – sort of.
The Bruins failed to score over the next four innings, but not because of a lack of baserunners. UCLA left eight runners on base through the first four innings, keeping the door open for a Cal comeback.
Cal erased its 1-0 deficit with a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth. Then, the UCLA offense steadily heated up again.
With two outs in the top of the sixth, and the Bruins trailing 2-1, Spaulding stepped to the plate with Carda on first base. After failing to reach base in her first three at bats of the game, Spaulding made an adjustment.
“I was just focused on attacking the ball early in the count,” Spaulding said. “(The Cal pitchers) like to get ahead (in the count), and that’s something that we will all try to jump on.”
Spaulding swung early in the count and drove a ball deep to right field that just missed being a home run. Carda came in to score on Spaulding’s deep double, tying the game at two apiece. The next inning, UCLA took a 3-2 lead when senior pitcher Jessica Hall hit a sacrifice fly on her first pitch at bat. The Bruins would go on to win by that score.
“I believe the hitters are doing a great job of talking with Lisa, coach Fernandez, on kind of setting a plan,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez.