Although UCLA softball is reaching the end of its Pac-12 conference play, coach Kelly Inouye-Perez is still shaking things up for her squad.
Even heading into the series on a four-game winning streak, Inouye-Perez decided to utilize two brand new lineups this weekend as No. 8 UCLA (38-8, 12-3 Pac-12) earned a three-game sweep of No. 18 California (32-12, 5-10) in a tightly contested matchup.
“There’s a little method to the madness. There’s gonna be rotation. There will be times where people will be in a certain role, and that role may change,” Inouye-Perez said. “So I have to get great athletes that are committed to team over self. If they can trust that, then the coaches can sit down, and we can put (out) the best lineup on any given day.”
In what was nearly a mirror image of last season’s matchup, the Bruins struggled to dispatch the Golden Bears in the final two matches after winning the first game of the series in convincing fashion.
“They’re a great team. They have fight. You don’t see that with too many people,” said senior catcher Stephany LaRosa. “It’s never the end when it comes to Cal. (Saturday) they showed that and today they showed that again.”
In the second game of the series on Saturday, UCLA was able to squeak by Cal after trailing for much of the match. With a 3-2 lead heading into the seventh, the Bruins conceded the tying run and were forced to step up to bat.
After junior centerfielder Allexis Bennett got on base with a triple, sophomore shortstop Delaney Spaulding, who was hitting leadoff for only the fourth time this year, hit a walk-off home run, giving the Bruins a 5-3 victory.
Like Spaulding, LaRosa made a smooth adjustment to her own changed spot in the batting order. The senior catcher batted cleanup for the first time since March 7, and went three for six on the weekend with two home runs and four RBIs. LaRosa said her spot in the batting order does not factor into her approach at the plate.
“It doesn’t matter, you can put me anywhere in the lineup, I’m going to have the same at bat. I’m gonna have the same mental approach,” LaRosa said. “I’m still gonna look at the situation, if I have runners on, if I need a bunt, or if I’m going for mine.”
Cal came out swinging in the final game on Sunday, jumping on top of freshman pitcher Johanna Grauer early with two runs in the first inning. UCLA answered back with two runs of its own in the second inning, before taking a 4-2 lead in the fourth.
Senior pitcher Ally Carda came in for Grauer in the fifth inning and found herself in a bit of a jam. In what was an unusually poor performance for the player-of-the-year nominee, Carda pitched less than an inning and walked four batters. She was pulled for freshman pitcher Selina Ta’amilo after walking in a run in the sixth. Ta’amilo was able to get out the inning with only one run scoring.
“Knowing that (Ta’amilo) is a freshman, she is young, and to be put in a situation like that, bases loaded, no outs, it’s not easy,” LaRosa said. “How she came in, it’s very inspiring. She came in threw a strike right off the bat, and went at hitters. “
Ta’amilo was aided by a run-saving throw at the plate from freshman utility Kylee Perez.
“Kylee definitely has the strongest arm on the team, so knowing that it was going to be a bang-bang play, it’s nice,” LaRosa said. “We practice those, but you can never get that live feel for it in practice. She came up with a solid throw and got the girl out.”
Perez normally plays third base, but was given the nod in right field by Inouye-Perez on Sunday.
“We discuss it a little bit before, but everyone on the team is really adaptable. So wherever (Inouye-Perez) puts us, we’re pretty good,” Perez said. “We know our jobs so we just do what we need to do.”
After scoring a couple more runs in the bottom of the sixth, the Bruins ended up winning the final game of the series, 8-5.