There will be a different focus around Easton Stadium this weekend.
No. 1 UCLA softball (5-0) will host six teams as part of the Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament, in honor of a former UCLA player who died from lung cancer in 2001.
Stacy Winsberg was an integral member of UCLA softball’s 1982, 1984 and 1985 NCAA championship-winning teams before becoming a conditioning coach for the U.S. women’s national softball team at the 2000 Olympics.
Coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said it will be crucial for her team to reflect on prior Bruins and their accomplishments both on and off the field.
“It’s time for us to stop, appreciate and think a bit about how she represented UCLA,” Inouye-Perez said. “We’ll have an opportunity to honor her throughout the weekend because the Bruin family is not for just during a softball career but for life.”
Senior catcher/outfielder Taylor Pack touched further on Winsberg’s legacy and said she will be looking forward to wearing blue and gold this weekend in her honor.
“I think that it makes you really reflect and think about everyone who has come before you, and what we are representing every time we step out onto the field,” Pack said. “It just makes you really appreciate the moment.”
UCLA won all five of its away games at the Hawai’i Paradise Classic last week, in which high-swinging bats led them to two mercy-rule victories Saturday, scoring nine runs against Georgia State and putting 13 past Saint Mary’s.
Pack said they will need to have strong chemistry if they want to have a successful tournament.
“I think that we’re really clicking as a team and are focusing on ourselves rather than any of the opponents,” Pack said. “It doesn’t matter who the coaches put out there – we have everyone’s back and trust each other.”
UCLA will kick off the tournament with two games Friday against Cal Poly and Boise State, followed by matchups with Ole Miss and Fresno State on Saturday and finishing against UC Riverside and Loyola Marymount on Sunday.
The Bruins faced the Bulldogs on Feb. 7 in the Classic, winning 8-2. Sophomore pitcher Holly Azevedo pitched seven innings in her first outing of the 2019 season, allowing two runs on three hits to continue her undefeated pitching record as a Bruin.
Azevedo said UCLA’s camaraderie and depth strengthened this year’s squad and that her teammates must keep it simple if they want to power through their packed schedule.
“Six games in a weekend is a lot,” Azevedo said. “If I make a mistake, I know that they’ll pick me up, and if they make a mistake, I’ll pick them up, too. We’re just going to need all three of us – me, (redshirt junior pitcher/first baseman Rachel Garcia) and (freshman pitcher Megan Faraimo) – and make sure that we perform.”
Inouye-Perez said her team is ready to play despite current weather forecasts predicting heavy rains through the start of the tournament.
“I have a heavy feeling that in 2019 there will be some weather stuff going on, so we have got to prepare for it,” Inouye-Perez said. “The players are in great shape, are very athletic and versatile. Everyone is going to look forward to getting their opportunities and that allows for us to be strong and prepared.”