In the bottom of the sixth inning in game two of the NCAA Super Regional, UCLA pitcher Ally Carda wiped the sweat from her forehead, held her glove to her chest and took a deep breath. The senior had just walked in Missouri’s third straight run of the inning – more than she allowed in the previous five innings combined. With the bases loaded and her pitch count at 127, Carda stared down the plate, where one of Missouri’s main sluggers – catcher Kirsten Mack – stood with a chance to cut UCLA’s lead to one on a home run.
Carda leaned in and delivered three consecutive strikes to Mack, ending Mizzou’s short-lived momentum swing. Armed with an early lead in their 10-6 win over No. 10 Missouri (42-16) on Sunday, No. 7 UCLA (50-10) was able to avoid a repeat of last years’ super regional heartbreak in which it squandered a 1-0 series lead to Kentucky. The Bruins will now travel to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series, the first time since 2010.
“Last year, we were in the same boat and lost two,” Carda said after Saturday’s game one win. “We gotta come out tomorrow like it’s day one. … We can’t take anything lightly. Hopefully we get on the board early and often, and still stay strong on defense.”
Maintaining a strong defense was key for the Bruins in their reversal of fortunes this year. They fulfilled Carda’s hopes, holding the Tigers to one run for the better half of the game on Sunday, and recording one error all weekend compared to Missouri’s four. Over the final two games of last year’s super regional, UCLA had four errors compared to Kentucky’s one.
It was the Bruin offense, however, that took center stage in this year’s super regional. Carda was able to rely on a solid lead on Sunday to avoid the pressure of pitching a full three-game series. UCLA had home runs from sophomore shortstop Delaney Spaulding, senior catcher Stephany LaRosa and junior third baseman Mysha Sataraka.
Sataraka played an integral role on offense all weekend. In Saturday’s game her home run gave the Bruins the lead after the Tigers’ four-run third inning. The third baseman was the first to put the Bruins on the scoreboard on Sunday with an RBI in the second inning in addition to her two-run homer in the third which gave the Bruins a 6-1 lead.
“It’s great to see (Sataraka) get her payback here in the biggest moment,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez. “All of her at bats this weekend were quality at bats … but that’s backed by hard work. This team put in work.”
The Bruins took offensive control during Sunday’s game, grabbing four runs in the second inning and five more in the third and fourth, leaving Missouri to fight an uphill battle. By the time the Tigers entered the bottom of the sixth, they were trailing by eight runs.
Seven of the Bruins’ 10 runs scored on Sunday were two-out RBIs, demonstrating the batters’ ability to rally under pressure. This composure coupled with the power behind the Bruin bats clinched a chance at the Women’s College World Series for the first time in the past four years.
Road to the world series
UCLA will take on No. 2 seed Oregon (51-6) in Oklahoma City in the opening round of the Women’s College World Series on Thursday. The world series tournament will hold a double-elimination format.
“I don’t think it’s really hit any of us yet,” Spaulding said, who went two for six with two RBI in the super regional. “We’re really excited and just living in the moment. … And tomorrow we’re gonna get right back after it and take it all the way into (Oklahoma City).”