With an 11:15 a.m. first pitch, the earliest on the schedule for the Long Beach Louisville Slugger Invitational, UCLA suffered from no morning slumber as the offense scored in the first two innings of the game.
UCLA erupted for seven runs in the opening frames, including six in the second inning, to continue the offensive onslaught the Bruins put forth over the course of the weekend.
No. 13 UCLA (17-5) led Northwestern (7-10) from wire to wire in the last of five games from this past weekend’s invitational, and came away with a 8-2 victory. This game put a cap on a successful weekend in which the Bruins came away with a 4-1 record in part because of the Bruin bats, which scored 42 runs. Senior catcher Stephany LaRosa played a key role as she personally drove in six runs, busting out of a self-proclaimed miniature slump.
“My first two weekends out, I did not come out as hot as I was this weekend, so taking that into consideration, I’ve put in a lot of work,” LaRosa said. “I went back to the basics, I asked my coach to throw me (batting practice) over and over and hopefully I could swing out of it.”
The Bruins took on the Wichita State Shockers (9-9) and the Long Beach State 49ers (9-8) on Friday before playing the Southern Utah Thunderbirds (3-10) and the Portland State Vikings (5-9) on Saturday prior to Sunday’s matchup against the Northwestern Wildcats (7-10).
The Bruins split the pair of games on Friday as they defeated the Shockers 11-0 in five innings, but suffered their first defeat against an unranked opponent – the 49ers – by a score of 5-4. On Saturday, the Bruins handled the Thunderbirds and Vikings with ease by a cumulative score of 19-2, with neither of the two games extending past five innings because of the collegiate softball mercy rule.
The collegiate softball mercy rule states that if one team is ahead by eight or more runs after the fifth inning, the game will be called as final. This ruling played a prominent part in the Bruins’ weekend as three of their five games were shortened, and it could not have come at a better time, according to coach Kelly Inouye-Perez.
“It helps the pitchers, it helps the team, it builds confidence, and it also can literally save the arms. There is a lot to be gained from being able to take advantage and having the run-rule effect end the ball game,” Inouye-Perez said. “Nothing but positives out of that on the offensive and defensive end.”
Sunday’s game against the Wildcats was in the Bruins’ hands after the second inning as they went up 7-0. With the offense firing on all cylinders, senior pitcher Ally Carda had all the run support she needed. Carda flirted with her second no-hitter of the year as she held the Wildcats hitless through five innings before conceding a lead-off single in the sixth.
Junior outfielder Allexis Bennett was a catalyst for this game as she finished with one hit and one run. In addition to this game, Bennett was one of the few Bruins who managed to get a hit in every single game. Bennett finished with seven hits to go along with a .576 average. She attributes her and the team’s offensive surge to the productive practice sessions the team has continuously had.
“Practice has everyday been on fire. We’ve been working together and just connecting everything – just making everything solid and working on the fine details,” Bennett said. “Practice has been going very well, and I’m looking forward to preparing for next weekend.”
This upcoming weekend, the Bruins return home to Easton Stadium as they take part in the six-game, three-day Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament. This tournament marks the beginning of a ten-game home stand for the Bruins, and the Bruins could not be happier.
“Home games are a great opportunity for us. We get a chance to be at home. We are still here in our dorms and our apartments,” LaRosa said. “We practice on the same field so really understanding that we have the advantage in that sense, the way the balls hit the fences and the backstops and stuff like that. I think it will be a great ten days for us.”