It was another weekend of ups and downs for UCLA softball as the Bruins closed out the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic II in Cathedral City, California.
Following last weekend’s trend of inconsistency, the Bruins won two of their five games, dropping to 9-6 for the year. The Bruins have now lost half as many games as they did in the entirety of the 2015 season. Of the 15 opponents they’ve faced thus far, eight have been ranked in USA Today’s Top 25.
“We’re getting tested,” said coach Kelly Inouye-Perez. “We’re just not playing our best game right now.”
The Bruins started off with a strong showing on Thursday, holding undefeated No. 1 Florida (16-0) to only two runs through seven innings, but fell short 2-1 in the Gators’ closest game of the year. Although UCLA’s offense was shut down by Florida ace Delanie Gourley, the team bounced back on Friday with an explosive performance at the plate, amassing 14 hits in their 14-6 defeat of previously unbeaten No. 8 Georgia (13-1).
Six different Bruins collected RBIs against the Bulldogs, including freshmen Paige Halstead, who spent the game at first base, and designated player Taylor Pack.
“We were able to play a little bit more of our own game,” Inouye-Perez said. “Different people were able to step up and have good outcomes.”
UCLA’s pitching left something to be desired. Sophomore Selina Ta’amilo made it through only 1 1/3 innings before giving up two runs to the Bulldogs. Her replacement, fellow sophomore Johanna Grauer , allowed four more runs in the Bruins’ 14-6 victory.
Despite a solid 9-4 victory over BYU (9-6) in the second half of Friday’s doubleheader, UCLA’s defensive woes continued on Saturday against No. 12 Oklahoma (10-4). Grauer and Ta’amilo allowed the Sooners to score a respective six and five earned runs in the Bruins’ 11-7 defeat.
Errors continued to plague UCLA. The Bruins committed two in Sunday’s 7-2 loss to Northwestern (7-7), responsible for four unearned runs over the course of the game.
“As a whole we need to work on communication and staying together on defense,” said sophomore catcher Madeline Jelenicki. “Having the pitcher’s back, getting comfortable … just coming through and helping everybody out.”
UCLA has had some offensive struggles as well, stranding nine runners on base against Oklahoma, and eight each against Florida and BYU. Only 12 of the Bruins 47 hits this weekend were for extra bases.
“I think for the most part we were hitting the ball but we weren’t getting the outcomes we wanted,” said second baseman Kylee Perez. “We were hitting them right to the other team.”
Yet despite these early-season mishaps, the Bruins were still hopeful for the remainder of the season, as they fared well against some of the top teams in the nation.
“We didn’t get the outcome that maybe we wanted, but we’re facing good competition,” Jelenicki said. “ I think as a team that’s when you learn more.”
After spending the first 15 games of the season on the road, the Bruins now return to Westwood for their first home start of the year Wednesday against No. 2 Michigan (11-2).