The UCLA softball team acquired a good deal of momentum by sweeping No. 14 Oregon at the end of last week.
The Bruins will try to build off of that momentum as they head to the Bay Area to face two struggling teams. No. 12 UCLA (28-11, 4-4 Pac-10) will take on No. 18 Stanford (27-12, 3-6) today and California (26-23, 2-7) on Saturday and Sunday.
“These are three wins that we really need,” senior shortstop Jodie Legaspi said. “Every game from here on out is a win that we’re going to need to pull through and get.”
While the Cardinal and the Bears occupy the bottom two places in the Pac-10 standings, neither team is an easy victory.
With three conference wins, the Cardinal have still shown the ability to be able to win in the Pac-10, and two of their six losses were drubbings at the hands of the Golden Bears.
While the Pac-10 has consistently been the strongest conference in softball, this year it is as strong as it has ever been, with added parity.
“The Pac-10 teams in general, there is a respect for each other in that we all help each other,” coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said. “We can look at it as if we all beat each other up, but we have such a respect for how people have to show up and they have to play the game. Every week we have an opportunity to be challenged head-to-head with an opponent that you have to work to get a “˜W’ at the end.”
BRUIN OFFENSE GETS HOT AGAIN: UCLA’s formidable offensive attack was briefly silenced in a 7-0 loss to Oregon State last Friday. But it didn’t take long for the bats to bounce back.
The Bruins pounded out 18 runs on 24 hits against Oregon in the final two games of the weekend. Seniors Lisa Dodd and Tara Henry were a combined 9-12 in the final two games (Dodd belted her team-leading 10th home run in Sunday’s win) while junior leadoff hitter Krista Colburn went 5-9 with five runs and four RBIs.
Colburn has filled the shoes of last year’s star leadoff hitter Andrea Duran admirably this year. Her performance over the weekend raised her team-leading batting average to .415 and her on-base percentage is .486. Colburn also leads the team with 16 multi-hit games and is currently sporting a six-game hitting streak.
“Even if she doesn’t get on, she’ll go hard every time,” Dodd said. “It really does set a tone and the fact that she gets on a lot gives us opportunities to drive her in and manufacture runs. She’s been crucial to our success.”
As a team this year, the Bruins are second in the Pac-10 in batting average (.312) and slugging percentage (.513). They also lead the conference in on-base percentage (.414).
QUICK HITS: This year the team has been a victim of 17 hit by pitches. This is not necessarily a large number, but what makes it interesting is the fact that 12 of the 17 HBPs have been taken by freshmen left-handed hitters Kaila Shull and Megan Langenfeld. Senior Ashley Herrera, who tore her ACL in the first game of the season, had successful knee surgery last month and is rehabbing with the intent of applying for a medical redshirt and competing in 2008. Reserve junior infielder Jennifer Schroeder also had knee surgery last month and is rehabbing.